cold air vs short ram
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cai=horsepower in high rpms,loss at low rpms
short ram=more torque
short ram=more torque
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the main difference between the two is the intake velocity. with the long intake your intake velocities will be higher than the short intake. the actual temperature differences have little bearing on the hp differences. thus the longer your intake, the better your gains will be as long as you minimize the bends and anything else that might slow down the air velocity in the tube.man said:
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Re: Re: cold air vs short ram
as for more HP...colder/denser air will benifit the engine more than sucking it in quick for max HP.
as to which one is better...thats totally up to you. short ram intakes are generally louder.
I don't think the intake velocity has ANYTHING to do with the power.....intake velocity deals with when you hit the power. People complain about the LAG the CAI system has. that lag is the engine bulding the intake velocity in the long tube......kinda like sucking through a long straw....it takes some time to build some pressure......in a short ram the tube is shorter and has the ability to SUCK quicker and build more pressure quicker, having more power right when its demanded.del_parker said:
as for more HP...colder/denser air will benifit the engine more than sucking it in quick for max HP.
as to which one is better...thats totally up to you. short ram intakes are generally louder.
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Re: Re: Re: cold air vs short ram
well, i'm just going off of brady's 187 runs on a dyno that showed the longer pipe consistently making more power... the difference in temperature was a mere 2 degrees...not enough to make an impact on hp figures. btw he wasn't using a cold air intake, he just added a 6 foot pipe onto the intake and noticed a nice gain.lOOkatme said:
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I have had both AEM short ram and CAI. They are both good but I prefer the short ram. It is easier to get to, and sounds great. The heat problem is not an issue on Preludes, because it sits behind the battery. I have felt the filter and the tube after driving on a long trip, and after letting it idle with the hood closed. They stay the same temp. This is just my experience.
i have had both and i prefer SRI too. it's responsive and heat is no problem for preludes coz the battery is blocking it. as you can see on my sig, it says cai but actually i have sri. i just 4got my pw n cant change my sig. lol my cookies are on that's y i can't be logged off.ssrprelude said:
I appreciate yalls input on this. You all just saved me some money. I've been told that the cold air intake gives you more power, but i got to thinking "how much cooler can the air possibly be to give you that much more?" Just wasn't sure if it was worth the extra cash to get it. Also, from what I've read and pictures I've seen of the by-pass valves didn't convince me that my engine would be totally protected from water.
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I have a iceman intake on my 4g lude and my friend has one on his 3g ls...we raced wit the short arms in and it was close...when i put the cold air in i beat him by 4+ car lengths at a 80mph roll against his short arm...if i was you i would buy a iceman cold air (best hp purchase).
96si
iceman intake
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msd 6aL
96si
iceman intake
testpipe.com testpipe
apexi n1 cat back
bm fpr
skunk2 camgears
aem pullies
msd 6aL
COLD AIR DIFFERNCE
I am vouching for Japspecprelude....CAI..does make a hella difference...i don't know how anyone experiences lag on an intake system...and i don't know how a longer intake pipe will make a difference..it is simple my friends your engine bay temp. is way above 115 degrees..where as the outside air on avg. is 80 that is just at stop..common sense will tell you it will get colder when you start moving....and i do highly reccommend iceman CAI..over AEM...because iceman is made out of thermal plastic where as AEM is made out of metal...and everyone knows that metal is a much better conductor of heat than plastic..which means when the cold air from the outside mixes with the hot air that the metal pipe generates....it defeats the purpose of CAI
p.s. Comptech made their Icebox out of thermal plastic as well...Iwonder why
I am vouching for Japspecprelude....CAI..does make a hella difference...i don't know how anyone experiences lag on an intake system...and i don't know how a longer intake pipe will make a difference..it is simple my friends your engine bay temp. is way above 115 degrees..where as the outside air on avg. is 80 that is just at stop..common sense will tell you it will get colder when you start moving....and i do highly reccommend iceman CAI..over AEM...because iceman is made out of thermal plastic where as AEM is made out of metal...and everyone knows that metal is a much better conductor of heat than plastic..which means when the cold air from the outside mixes with the hot air that the metal pipe generates....it defeats the purpose of CAI
p.s. Comptech made their Icebox out of thermal plastic as well...Iwonder why
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Like I said, I have tried them both and prefer the short ram, it is easy to clean, and does not get hot at all on my 2000 Prelude. The filter area that sucks in the air stays very cool. It should not get hot on any Prelude because is sits behind the battery. They will both work of course, so go with want you want.
