metal or plastic intakes ????

[CALDWELL]

im sure this has been dicussed before... is there a thread about this topic ????... if so can someone give me a link, or just voice your knowledge on this thread


im looking to get an intake for my 03 xls since im having my exhaust installed tommorrow, and im undecided between a PLASTIC K&N or a METAL MAC ?????? is there any performance differences between the different materials ??????...

ive heard different opinions from people i know who have no mechanical intelegence at all lol

thanks guys,

Danny

 

[Uafan]

I'd go with plastic, especially with a company like K&N. Metal is a conductor of heat and would turn a "coldair intake" into a "warmair intake"

 

[Doubt Incarnate]

ditto

 

[JCUZ]

Ditto twice

 

[edgar_88]

ditto thrice, i have a plastic K&N on my 03

 

[CALDWELL]

ok well i guess that settles that question...lol

thanks guys K&N it will be - in 12 days !!!! = pay day = intake !!! lol

 

[Uafan]

Hah, congrats on getting one, I still wish K&N made one for the 3rd gen v6s

 

[rama1200]

pvc pipes, rubber adaptors and clamps from homedepot, confilter from kkm/autozone/ebay, MAF adapter from ebay... about half of the price $$$ of k&m but more work/fun... same results (from what I can tell).

just drill a little hole for the vacum line??? is that what that little whose to the side of the intake pipe is???

 

[Uafan]

pvc pipes, rubber adaptors and clamps from homedepot, confilter from kkm/autozone/ebay, MAF adapter from ebay... about half of the price $$$ of k&m but more work/fun... same results (from what I can tell).

just drill a little hole for the vacum line??? is that what that little whose to the side of the intake pipe is???

Same results? Absolutely not.

 

[1_v8_merc]

Yea, lets begin at the start here.

CAI(cold air intake) is actually a completely false term!!
Just because its metal it DOESNT make the air colder!
The air is sucked to the throttle body and into the ACTUAL upper intake so fast, it NEVER has time to get cold!

The next best thing is putting an ice pack on your upper intake and let it sit between track runs! (this actually works like a charm on EVO's and other cars with nice flat upper intakes or intercoolers and areas to lay ice bags)



But back on subject, you would think metal has a smoother finish, and it can!
But remember here, metal WILL get hot....

And plastics today are JUST as smooth as metal, or smoother, and it DOESNT hold heat nearly as much as metal!
(but temperature of the metal or plastic doesnt really matter, because remember, we said the air flows thru so fast, it doesnt make a difference!But heat will build up alot easier in a metal intake than cold will, if it came down to it!)



CAI's are metal for the cheap production costs, and BLING look.....
(even though they literally charge like 20 times what it costs to make it!)


Id personally go with plastic, although there isnt much wrong with metal, as long as you dont expect the air to be cold,lol.





But you can literally make your own custom intake tubing with plastic OR metal for like $20 or less.....
Theres plenty of How To's out there, just gotta search alittle.....i saw one ON HERE not long ago!

 

[rama1200]

Yea, lets begin at the start here.

CAI(cold air intake) is actually a completely false term!!
Just because its metal it DOESNT make the air colder!
The air is sucked to the throttle body and into the ACTUAL upper intake so fast, it NEVER has time to get cold!

The next best thing is putting an ice pack on your upper intake and let it sit between track runs! (this actually works like a charm on EVO's and other cars with nice flat upper intakes or intercoolers and areas to lay ice bags)



But back on subject, you would think metal has a smoother finish, and it can!
But remember here, metal WILL get hot....

And plastics today are JUST as smooth as metal, or smoother, and it DOESNT hold heat nearly as much as metal!
(but temperature of the metal or plastic doesnt really matter, because remember, we said the air flows thru so fast, it doesnt make a difference!But heat will build up alot easier in a metal intake than cold will, if it came down to it!)



CAI's are metal for the cheap production costs, and BLING look.....
(even though they literally charge like 20 times what it costs to make it!)


Id personally go with plastic, although there isnt much wrong with metal, as long as you dont expect the air to be cold,lol.





But you can literally make your own custom intake tubing with plastic OR metal for like $20 or less.....
Theres plenty of How To's out there, just gotta search alittle.....i saw one ON HERE not long ago!

I think so too... you could just get pipes and elbow-joints from homedepot and get the tubing all the way down/under to the front bumper and put the cone element closer to ground... then the temperature would really be lower... it has to be cooler down there than right at the to of the engine bay next to the block... heat rises.... cold air sinks.

I think pvc is smooth enought (more than stock at least), it isolates heat well... but on the other hand is a bit hearvier than other plastics/aluminum.

Also... from homedepot get aluminum to make a heat shield... and powder coded... I think some one in this forum this it... it looked nice.


I keep mentioning homedepot (I don't work for them), because is went to autozone, orealys, all of those local stores, and found nothing... homedepot had it all... from pipes, to clamps to adaptors... I think they even have cone filters in the riding mowers section....

 

[CALDWELL]

i am goin to stick with the plastic K&N INTAKE when i get my next check...

you guys have def made an EXTREMELY convincing arguement over the materials... when i had my CIVIC rice burner, with a AEM CAI - it was metal and my temp gauge did read a few degrees higher after i installed it with the header back exhaust... i just havent thought about it until reading your opinions...

i checked a dyno sheet i had before and after the install - my engine temp went up 13 degrees after the intake that was ( METAL ) was installed...


good points gentlemen !!!!!!!!!