Cold Air Intake
5/6/14, 06:49 AM
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Cold Air Intake
I was just wondering why there is no option for factory installed CAI on Mustangs. I read they improve power and mpg then why don't the company put one for us? May be I am having a dumb thought....
5/6/14, 07:27 AM
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In general, performance parts have tradeoffs that are unappealing to the average person, typically in NVH. An aftermarket CAI is going to be louder than the stock intake.
5/6/14, 03:09 PM
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True, but then wouldn't it be great if they gave it as an optional feature. My point is that, it will not void the warranty that way...
5/6/14, 07:14 PM
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a aftermarket cold air intake wont void your warranty unless that can prove that that part is what caused the problem but also the stock intake is a cold air intake since it get air from in front of the radiator which is the same place a aftermarket cai will get it from. the aftermarket ones just flow a little bit better than the stock one since it wont have any baffling.
5/6/14, 10:04 PM
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Contrary to manufacturers' advertising, an aftermarket CAI will not show a noticeable HP increase over a good factory intake system (as on late model Mustangs). The thing that makes the difference is the custom PCM tune that you need to maximize the increased air volume and flow.
5/7/14, 03:00 PM
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Contrary to manufacturers' advertising, an aftermarket CAI will not show a noticeable HP increase over a good factory intake system (as on late model Mustangs). The thing that makes the difference is the custom PCM tune that you need to maximize the increased air volume and flow.
5/8/14, 01:18 PM
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I haven't seen enough evidence to definitively show that the benefit comes from the tune and not the conical filter, but it does seem like the filter provides very marginal benefit over the factory air box. Ford engineers certainly think that the stock airbox is sufficient (based on the jay leno boss episode.)
5/9/14, 07:21 AM
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Contrary to manufacturers' advertising, an aftermarket CAI will not show a noticeable HP increase over a good factory intake system (as on late model Mustangs). The thing that makes the difference is the custom PCM tune that you need to maximize the increased air volume and flow.
5/9/14, 07:23 AM
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I haven't seen enough evidence to definitively show that the benefit comes from the tune and not the conical filter, but it does seem like the filter provides very marginal benefit over the factory air box. Ford engineers certainly think that the stock airbox is sufficient (based on the jay leno boss episode.)
5/9/14, 07:45 AM
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I would never dyno a v6, what's the point. I know my car. It's a DD that I ran with stock air box for 21,000 miles. Immediately after the CAI install I have an observable difference in throttle response at the pedal. Whether that is measurable or not is irrelevant.
5/9/14, 07:55 AM
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Did you get any MPG increase?
5/10/14, 08:55 PM
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theres a thread on this forum that i read and it showed the hp increase on the airaid cai for the 3.7 mustangs and the increase for just a tune. basicly the intake gave like 10hp and the tune gave like 10hp when they are done separate like a car with JUST a intake would gain 10hp and a car with JUST tune would gain 10hp over stock but when they are done together theres only like a 14hp increase not a 20hp increase like some would assume. those numbers arent exact im just using them as a example. i really dont remember the exact numbers but it was in that ball park. so yes the intake does give more hp over stock.
5/11/14, 01:34 AM
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A boss, not accounting for efficiency, should pull around 33% more air volume at the same rpm than the 3.7. Unless the boss air filter has 33% more surface area than the 3.7, the boss will have a greater power loss from the air fitler than the v6. (I'm pretty sure they have the same filter.) So, if they were correct on the boss, they're correct on the v6.
As far as bolt ons go, you're gaining power by reducing points of inefficiency on the intake and exhaust. With a mostly stock setup, it's not likely that the air box is the bottleneck in the system. To throw some numbers at this, supersixmotorsports's testing shows that the stock 3.7's heads and intake manifolds flow around 260 CFM of air. K&N claims that their drop in filter flows around 900 CFM (which actually flows a little less than stock.) I don't remember for sure, but I think those conical filters flow 1000+CFM. Now, that's not to say that you can't see any benefit from a pipe that reduces turbulence or drag, but it will probably be very minimal as it's not the bottleneck. There are much greater points of this in the intake manifolds (specifically the lower intake manifold.) I think you can see around 15rwhp from porting the intake manifolds.