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well I took out the plastic cover behind my front turn signal on the passenger side....and on the highway my aem cai gets a little ram air going on....it definitly gets colder air down there, as for how much colder...I don't know and all of you don't know. you don't have a temp sensor taking readings...so don't guess. I would like to think the cai gains more HP......It has to be colder air down there.....otherwise the short ram would be it...and provide the best WHP out of all the intakes.
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i wouldnt get CAI b/c im not the type to risk my engine to gain more horsepower.
seriously i went to a shop that my dads friend owns and he showed me an engine that got hydrolocked and that shit was fucked up.
thats why im gettin me an Ingen SRI after the Thermal exhaust
seriously i went to a shop that my dads friend owns and he showed me an engine that got hydrolocked and that shit was fucked up.
thats why im gettin me an Ingen SRI after the Thermal exhaust
a lot of you guys have _no_ clue what you're talking about.
if we look at say an AEM short ram intake vs CAI dyno (with the same diameter pipe) you will notice that the cai shows a power gain between 4000-5000 rpm. this is know as the "AEM hump". this is the why a CAI feels much faster on the butt dyno than a short ram. this midrange power gain is caused, not by colder air, but by the length of the pipe. the longer pipe creates faster air flow than a short one and it will reach peak volumetric efficiency at a lower rpm. aside from that, and the colder air theory (which supposedly cant be properly simulated to test on a dyno) the cold air intake doesnt have an advantage over a short ram. in fact, not that it applies to you guys, but the CAI stops making power at arround 8300 rpm where as the short ram will make power up to 9000+. this is why you will see a lot of pro's using short rams. i couldnt find the dyno i was looking for, but heres one where you can see the "aem hump" and also notice that there is virtually no difference between the cai (blue) and the short ram (red) aside from hump area.
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man: some things you might want to consider are, can you afford to spend the extra $50 or so for the cai, do you care about that 1000 rpm of midrange power (id like it), can you avoid situations of possible hydrolock, do you plan to rev to 9000rpm? theres people that are pro-cai and people that are pro-short ram. regaurdless of what you decide on, just make sure you have the facts straight, and dont listen to people making random statements that dont hold up.
peace
(oh and its INJEN not INGEN)
if we look at say an AEM short ram intake vs CAI dyno (with the same diameter pipe) you will notice that the cai shows a power gain between 4000-5000 rpm. this is know as the "AEM hump". this is the why a CAI feels much faster on the butt dyno than a short ram. this midrange power gain is caused, not by colder air, but by the length of the pipe. the longer pipe creates faster air flow than a short one and it will reach peak volumetric efficiency at a lower rpm. aside from that, and the colder air theory (which supposedly cant be properly simulated to test on a dyno) the cold air intake doesnt have an advantage over a short ram. in fact, not that it applies to you guys, but the CAI stops making power at arround 8300 rpm where as the short ram will make power up to 9000+. this is why you will see a lot of pro's using short rams. i couldnt find the dyno i was looking for, but heres one where you can see the "aem hump" and also notice that there is virtually no difference between the cai (blue) and the short ram (red) aside from hump area.
man: some things you might want to consider are, can you afford to spend the extra $50 or so for the cai, do you care about that 1000 rpm of midrange power (id like it), can you avoid situations of possible hydrolock, do you plan to rev to 9000rpm? theres people that are pro-cai and people that are pro-short ram. regaurdless of what you decide on, just make sure you have the facts straight, and dont listen to people making random statements that dont hold up.
peace
(oh and its INJEN not INGEN)
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Great post WuTang. Now if I could only find my CAI vs stock dyno plot so I could also put an end to the "My CAI steals low end power" myth...
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