zzzya

iTrader: (2)

Well first time out to the local 1/4 mile strip today and tried something out with my Injen CAI intake. I have been reading alot about issues with CAIs and thought, heck I will set my Injen up as a short ram setup like the JWT pocharger and use a heat shield from the local auto store and see what happens. My best run last year was a 13.9 which was with the intake, plenum, exhaust, pulleys, and the 19" wheels. I was expecting some good numbers since I have added the headers and HF cats to the mix since last year. I ran the car with the short ram setup first. I have the 5AT so times are pretty consistent on the strip. With the short ram setup I was consistently running 14.3 I was getting pissed wondering what was going on. Did I open the exhaust too much? Had the ECU adjusted all the gains out? With the short ram setup I felt like I had more low end torque, but I really couldn't "feel" a difference throughout the rest of the rpm range. I even attempted a call to Doug at Crawford to get his opinnion and reset the ECU to rule that out. I then decided I would swap the intake around and place the filter out inside the front bumper and run the car again. WOW!!!! I was running 13.7's the rest of the night and having trouble getting a good launch on the street tires. I was completely shocked at the results but now know that I will keep the filter inside the front end. With a lot of talk lately about CAI's vs JWT popcharger and CAI vs short ram setups, I thought this information might be interesting for those who at least have the Injen CAI and others wondering about this topic.

P.S. The temperature was steady throughout the testing and no other variables were changed.

zillinois

iTrader: (6)

Congrats on the results. Can you describe what you did in a little more detail. I'm not sure I follow how you got the filter to sit "outside". You changed the typical CAI in to a short ram, got worse results. Then you put the filter in the grill area? How about a pic.

ATI 350z

you know how hot it gets under the hood , thats what your feeding your engine with a short ram heat shield or not, put a cooking thermometer inside your heat shield run it and check it then put it outside the bay

FairladyZ

90% of the people on here dont realize this. They think just because its loud its better and makes more hp. We have injen CAI on both cars. Heat kills hp.

thanks for the test!

zzzya

iTrader: (2)

I completely agree, that is why I did this test since the most widely purchased and recommended intake modification out there right now is the JWT Popcharger. I am wondering if there is more to this or if the popcharger is really only showing the gains on the dyno vs out on the road when compared to a true CAI. So many people look at Dyno numbers but this real world test has me convinced now that at least the Injen CAI was the right choice for me until I decide to go FI.

zzzya

iTrader: (2)

When I refer to "outside" I am talking outside the engine bay. With the Injen CAI you have the option of running the air filter outside the engine bay which sits inside the front bumper just behind the grill, or you can remove part of the tubing and set it up as a short ram. My digital camera was sent out for repair or I would have taken some pics. Damn thing, lens stopped telescoping out. Next time I am buying an SLR type camera so there are less moving components. Anyway, the short ram style is what the JWT popcharger is with a heat shield (air filter sits where the stock air box is). I will say that the throttle did feel more responsive from idle, but it just didn't have the top end. I was hoping that by going to the short ram setup I would gain some bottom end without hurting the mid-top end, but I found out quickly that this would not be the case. I am pretty happy with the 13.7 results because that is with 19" wheels and 2.1 60' times. I think with some 16 or 17" wheels and some DRs I will be in the mid 13's with an N/A 5AT. I don't have access to a chassis dyno so the 1/4 mile is where I have to do my testing.

Diesel350

iTrader: (6)

I'm surprised your running 13.7's with all those mods. Must be the 19 Inch rims holding you back. With drag radials I bet you could problably hit 13.4's.

ChuckGZ

i was thinking the same thing. i would have expected bigger gains after headers and cats. i bet to some extent you're right about the ECU dialing out some of the gains. everyone says that it's not too mod friendly. are you thinking about getting Technosquare to flash it? i'd be curious to see the change with all the same mods and a reflashed ECU.

zzzya

iTrader: (2)

My stock runs on our track were 14.3 (with stock 17's) so going to 13.7 is not bad with the 19's on. I have thought many many times about the technosquare ECU, but without a Dyno shop around to check the A/F ratio after the reflash, I have held off. Doug at Crawford has been working with Technosquare on a reflash for their parts. If that works out then I may go that route real soon. I am trying to decide whether or not I want to go SC or continue with N/A. Once I make up my mind on that topic, then I will know which step to take next. If the cam install wasn't so damned expensive I would probably go that route with the ECU and just be happy. Has anyone attempted a cam install themselves? I am pretty mechanically inclined but I am just not too sure about installing the cams myself.

zzzya

iTrader: (2)

I will mention that I think the Injen angled tip exhaust is really more suited for a SC setup than most N/A setups. It has good power up top but it really hurts on the low end torque. I could feel the loss in torque after I installed it. The headers brought some of it back but not all of it. The Borla or Nismo is a better choice for most N/A setups. I am sticking with the Injen however because I think it gives me more potential if I go SC or get cams, plus its one of the only exhausts I have heard so far that really sounds mean. I am not a huge fan of the typical import exhaust sound.

Dissolved

Thats weird. My 1/4mile time (gtech pro) dropped from a consistent 14.3, to a consistent 14.1 after popcharger install. (traction issues each time) My 0-60 also went from a consistent 5.7, to a consistent 5.5. I can reproduce this any day of the week. I posted detailed results a while back if you want to search. I highly doubt the popcharger is causing losses. You didnt prove anything other than the short ram version of the Injen CAI is not as effective as having the filter in the bumper. Now, if you had a JWT popcharger to swap in, I would say this would have been a fair comparison.

hndumafia

iTrader: (10)

The fact that the Injen piping is metal can also be a factor in this. It would cause heat soak to be more of an issue where as the pop charger uses the factory plastic tubing which is more resistent to the heat.

Just more pieces to the puzzle.

zzzya

iTrader: (2)

I am not saying that the popcharger is causing losses, just curious as to whether it is really beneficial over a CAI such as the Injen on the open road. With the Injen setup the way it was meant to be, after a drive the metal intake tube is cold. In this sense the metal is actually a plus since it gets very cold compared to plastic that would resist much of a temperature change. Only after sitting around does it get hot, which is what would happen on a Dyno. I personally have read a lot of posts lately making me think that the short ram setup would possibly be a better way to go, but my results on the 1/4 mile strip changed my mind. People really had me thinking that the stock air box needed to be put on or that I should sell my Injen and buy a JWT, not from direct statements, but just from what I was reading. I am glad I did this test first before doing anything else.