Where to buy WAI...
 

Hey everyone. I am new to the forum but have been lurking for several months. This forum has been invaluable already in helping me replace my rotors, pads and Wheel hub.

My issue now is I want to upgrade the stock air intake. (this is on the 3.4L)

Where is the best place to purchase a WAI? Dr. Speed? Ebay? Some of the deals on EBAY look too good to be true with a stage 1 intake + K&N filter for $80. Is this a rip off?

I also had a question about the 'Cold Air Box' where there is a shield separating the air filter from the engine. Is this something I could fabricate myself with the right materials? Or is this something I am better off getting in a kit.

Thanks in advance for any help.

no ebay is NOT a rip off. drspeed is. we're all running ebays or even cheaper DIY WAI/CAI setups... there is no reason to pay more then 40 for one.

and i've never really understood the purpose of the "cold air box". the point of a WAI/CAI setup is to produce more air into the engine... if you then cover the filter, your bringing yourself back down to a stock setup, so why bother upgrading in the first place?

I got my CAI for like $50 it works just fine. Theres really no difference between the name brand stuff and the eBay shit.

They're not difficult to make yourself, but it would probably be easier to get a pre-cut kit. And the ebay ones are fine, but you might want to put a name brand filter like K&N on. The ebay kits usually come with cheapo paper filters.

I would like to test that theory that having a cone filter with the air box wouldn't work. My reasoning for this is that if you look at the bottom of the stock air box there is a tube type opening to allow air into the box. My thinking is that if you can enclose the cone filter of the WAI utilizing the stock box, you would have isolated it from the heated air of the engine, and gain the benefits of cooler air flowing in the box. Now someone is going to say that there wouldn't be a difference but I think it would be, but for example the bottom of the stock box would have to be opened to allow for more air flow. JMO I would like to here the rebutals though.

Yeah buy the piping on eBay and then buy a K&N filter elsewhere ;)

That might be something...altho I think the air would warm slightly from box to TB and then the tube that feeds air to the air box is restrictive. It would allow enough air but not what the cone filter is meant for.

[quote=reddog37;358682]I also had a question about the 'Cold Air Box' where there is a shield separating the air filter from the engine. Is this something I could fabricate myself with the right materials? Or is this something I am better off getting in a kit.[quote]


i cut and bent a piece of sheet metal to fit beghind the filter to block warm engine air, and it made a fairly noticable difference over just having the filter.

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Nm, Thanks for the picture mate !!! ^^^

just make sure u can fasten it down somehow because at one point mine wasnt and it made a ton of noise vibrating against stuff. good luck, and some pics if u do decide to do it.

No no no I'm talking about a cone filter with an aftermarket tube (non restrictive) like the tubes you get with the WAI kits etc. If you look at the factory air box as a whole it is designed like a cold air intake just way more crap there. So if we just used the bottom portion of the box, opened it up more at the bottom, and enclosed the top of the box with a air circulating top then we would have a hybrid cold air intake..sort of like the isolating screen shown above but taken alittle further, and maybe more efficent....thinking out loud here....but chime in people.

^I know what you're talking about. Pair a ram air front entrance to some tubing that leads up to where the cone filter is located (which is sealed off from the rest of the engine bay by the box, incl. weatherstripping at teh top of the box to make a better seal with the hood to further separate the cone filter from the engine)

People do it. Honestly between WAI, CAI, cold air box, ram air, there's probably about a 0.5 HP difference.

Ahh...varry niiice

Yeah but it is still a step in the right direction, and you wouldn't have to worry about getting crap in the CAI anymore. It would appear stock but completely stealthy. Like I said just thinking out loud here...I would love to see what other people have come up with..I've been searching on the internet for a pic, but have come up short. I guess you can't google everything..lol.

Honestly, anything is an improvement over stock, but I doubt it makes much difference between having a CAI, WAI, or some kind of hybrid.

Ok below is a pic of what I'm thinking about but not completely. I think the pic below is to restrictive, but think of the filter being completely enclosed and sealed. Now think of the piping being made out of say aluminum or something and completely round. Now feed of the box would be like Ion said Ram'd air feed into the box, from the box would be round tubing to the throttle body. The box would fit in our stock location! Of course this isn't set in stone, and the design could vary quite a bit.

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