This is a followup from the first documented howto/parts list for a proper CAI on a 7th gen from the following thread:
http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/sh....php?p=3259718
I didn't have as easy a time of it as Kiwi did, so here's the writeup. I started with 18" piping instead of his 24" piping but still had to cut a fair bit off.
First, take out your intake plumbing. All of it. Yes, ALL of it. Even the bits you can't see and can't get to. This probably means putting the car up on jackstands, turning the wheel, getting under the fender shroud, and swearing as you try to pull the resonator box out a hole that's way too small for it without having to disconnect the fender brace in the process. If you're lucky the bolts won't break off on your underbody plastics. When you're done, you'll have a workspace that looks something like this. (I cheated a bit by having done this piecemeal over the last few years.)
Now take the battery out. Enjoy the battery being easy to move because (if you have a battery of standard USDM size) this is the last time you will experience this. Look straight down past the relay box. Do you see the hole? Good. Now remove the relay box. Two 10mm screws hold it on. Two 10mm screws hold on 80% of the car if you start taking things apart and keep track. If you take the cover off the small relay box it's easier to get a wrench on the bolts, but when you put it back aside you'll want to re-cover it.
Now it's time to use what you have. You could use a file, but if it's a flat file you're going to be sawing at that thing like a first violinist (minus the talent or musicality) for long enough to make people in the neighborhood contemplate calling in a noise complaint. You could use a rotary cutting tool, if you had a rotary cutting tool.
Given that I know the folks across the street from my mother-in-law's driveway (where this was being done) and that the guy used to drive a super-hot MR2 and traded me his wife's Corolla's rear trim panel (smooth grey) for mine (DX reflector), I upgraded from a borrowed flat file to a borrowed 4" grinder. Having never used a grinder before, I taught myself over the next 30 minutes (in 90 degree heat and blinding sunlight and working right next to the inputs for both relay boxes). Enlarge the hole until it's a little bigger. For my first time with a grinder I think it turned out OK, but I wouldn't recommend using that size grinder. Way imprecise....but faster than an old dull flat file.
Now that that's taken care of, pour the small pools of sweat out of your safety goggles and stuff the pipe in the hole. Put the bend at the level of the metal and try to figure out how to wiggle the upper pipe until it lies as flat against the curve under the big fusebox as you can get it. This will be important later! Test-fit your piping, remember to put the upper pipe over/under the cables the original piping was over/under. Remember to allow for coupler length as well.
Note the Sharpie mark. This was where I wound up starting to cut.
Further note where your sensors are going and draw a dot on the pipe in the approximate location. I didn't and I wound up bitterly regretting it for reasons I will explain later. Trust me on this, you want to do this now!
Cut the top pipe at the mark you made. You could use a jeweler's saw (think very small C-style hacksaw), a hacksaw, a saber saw (although I recommend against gigantic double-handed monstrosities, holding the piece was completely impossible), a bandsaw (god, if only!) or whatever you have access to. Use a drill with either a hole saw or a wood hole bit (be careful, the tips tend to break on these) to make a hole for your sensor grommet.
Here is where I would like to note that an air-powered "nibbler" will also do a magnificent job at both cutting quickly and controllably and also generating a sparkly stream of aluminum-shaving confetti at whatever you aim it toward.
Drop your battery back in. If you're lucky, like Kiwi, your battery is small enough to fit between the pipe and the coolant overflow tank.
If you have a standard C-9 battery (like most of us may well do) you're not lucky and the battery won't fit. There is a solution to this. Take out the battery tray. See the coolant tank bracket? Two bolts hold it on, but (at least for an auto) you can't move it over to the other bolthole because that will require you to bend your transmission dipstick. A bent stick is a horrible thing, or so I would imagine. The solution is simple. Chuck up a drill bit (you have a drill, don't you?) and put a hole directly between the two holes for the two bolts. Move the coolant tank over and refasten it with one bolt. The coolant tank bracket sits in a channel anyway so it's not like it's going to go anywhere. This gets you a little more space.
(The orange wire is my horn-relay feedline fuse because I got lazy and inspired all at once.)
