So i am considering a cold air intake and a tuner. I need to take these things into consideration:

1. cost. i can ship to the border and grab it so free shipping is nice
2. i have a fully functional ram air hood i wouldn't mind taking advantage of. I also have gt500 axlebacks in place already.
3. no H pipe right now but planning one down the road
4. i'd rather not have to buy another tuner if/when i do h pipe (and maybe headers)
5. Ability to revert back to stock tune. Motor is currently bone stock.

There you have it. To my friends in the mod biz, please help me decide! Thanks Team!

 

I've been putting a little thought into it too. Seems the steeda CAI and tuner combo package is the ticket. $700 for the $400 tuner + $390 CAI, and has free tunes for life, free shipping in the US, and a great reputation. Not sure how it works with your hood but their package is one of the best bargains out there.

EDIT: and a 6% forum discount code if you email TJ.

 

The hood is not really an issue as it simply funnels the air right into where the CAI sits.

and do you mean TJ at Steeda?

 

Yep, that's the one.

 

My vote goes to the steeda combo as well. I didn't buy the CAI but I do have their 93 octane tune with the stock air box and **** it woke the car up good. Highly recommend it. Also their customer service is great.

 

The stock real CAI has proven to work better than any of the aftermarket ones.

Remember the tuner is from SCT. Companies like Steeda and Bama just load their tunes on them. AED, Lund, VMP, and Mike Rousch have proven to be the better tuners going but Steeda wouldn't be a horrible choice either. They're just not up there with the top tier tuners.

 

I have a 14 GT and have been flip-flopping in getting this combo. My car is a good weather car only. I don't take it out of the garage when wet weather is expected. But what if I am on a long drive and I am in a downpour? How does the hood vents in the 13 and 14 GT affect the air filter? Does it get soak? I need opinions from actual 13 and 14 GT owners.

Another point is that I bought an extended warranty for my car. How does the Steeda CAI/tune combo affect it? Am I throwing it away?

 

The hood vents are positioned in such a way that water in the cai is not an issue, not to mention the cai comes with a box and lip that creates a barrier beyween it and where water or other stuff mightsplash over. Also if you look at the underside of your hood you'll notice those vents aren't open completely to the engine bay.

as for your extended warranty, that's a tricky one. depends on the language and legalese used in it. I don't believe the tunes negate the stock warranty, unless it's proven to have been a contributing factor to a failure.

 

Tune your car at your own risk because if you need any major drivetrain repairs Ford will probably not honor it due to a tune. They don't have to prove anything as they will fight you on it and they have deeper pockets. Honestly the extended warranty was money not well spent.

 

I think you are mostly right about the stock warranty but alot depends on your relationship with your dealer. I spoke to someone about the sct this morning and the 2nd sentence from them was 'check with your dealer, make sure everyone is ok with the route you want to take'.

I am still foggy on the types of tunes etc. The person i spoke to says their sct comes packaged with non-invasive tunes that piggy back. perhaps a safer way to go, as opposed to all-out wipe and write tunes?

 

OUCH!!! Friggin canadian dollor...
the steeda tuner+tunes package will cost me almost $520 cdn! ARGH!!
Then add 12% at the border. <insert string of expletives here>

 

Well if a major repair comes up it has to be authorized by Ford to the dealer. Ford will send an engineer to investigate things like a tune.

 

Thanks TJ@steeda with providing me with really good information including this link...

unfortunately, after calculating exchange and our high BC taxes at the border, taking into consideration no shipping charges, it ends up almost 580 cdn

The SCT tuner is available in Canada though with free shipping and packaged with available tunes from at least 5 major us tuners, including diablo and edge. less than 450 cdn shipped . Not quite the same as custom tunes for life though, but economically viable.

The CAI can wait, since the bang for buck on that is less clear. Perhaps more of an engine dressup item for spring time.

 

If you're worried about your warranty, you could just do the Procal....

 

There was a guy selling a brand new, never used ProCal here in Winnipeg for $325 (CDN of course). By the time I tried to pounce it was long gone, but they are out there.

 

Warranty is not an issue for me. You know what they say...gotta pay to play. I can afford some risk.

 

SCT Tuner ordered

 

I hope you're not planning on running the canned SCT tune.

 

I told him not to...lol

 

I hope he listened.