Sancho805

here's the breakdown...

* adding a CAI alone with factory MAF diameter will yield minimal overall gains. not enough to notice. only noticeable difference you may feel will be in the throttle response which makes sense with any less-restrictive air intake. for the amount of money these intakes cost, the bang-for-buck ratio is very poor.

* adding a CAI + custom tune will yield SUBSTANTIAL gains. want the most out of this combo?... get a CAI with OVERSIZED MAF diameter to get the most volume of air that our 4.0's can suck in. BUT, with these "oversized" intakes, a custom tune is an ABSOLUTE MUST! our ECU's cannot adjust for the much higher volume of air. you will run lean, throw a code and damage your engine if driven long enough in this state.

* if you really want a top performing CAI that will save you money in the long run because you likely won't have to upgrade CAI's again... SAVE your $200 and wait to buy a larger CAI + custom tune combo. the strong desire just to have a certain mod is what drives some owners to make irrational purchasing decisions.

* JMO...

Sancho805

1. 100% correct

2. If they are inaccurate on #1, they i would raise an eyebrow for #2.

* marketing/advertising claims are aimed to SELL a product. no sales, no business. the best way to weed out exaggerated products is by hearing what honest experienced users have to say. this is what makes the forums such a great resource (at times). of course there is also another weeding process that needs to happen in the forums as well

MustangFirstCar

If you can't afford a tune, don't bother with a CAI. You won't feel much of a performance benefit if any at all with only the CAI. For 200 bucks, you basically get nothing. So spend 200 bucks for nothing, or spend 600 bucks for something awesome.

tdurham19

This is a question for the people with the people with the bbk intake, with out the the tune. Could you hear a diffrence after you put it in?

kevinmalec

A member in the Mustang Club I belong to has a V6 w/out a tune and his BBK makes a loud whistling noise. I can hear it as he is driving away, a good 20-30 yards away. I have an Airaid CAI and mine does not sound that loud.

If you are interested in adding a stand alone CAI for looks, then that's fine. However, if you are adding the CAI for performance, you will only feel minimal gains (4-6 HP). You can always order a tuner/custom tune at a later date.