Now that you have everything in readiness, line up the pipes--coupling, clamps, everything, tie them down for a test fit but don't snug them too tight now. Pry back that fender well. There may be a couple bolts holding it in. I don't know, mine were casualties of war, where war = road salt and kamikaze raccoons and general misadventure...but you should be able to pull it pretty far back. If you've done this right the pipe will be sitting at a forward angle and you'll have about 8 inches (depending on the length of your filter) you can cut off. Mark it. Pull it out (harder than it sounds). Cut it.
Important safety tip...now that you've got all your holes drilled and all your pipes cut to length, this would be an EXCELLENT time to get an air compressor, a hose, a detachable shower head, a kitchen sink, and wash out the inside of the pipes. The last thing you want is aluminum shavings/splinters going straight into your motor unless you hate your car. (If you've gotten this far, you may already be starting to dislike it...) File your edges straight and smooth, polish off fingerprints if you like. Make sure you have the hole(s) cut for your sensor(s)!
Reassemble the pipework, tightening down all clamps. Put the battery tray back in BACKWARDS to give you more clearance, put the battery back in, put your IAT sensor back in. Don't forget the grommet! Your battery should be holding this entire assembly closely enough that you can grab the piping and shake it vigorously and nothing will move.
Wipe off the fingerprints again, turn the car to on (but for Christ's sake don't start it yet), turn your wheels all the way to the left, kill the ignition and go squeeeeeeeze the filter past the lining. This isn't really that difficult, even with an ugly Spectre generic filter that'll fit up to a 6" pipe. You may need three sets of hands to screw down the clamp on the filter--one to hold the filter onto the end of the pipe, one hand to get behind the clamp, and one hand to use a screwdriver on it. Make sure you position the clamp so you can theoretically remove it all again.
When you're done, you should have something that looks like this (your underhood pieces may vary).
Again, I want to take a moment to add a word of caution. The easiest way to get the battery in will have it sitting REALLY close to the fan shroud, so close that the lip of the fan blades that poke out beyond the shroud will catch on the battery. Grab that sucker and give it a good twist to the right as you're standing in front of the car. Clearances will be tight between the coolant tank and the battery but nothing will break or leak and you won't have the radiator fans hit the damn thing. Needless to say if you're a purist who still has their battery tie-down it probably won't be even close to lining up. For what it's worth I haven't had my battery tiedown in for close to 8 years now, I drive like a maniac on a lousy suspension, and never once has it jounced out of place or short-circuited on the hood or anything.
Let the car down off the jackstands, reconnect your battery, take a moment to admire everything (and try to remember your radio stations), and make sure you remove your tools before you shut the hood. That's it, you're done.
With headers, 2.25" catback and IS300 muffler, this is how it sounds.
Driving impressions--have to be brief for now, as I only did a brief test run. The engine is actually quieter, there's a raspy snarly kind of touring-car-esque noise to it in the higher revs. The video only has me blipping it up to 4K or so because I noticed the gigantic clouds of blue smoke enveloping the neighborhood and decided I'd irked enough folks already. The midrange power increase from the SRI is like night and day, even with 300+ pounds of passenger Jez was pulling as hard as she usually does when it's just me in the seat. I have a moderately long run tomorrow (Vancouver to Longview, then Warrenton) and I should have a chance to see how the ECU winds up adapting as well as get a feel for whether or not going for colder air does anything for mileage.
For reference, this is what the EL Prototypes intake looked like. Would you believe Kiwis is actually a better intake? For all the fuss and wankery about the rarity of the ELP unit, look at it...that U bend would go around the battery and sit right on the snorkel coming up from the fender hole. In other words, yes it'd be a toolless install but from the outside air to the newfilter, the entire stock resonator box and snorkel setup in front of the battery would be left in place! Anybody lusting after one of these can more or less stop now, because I'm almost 100% positive that we've got a much, MUCH better one as a DIY for about $40 in clamps and tubing.
Sneak peek of the next items to be reviewed, possibly sometime around this Saturday...
1993 Toyota Corolla
. Just as a tip to anyone else who is going to do this mod - An easier way to get the pod filter on is to put it on the end of the pipe first (after you've cut it to the right length) and then slide it up into the engine bay from underneath the car. You'll have to remove the splash guard in order to get it up there but it's a lot easier than getting your hands into such a tight place to do up the hose clamp etc. Also, if you want extra air flow, cut a small hole in the splash guard, just underneath where the pod filter sits.
Linear Mode
