youngfalcon

New owner/member here with first post. I am looking at a bunch of cold air systems and see a wide range of prices. Are the high dollar units much better than the average or lower price units? Do they really make more HP and increase mileage? I'm not into racing but thought they look like a good idea. What would you recommend? I don't want to spend any more money than necessary. Thanks for any replies.

Ricardo

If it doesn't require a tune, it's for looks. That's what drives the price up.

I have a JLT and it came witha tuner and 3 tunes and it made a real difference on the street over stock GTs.

Everyone is going to jump on here and tell you theirs gives the most gains but I'd stick to calling up one of the more established vendors like Brenspeed or Americanmuscle and ask them what they found out on a dyno. This way you'll get a product with real gains and the customer support to back it up with lifetime tunes.


Oh yeah...Welcome to the forums!

xx10Gt

You'll see most of the gain from your tune. The cai will probably yield around 5 hp, if any at all. Actually i just read an article about how some aftermarket cai's dont filter out alot of harmful particles as well as stock/other brands. Depends on what type of filter though i believe.
Point is that the tune/tuner is what is most important.

ghunt

You definitely need a tune, BUT not all CAI's are created equally, IMO. I have a C&L Racer which is HUGE, it's a 4" diameter with a huge filter on the end. The JLT and a few others are similar. Then there are others that have a much smaller filter and smaller diameter tube, like the K&N. I don't know if those are no-tune intakes or what, but I know with the tune and C&L I felt a huge difference on my car.

Also if you want to google it, one of the mustang mags (I think 5.0?) did an intake test a few years ago, it's worth reading. They don't make the old style JLT anymore but it and the C&L Racer finished on top.

Nuke

Stand-alone CAI's on these engines provide minimal gains; on the order of 3-4 RWHP. The PCM (Power Control Module) needs to be told what the incoming air flow is in order to make any substantial use of the extra flow.

You'll often see CAI & tune combos. The tunes are written using proprietary software which not only adjusts for the airflow but also changes/enhances quit a few other performance-related parameters. As far as the individual CAI's, the power gains from the CAI itself are all pretty much the same so chose the CAI based on what appeals to your eyes and wallet. The CAI & custom tune combo yields about 20-25 RWHP on the 4.6L with the tune providing about 80% of the overall gain.

Check out American Muscle's and Brenspeed's websites for info and deals on combos.

youngfalcon

Guys,

Thanks for your replies. Very helpful!

youngfalcon

Thanks for your replies - they were very helpful!