cold air intake

[318lotis]

i have read that cold air intake is useless; i use one with a heat shield and i think it makes a performance difference or is it my imagination ?

[tjts1]

CAI is only as good as you make it.

[HATER-PROOF]

"CAI is only as good as you make it".
Try doing 42 sit-ups in 65 degree tempature, then try the 42 in 117 degree tempature and you'll find that your body(engine) find's easier to work itself under a cooler environment.

[Wizard]

I can't do 42 sit-ups at any temperature...:eek:

[HATER-PROOF]

My bad Wizard, maybe I should stay away from the physical metaphors, this was my first laugh this morning from a very long frustrating night.  I thank you--funny as hell.

[MelbourneMike]

I am surprised this is not covered here (on the forum) more extensively...several members cabash the whole thing...what is the up/down side?  Anyone?  Anyone?  Bueller?

[quinn11m20]

I feel you Hater-proof. I am a veteran myself. On another note, cold dense air is better for a turbo setup why not for a n/a setup. ? If you can make it work, go with it.
"If its stupid but works, Its not stupid". Murphy.

Did you seperate the intake from the rest of the engine bay? A heat shield to be exact?

[papercutout]

Either way you'll not get much difference - but SOME difference is good! Heatshielded is best, of course combined with decent tubing too.

You're more likely to notice better throttle response than more power with it though...

[roundel318]

heatshield is key

[tjts1]

The car already has a heat shield. its called an airbox! The biggest restriction on the M42 is the 2" muffler on the front of the airbox.

[iamcreepingdeath]

intakes sound cool.  That is the most noticeable gain.

[roundel318]

I would say the biggest restriction is the filter

[gearheadE30]

I would say the biggest restriction is the filter

if you've got a clean one, it's not too bad. its a pretty big surface. replace that little trumpet with a nice 3.5" dryer hose and it works pretty well . If you have euro grilles, taking out the high beam for trackdays and such actually isn't a bad idea either. after a half hour session of constant hot laps testing my own driving consistency, I pulled into the pits and the entire intake tract was still cool to the touch.

[PumpItUp]

Can those who changed from stock give some insight?

Whats the best shielding to buy/make if you're planning on using the stock box with a paper filter.

You might be asking why I'd need shielding if using a stock box. Who cares if the plastic heats up a little as long as the warm air doesn't go in. Well I might drill holes on the side of the box (below the filter obviously) to make the sound resonate and get that desired sport intake fart going. Maybe this would also help fix the restrictive 2" hole mentioned above by adding another passage. And on long trips I could tape over the holes because the bass is good at making migraines.

Since I bought the car I've been planning to do a "mod" where you cut out the plastic next to your headlight (on the corner, by the fender) with a dremel or something to make it a real grill with air coming in rather than a fake one. Should I do both sides or just the driver side. I'm guessing cold air on the headers would probably be counter productive.

[ryanjv]

http://www.davelength.net/car/cai.html

here's a good tutorial on making your own heatshield
i'm going to give it a go when i have time