Also, axlebacks don't make any significant power change. Mufflers do create some backpressure, but unless you're removing them, it won't make a huge difference. I believe the cats create significantly more.
I hope that helps. Sorry if I repeated a bunch of stuff that you already know.
As far as bolt ons go, you're gaining power by reducing points of inefficiency on the intake and exhaust. With a mostly stock setup, it's not likely that the air box is the bottleneck in the system. To throw some numbers at this, supersixmotorsports's testing shows that the stock 3.7's heads and intake manifolds flow around 260 CFM of air. K&N claims that their drop in filter flows around 900 CFM (which actually flows a little less than stock.) I don't remember for sure, but I think those conical filters flow 1000+CFM. Now, that's not to say that you can't see any benefit from a pipe that reduces turbulence or drag, but it will probably be very minimal as it's not the bottleneck. There are much greater points of this in the intake manifolds (specifically the lower intake manifold.) I think you can see around 15rwhp from porting the intake manifolds.
Also, axlebacks don't make any significant power change. Mufflers do create some backpressure, but unless you're removing them, it won't make a huge difference. I believe the cats create significantly more.
I hope that helps. Sorry if I repeated a bunch of stuff that you already know.
5/11/14, 01:38 AM
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If someone wants a CAI to feel faster, then there's no reason to dyno it. If someone wants parts to actually be faster, parts should be tested to ensure that they provide more than a placebo effect.
5/11/14, 11:35 AM
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The intake setup on our cars are in fact a "cold air intake" design. They use air brought in through the front grille.
Aftermarket intakes also utilize the air from the grille, in addition to being open on top. I've got the intake temp on my gauge cluster and my Airraid definitely runs cooler than the factory setup.
Ford will never offer that option from the factory because the benefit is marginal at best. Too much money involved in design and engineering and then you have to source the parts from a supplier, deal with quality issues, deal with logistics at the plant. It's just not worth it.
Aftermarket intakes also utilize the air from the grille, in addition to being open on top. I've got the intake temp on my gauge cluster and my Airraid definitely runs cooler than the factory setup.
Ford will never offer that option from the factory because the benefit is marginal at best. Too much money involved in design and engineering and then you have to source the parts from a supplier, deal with quality issues, deal with logistics at the plant. It's just not worth it.
5/12/14, 09:10 AM
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The intake setup on our cars are in fact a "cold air intake" design. They use air brought in through the front grille.
Aftermarket intakes also utilize the air from the grille, in addition to being open on top. I've got the intake temp on my gauge cluster and my Airraid definitely runs cooler than the factory setup.
Ford will never offer that option from the factory because the benefit is marginal at best. Too much money involved in design and engineering and then you have to source the parts from a supplier, deal with quality issues, deal with logistics at the plant. It's just not worth it.
Aftermarket intakes also utilize the air from the grille, in addition to being open on top. I've got the intake temp on my gauge cluster and my Airraid definitely runs cooler than the factory setup.
Ford will never offer that option from the factory because the benefit is marginal at best. Too much money involved in design and engineering and then you have to source the parts from a supplier, deal with quality issues, deal with logistics at the plant. It's just not worth it.
Last edited by ardeshna; 5/12/14 at 09:29 AM.
5/12/14, 09:18 AM
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He didn't say it increased HP/TQ. He said it increased throttle response. Two different things.
5/12/14, 09:53 AM
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A boss, not accounting for efficiency, should pull around 33% more air volume at the same rpm than the 3.7. Unless the boss air filter has 33% more surface area than the 3.7, the boss will have a greater power loss from the air fitler than the v6. (I'm pretty sure they have the same filter.) So, if they were correct on the boss, they're correct on the v6.
