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My homemade CAI

K

kdubhoffy

New member
I would like to hear any comments or suggestions. Both filter's have heat sheilds so air is only drawn from the front of the cone. One is drawing air in from the fenderwell and the other where the factory filter was drawing air. Made with abs pipe. It works quite well and total cost was 80 bucks. http://i326.photobucket.com/albums/k411/kdubhoffy/ScottCAI006.jpg[/IMG

[IMG]<a href="http://s326.photobucket.com/albums/k411/kdubhoffy/?action=view&current=ScottCAI004.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i326.photobucket.com/albums/k411/kdubhoffy/ScottCAI004.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
 


ScottCAI006.jpg


do you think the two filter action is worth it or do you have some other purpose for it. i would almost bet that a straight 4" pipe with a 22.5* bend like i have will work better.
 
the only other problem with that is well 2 things the turbulence of sucking from 2 sources and then more turbulence from keeping the stock part that attaches to the tb. i would stick with a long strait tube and a smooth connector imo
 
badbuick85 said:
the only other problem with that is well 2 things the turbulence of sucking from 2 sources and then more turbulence from keeping the stock part that attaches to the tb. i would stick with a long strait tube and a smooth connector imo
Click to expand...

Well, with the supercharger, turbulence is not going to be a big issue, though I see what you are saying. But even if the air flow was perfectly straight, when it hit that blower a whole bunch of turbulence would be added, to say nothing of the effect of the Lower Intake Manifold.

That said, I think its an interesting set up, I just think that he might be better off with a larger filter and overall tube diameter and less bends.
 
Thanks for the comments and/or suggestions. The reason I went with the 2 filter set up was for 2 reasons. First, the filters are small and one filter would not have been suffient. Secondly (and by luck) both filters end in locations where the air will be much cooler as both locations can suck in outside air. There are alot of CAI's on the market that have little or no research or thought put into them. It seems alot of companies are missing the point and a very important one (COLD) air intake. Having a short hose connected to a big filter sucking in hot underhood air is actually worse then just leaving the stock box on but Im sure thats up for debate.

There are a few on the market that I like but dont think there worth 300-400. I had a KN before I made this and the difference is huge. I will have a better idea after the weekend when I take it to the track. Again, I appreciate the comments and suggestions and relize that everything can be improved. Cheers, Scott
ScottCAI007.jpg
 


you are going to get warm air where you are too, you should have done something like this
(it is on a 3.4 but same idea for the 3.8, just less work, and it sits right in the bumper/fenderwell, so you get colder air than you would with your setup)
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i have a very large aem filter that sits just below my headlight in the front bumper/fenderwell and it sucks cold air like there is no tomorrow
 
The only ways to really get cold air from those locations are to either stick the filter actually in the fender area or in a box that is sealed to the fender (like various intake systems on the market, i.e. WizAired, Thrasher, etc). As you have it now you're still sucking in warm air since there's no venting setup to force cool air from the fender area.
 
hot air intakes are the best. end of story.

test it out for yourselves, but dont argue unless youve tried. my car has less knock, is more responsive, and sounds more badass than it did with my FWI. now i just have a single bend, a straight tube and a big ass cone next to the fender.
 


I always thought you got better performance from the cool air. Always seems like my car has better performance during the winter because of the colder air than it does in the summer.
 
The best setup that i have ever tried/still use is the 4" one that has only one bend. It uses a 7" cone that sits mostly into the fenderwell but is straight with the pipe right to the throttle body accept fot the 22.5* bend. It also uses a roof flashing to protect the filter from the underhood air.
 
Ive tried the HAI and an SLP intake and right about the time the tranny died I was planning on sticking the HAI back on. I didnt really care for the SLP in design or function.
 
I also think there is some misunderstanding about the air flow through the engine bay as well. The only time a CAI, in my opinion, would become really effective is when you are in stop and go traffic. But with vehicle movement there's enough air flow through the engine bay that I have never felt a supposedly HAI system was as bad as people make it out to be.

Additionally, as Reptile has recently demonstrated, the responsiveness of the IAT is also a key component in accurately judging that parameter.
 


from my experience its not an either or its both. you want no bends + cold air unfortunately room isnt exactly on our side but a slight bend out of the tb and strait to the light fixture/ bumper area with heat shield is according to everything ive read AND personally tried the best way to go. not to mention and no offense cuz im running it to but pvc/abs is not exactly the smoothest in the junctions so the more connections and or bends you have it WILL dramatically mess up the air flow. seriously go to home depot and get a 3" to either 3" or 3.5" and replace that factory part that connects to the throttle body it will really help. also i put a tornado in there i know there cheesy but i swear that damn thing works torque is way up with it in and mpg goes up to.
 
3" -> 4" adapter, little baby stint of 4", 22.5* 4" bend, then 4" straight pipe to the air filter. its big, its straight.
 
I've got some spare piping that I might try just for the heck of it when I put my transmission in. It's not like I'm going to have anything else to do.
 
idk if the 04 is much different than the 03 and older but once you go into the fenderwell and turn down you go into the bottom part of the fender where really all the air from the grill goes too. if not into the radiator. but with my car its got pretty much like a tunnel. the top and the bottom are blocked off and it routes over to this big area in the lower fender where it then can go up into the engine bay. i figured just meet the air in the bottom part of the fender to stay away from all the engine heat. i just havent had the piping to fully test this out yet. something to look into tho. the only thing i worry about is the bend going down into the fenderwell, cause i think the straiter the better but a nice smooth bend might work.
 
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