need clarification on intake - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

jmac57 · 07-30-2009, 11:03 AM

so i am going to get a new intake for my 97 camry le, and from what i hear cai is better (especially because i live in a rather warm climate area) but the only one i can find is like 300$ so i decided DIY would probably be better

heres my real dillemma, obviously cai sucks in cold air not hot to the engine (thats a no brainer) but how does it get that cold air? is it the positioning of the intake? or does the intake itself have some crazy filter type thing that turns the air to cai... not sure

anyway if somebody could shed some light on this for me i feel like this project would be more applicable for me

RU2CHKN · 07-30-2009, 02:19 PM

Try searching on this forum there's a lot of talk about this topic. But anywayz, the cai is usually positioned away from the hot engine bay usually near the wheel well. Cooler air is less dense than hot air.

bigbird · 07-30-2009, 03:01 PM

to get the effect of a CAI the filter should be in the fender. a better name should be cooler air intake. but on an NA motor...its not gonna do anything for performance cept give piece of mind. an SRI will do the job just fine(sound good).

FLIP K1DD · 07-30-2009, 03:06 PM

just get piping and pretty much lego them together to go behind the wheel well, or as far away from the bay as possible. or you could always just short ram it and connect a flex duct to the end of the filter and move the other end into the front of your grille. idk semi-cooler air intake lol

uuuuu · 07-30-2009, 04:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RU2CHKN

Try searching on this forum there's a lot of talk about this topic. But anywayz, the cai is usually positioned away from the hot engine bay usually near the wheel well. Cooler air is less dense than hot air.

Actually, cooler air is more dense because the molecules are closer together.

#2! · 07-30-2009, 05:43 PM

When I first herd of installing aftermarket CAI systems I was imagining of something like the stock air cooler system that was on my 24 valve Cummins. Everything else Iv seen just looks Mickey Moused and is really hard to believe it makes any improvements.

bigbird · 07-30-2009, 06:39 PM

thats because you reading into the name. COLD means nothing. a CAI brings in ambient temp air instead of air from the engine bay which is usually in the upper 100s. the colder it is outside...the better the intake will work. but this is more important for boosted application on these motors. so it doesnt really matter which you choose. nither will have any real differance in performance. most here do it for the sound.

92Camry5sp · 07-30-2009, 08:34 PM

i have a custom cai for sale. but its for a 3rd gen. may fit the 4th gen. im located in Sacramento, so if you interested in it, we can meet up. i can even install it for you.

#2! · 07-30-2009, 10:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigbird

most here do it for the sound.

ok i c

RU2CHKN · 07-30-2009, 11:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by uuuuu

Actually, cooler air is more dense because the molecules are closer together.

Ok that's right I knew it was either more or less just got mixed up thx for the correction

jmac57 · 08-03-2009, 06:36 PM

ok so i was hoping i could continue this thread even though it hasnt been used in a while

1997 camry le

so i was hoping to keep my resonator, and with that said i was hoping to just add an elbow or a little more piping to the existing pipe so that i could keep the resonator and keep the price down

looking for critique and insight

bigbird · 08-03-2009, 07:36 PM

why would you want to keep the resonator? the only point is the sound. there are NO other benifits of an intake on a stock 5sfe.

personally, i would just say screw it. your making the project more then it is. if ya want the added sound, then build an intake(or juet remove the airbox if ya can). if not then leave it alone.

jmac57 · 08-03-2009, 08:38 PM

hmm that is a good point, although i heard a rumor of slightly better mpg? also i think im mostly doin it to make the car feel unique, like my own ya know? its a camry and its not fast or luxury smooth but its mine... idk perhaps thats a bit silly but ill see as i run out of money lol

i do appreciate the input though

one last thing would you happen to know how to get around the fuse box in the hood that goes OVER the intake? i was hopin to just take out the airbox put on a nice filter and pipe it to the original pipe

JCamry94 · 08-03-2009, 10:56 PM

Alright I'll show ya really quickly my setups:

Old setup with AEM filter, spectre pipe, custom heat shield, and metal piping leading from bumper to filter.

The filter bumps up against the battery, but I figured that helped a bit for blocking some heat? hah.