musclemerc
Senior Member
I wanted a new CAI for awhile now but everything on the market was in my mind a poor attempt at a true CAI.
The JLT, was my original choice in a CAI mainly because of its price, it's hard to beat for the money but CAI it is not. I data logged IATs for over a month with the heat shield installed and without and what I came up with is this.
Cruising IATs: 99*~*110* (10*~19* above ambient)
At a stop IATs are: 140*~146* (51*~57* above ambient)
ECTs: 190*
Ambient Temps: 89*
The JLTs tube has a nice thick 1/2" wall to protect it from engine heat but the downfall with this kit is the heatshield, it's inadequate at best being only a piece of 1/8" ABS plastic. When you get to a stop and the fan is running the IATs will climb through the roof and remain there until you get alot of air built up under the hood. Another downfall on the JLT is it looks like its made from plumbing supplies
I dont have any datalogged information on the K&N CAI but I can assume it will produce slightly higher IATs due to the fact that its entire construction is 1/8" ABS including the zip tube (it does not have a 1/2" wall construction like the JLT) It should also have the same spike in IATs at an extended stop with the heat from the radiator fan washing into the air mixture
DRs kit will not be included in this so we can avoid another internet fued, but I will say this. SS heat shield and CAI cannot be used in the same sentence. If you wrap a conical filter that tight in a piece of SS it acts like an oven or a heating element
Now on to my prototype CAI kit.
I had a list of materials and stuck with these specific parts for design till the end. Laminated ABS plastic construction, silicone turbo quality connectors, an aluminum zip tube, and T-bolt fastners to finish it up.
For my kit to function as a true CAI I knew it would have to be diffrent from anything out there so I will walk everyone through my building process.
The zip tube had to ba a thick walled aluminum for 2 reasons
1) Aluminum cools faster than any other comparable materials
2) The thick wall will insulate the cool air inside the zip tube from engine temps under the hood
Air and aluminum are just meant to be together look at the I.D. of my zip tube, by default it moves air most efficiently
Next I had to make a fully sealed enclusure that will still fit under the hood but still have the least amount of restriction. The other guys have limited themselves to not using a fully sealed enclosure because they use the wrong filter element. With a Cone type conical filter all you can do is build a heat shield anything else will be too big.
I went outside of the box and used a sealed enclosure that utilizes a panel filter that is completely removable for service. This panel filter lives at the original stock CAI location with one exception, I removed the entire piece of steel that blocked the stock opening so this filter is completely unrestricted
The airbox is made of multiple layers of laminated 1/8" ABS with the side walls measuring up to 1/2" and the lid and base comming in at almost 3/4" thickness. My box is too thick for the hot engine air to penetrate.
When all was said and done here is my new datalogged information
Cruising IATs: 85*
-4* below ambient temp
At a stop IATs are: 93* -only 4* above ambient-
ECTs: 190*
Ambient temps: 89*
Here is my youtube video with some datalogging on a 88* day in Mississippi:
This is a TRUE CAI kit, it does exactly what its engineered to do, and thats deliver cold air as efficiently as possible.
We all know the cooler the charge the more HP the engine can produce
My throttle resopnse is crisp, it responds to the slightest touch. It's just amazing, its got more get up and go than ever before.
Earlier today I went WOT and normally I break the tires on my 1st~2nd shift. This time is got sideways on me at about 55~60mph but I backpeddled it a little and got back into it. The sound is even more pronounced than with the other CAI I've used in the past
I forgot to mention the new matching catch can
The JLT, was my original choice in a CAI mainly because of its price, it's hard to beat for the money but CAI it is not. I data logged IATs for over a month with the heat shield installed and without and what I came up with is this.
Cruising IATs: 99*~*110* (10*~19* above ambient)
At a stop IATs are: 140*~146* (51*~57* above ambient)
ECTs: 190*
Ambient Temps: 89*
The JLTs tube has a nice thick 1/2" wall to protect it from engine heat but the downfall with this kit is the heatshield, it's inadequate at best being only a piece of 1/8" ABS plastic. When you get to a stop and the fan is running the IATs will climb through the roof and remain there until you get alot of air built up under the hood. Another downfall on the JLT is it looks like its made from plumbing supplies
I dont have any datalogged information on the K&N CAI but I can assume it will produce slightly higher IATs due to the fact that its entire construction is 1/8" ABS including the zip tube (it does not have a 1/2" wall construction like the JLT) It should also have the same spike in IATs at an extended stop with the heat from the radiator fan washing into the air mixture
DRs kit will not be included in this so we can avoid another internet fued, but I will say this. SS heat shield and CAI cannot be used in the same sentence. If you wrap a conical filter that tight in a piece of SS it acts like an oven or a heating element
Now on to my prototype CAI kit.
I had a list of materials and stuck with these specific parts for design till the end. Laminated ABS plastic construction, silicone turbo quality connectors, an aluminum zip tube, and T-bolt fastners to finish it up.
For my kit to function as a true CAI I knew it would have to be diffrent from anything out there so I will walk everyone through my building process.
The zip tube had to ba a thick walled aluminum for 2 reasons
1) Aluminum cools faster than any other comparable materials
2) The thick wall will insulate the cool air inside the zip tube from engine temps under the hood
Air and aluminum are just meant to be together look at the I.D. of my zip tube, by default it moves air most efficiently
Next I had to make a fully sealed enclusure that will still fit under the hood but still have the least amount of restriction. The other guys have limited themselves to not using a fully sealed enclosure because they use the wrong filter element. With a Cone type conical filter all you can do is build a heat shield anything else will be too big.
I went outside of the box and used a sealed enclosure that utilizes a panel filter that is completely removable for service. This panel filter lives at the original stock CAI location with one exception, I removed the entire piece of steel that blocked the stock opening so this filter is completely unrestricted
The airbox is made of multiple layers of laminated 1/8" ABS with the side walls measuring up to 1/2" and the lid and base comming in at almost 3/4" thickness. My box is too thick for the hot engine air to penetrate.
When all was said and done here is my new datalogged information
Cruising IATs: 85*
-4* below ambient temp At a stop IATs are: 93* -only 4* above ambient-
ECTs: 190*
Ambient temps: 89*
Here is my youtube video with some datalogging on a 88* day in Mississippi:
This is a TRUE CAI kit, it does exactly what its engineered to do, and thats deliver cold air as efficiently as possible.
We all know the cooler the charge the more HP the engine can produce
My throttle resopnse is crisp, it responds to the slightest touch. It's just amazing, its got more get up and go than ever before.
Earlier today I went WOT and normally I break the tires on my 1st~2nd shift. This time is got sideways on me at about 55~60mph but I backpeddled it a little and got back into it. The sound is even more pronounced than with the other CAI I've used in the past
I forgot to mention the new matching catch can
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