Should I get a bbk cold air intake, or a flow master american thunder axle back exhaust for my 2005 v6 4.0??? I want the biggest hp gain out of the two I don't really care about sound. Either way I am getting them both done I just want to know which one should I buy first?

 

This is more about opinion I say get the exhaust for the better exhaust note, some will say get the CAI for future upgrades mostly if you get a tuner. You won't really notice any hp increase from these directly anyhow.

 

Neither will do it!

 

Your signature is WAY too big.

 

I don't know how to change it. I mean if I spent 15 min playing with it I could change it but I'm too lazy at the moment.

 

Thanks. I have heard different stories from different people. The people for kragen auto parts said the intake will increase around 10hp. And the guy I go to at Fortes said the same. But then when I look at these forums people with actual mustangs say if I'm lucky I'll get5. I am not going to take it to the track or anything. It's more for personal enjoyment. But if neither mod is even noticeable that kind of defeats the purpose.

 

I actually thought you had posted a picture in this actual thread when I saw that signature.... Fml.

 

Since your mind's made up, go with the CAI and make sure you get a tune with it. There are no other mods out there for N/A cars which have bigger seat-of-the-pants gains than:
1. CAI/Tune
2. Gears/T-Lock

The rest are nickle and dime stuff, but it does indeed all add up. But from my experience modding my car, this is true and I can safely say that other N/A car owners with 1. and 2. would agree with me.

If I had to do it all over from scratch, I'd still have all the same mods on my car, but I would've done 1. and 2. in that order first.

 

Does it matter what brand of CAI I install? Will a bbk CAI affect my car the same as a no name brand CAI?

 

Honestly? It seems all CAI's are within 5 rwhp after all's said and done for our V6's. I mean even the ones that don't require a tune will see nearly-equivalent gains AFTER a tune as those which require a tune first thing. Others will flame in, but it's really nothing more than similar to the misconception that TB spacers add gains.

I think it's more personal preference on brand name, quality, and reliability.

In other words, I won't see any significant improvement in performance going from my K&N CAI with Bama 91 Race Tune to say, a C&L or JLT. We're talkin a tube with MAF and cone filter for cryin out loud. If I want 5 more hp THAT bad someday, then I guess I may go out and spend over $200 for 5hp. But until my K&N is melted away by a shark-mounted lazer, it's on for good LOL

From my personal experience with my car, the tune is the biggest factor in improvement; not the CAI per se. Now we can get into a discussion that mods can build upon mods and create a symbiotic performance increase, but I'm not gonna bother.

Get the CAI with the name and looks that you like, get a tune, and you're gonna have fun. That's the truth!