Jeep New cold air intake design.... pros? cons? lets hear it...

[gijohn40]

I found this on quadratec website... what do you think?

Innovative design draws colder air from the cowl vent chamber through a 3” hole through the firewall. The Jeep® cowl vent is what supplies cold air into the cabin of the vehicle by drawing the air in that is hitting the windshield and rolling back in through the vent. Drawing air from this chamber allows the coldest air possible to the motor instead of drawing air from around the heated engine compartment. Colder air equals more horsepower. The Spectre cold air intake features an inline air filter housed inside a polished aluminum air tube. Kit includes braided stainless breather hose, silicone couplers, all necessary clamps, hardware and highly detailed instructions. Spectre Performance Cold Air Induction Filter System provides a great design with custom looks and up to 10 horsepower gains. Fifty state legal and C.A.R.B. exempt #D-629-1 (’97-’03 models only). This kit comes with a high flow Spectre hpR lifetime filter that’s pre-oiled and ready to install. *Requires a 3” hole placed through the firewall. Hole saw not included.

 

[bryson]

There was a company called Scotty Air that made these for Dodge trucks with the Cummins diesel in it. Cool idea for sure.

 

[Team1k]

I installed in in my YJ. Seems to work great and personally i like it more than the look of a snorkel. Also it seems more like a true cold air intake because its not in the engine bay with a little shield around it.

 

[UVRUGBY]

seems like a good idea, but I don't see it getting efficient amounts of air to improve performance, being that the engine is having to pull more air, instead of the air being rammed in like if you were to have a CAI like most sports cars, but being an off road vehicle this makes complete sense, it keeps it from possibly hydro-locking the engine, that a true CAI would create if used on a off road vehicle. Never used, or seen this before. But, seems like a good idea for off road enthusiasts.

 

[gijohn40]

one disadvantage I see is water... like when it rains... no protection from the elements... and can you image when it snows? I guess you could put one of these on there...

 

[Team1k]

ya i have one of those but the one i have looks better and actually attaches with the screw holes and not tape

one drawback is you can hear a bit more engine noise

 

[sixstringsteve]

My buddy did something similar on his 4runner. A LOT more engine noise in the cabin
It was annoying.

 

[I Lean]

seems like a good idea, but I don't see it getting efficient amounts of air to improve performance, being that the engine is having to pull more air, instead of the air being rammed in like if you were to have a CAI like most sports cars, but being an off road vehicle this makes complete sense, it keeps it from possibly hydro-locking the engine, that a true CAI would create if used on a off road vehicle. Never used, or seen this before. But, seems like a good idea for off road enthusiasts.

There would be plenty of air, due to that spot being a very high pressure area. The windshield angle "piles up" the air right there, which is why they put the cabin air intake right there.

BUT, the water thing could be an issue, as would the engine noise.

 

[Team1k]

If you got a ton of water yeah i could see that being an issue but on my yj that cowl intake area is a about 2 inches above where the water would run in plus it has a drain. I really only notice the increased engine noise if i have the vent open. Then again i am in a soft topped rig and its a wrangler so its noisy already. A closed cab 4 runner would probably be alot louder

 

[Team1k]

 

[MikeGyver]

I really don't like the stovepipe look of how those things are built, why are they only using 1 mandrel bend? Also the tiny air filter is laughable.
It's a decent idea if you must have a CAI but actually addressed some of the issues. It needs some sort of water dam on the inside of the cowl, cuz at wide open throttle anything that falls through that vent is getting sucked in.

 

[I Lean]

I wondered that with all the welds....seems like a lot more work than having one bend.

 

[UVRUGBY]

There would be plenty of air, due to that spot being a very high pressure area. The windshield angle "piles up" the air right there, which is why they put the cabin air intake right there.

BUT, the water thing could be an issue, as would the engine noise.

Ah, that makes more sense. The engine sound would get annoying at first, but I am sure after awhile you would get used to it.

 

[Team1k]

seems surface area wise it's as large as a regular stock filter. I wonder if the fact it gets air forced in and that air is actually cold offsets the advantage of the larger non forced hot air kind. Also I've been in plenty of rain and snow storms and it hasn't sucked anything in that I've noticed. If you notice the water would only be able to enter through a 1" gap on the opposite side of the intake. My engine isn't sucking like an oreck vacuum in there so that's pretty far odds of water being sucked all the way through the system.

 

[DAA]

I've been running similiar on my LJ for years (Mac's). Like all CAI, it doesn't do much for actual power or MPG. But this one makes so much noise I think an awful lot of guys think it is making a lot of power - that much noise has to be doing something is what they think, I guess. Some water does get on my filter sometimes, hasn't been a problem though.

The best thing about it is opening up all that space where the stock air box was. My twin ARB compressors went there real nice.

All in all, probably the one mod I've done to my Jeep that I wouldn't do over.

- DAA

 

[notajeep]

I installed one in a TJ a while back. Pretty much the same experience as everyone else... LOTS of noise, and no noticeable increase in power or MPG.

 

[Team1k]

Yeah i doubt there was an increase in MPG. I was going more for the increase in fording depth, true cold air, and keeping the filter out of the elements. Also just a side note this kit was only designed for a TJ so when i put it in my YJ i modified it some. I would say if your putting it in a YJ the small amount of engine noise(in a yj) you get is definitely worth it and ill probably do it if i get another one. I dont own a TJ and havent seen how they are setup so apparently they are very noisy and can get water in them so may not be worth it.

 

[Xiled1]

I just put one of these in my LJ. It was great for making space under the hood and was the best option now that I lifted my stock fenders. I only find it loud under >1/2 throttle acceleration. Otherwise, its no louder than any other intake. The one complaint I have is that it keeps coming apart during wheeling. The rubber couplers are not long enough IMO and the single clamp for the middle one needs to be replaced with two clamps. I'll get the bugs worked out eventually. Its relatively cheap if you don't factor in the cost of the drill bit.

During the summer, I was running a stock tube with a filter on the end and the extreme heat down here made a noticable loss in power. So I think it will acutally help in the summer months. But AZ is an extreme example, so most will not notice.

 

[Cake]

I would do it yourself, not buy the kit. At Napa I purchased the hose and mounting plate around the ball park of $20. Maybe it increased hp, maybe it didnt. maybe it increased MPG, maybe it didnt. I like the peace of mind that I can take deeper water now, and the placebo of potential hp/mpg gains. In theory, it has to be an improvement as its a 3" hose pulling in cold air as opposed to the small opening on the front of the airbox that was doing the work before.

I wouldn't worry about water getting in. Its been through car washes, snows and rainstorms with no problem. The cowl hole sits a bit higher, so water goes other places first.

For the money and time I spent, I recommend it.

 

[Team1k]

Originally i did something similar to this as well. Once i put on aftermarket fenders it was no longer an option to keep the factory air box. Just something to consider if those are in your future.

I would do it yourself, not buy the kit. At Napa I purchased the hose and mounting plate around the ball park of $20. Maybe it increased hp, maybe it didnt. maybe it increased MPG, maybe it didnt. I like the peace of mind that I can take deeper water now, and the placebo of potential hp/mpg gains. In theory, it has to be an improvement as its a 3" hose pulling in cold air as opposed to the small opening on the front of the airbox that was doing the work before.

I wouldn't worry about water getting in. Its been through car washes, snows and rainstorms with no problem. The cowl hole sits a bit higher, so water goes other places first.

For the money and time I spent, I recommend it.