hks

 

I have Blitz - I like it a lot...no cleaning, no replacing filters, looks great. I've seen first hand HKS CAIs that have sucked in part of the foam into the turbo - not good.

 

What about a boxed open filter? (is there even such thing?)

 

Absolutely true. I have a huge intercooler, although SM (the Pettit coolcharge 3) and even at dyno tests it rarely gets much heat to the touch. The actual air temperatures outside though has made significant differences and I'm not talking with the *** dyno.

Cold air is better, regardless of how good your intercooler is. I'm not going to touch whether cold air BOXES are better than open intakes yet but don't downplay the intake temp regardless of how good your ic IS. It will always be very significant from what I've experienced.

 

Kinda on topic.. What intakes will work with hugeass intercoolers like the Pettit Coolcharge III? I'm sure I'll have to get rid of my Apex'i for size's sake.. Like the open air, but what will fit?

 

hmm.. Im interested in seeing the colder air theory tested. does anyone have any info on it? Im using the greddy intake, and I plan on fabricating some sort of intake pathing for the air to go to them.

 

Cool intake air is good no matter how big the IC is. If you have hot air going into the turbos, they have to do more work to pump enough air to feed the engine even if the final intake temp in the manifold is the same with hot or cold intake air.

Warmer intake air leads to:
- higher pressure going into the IC to get enough air molecules
- higher temps going into IC from the higher initial temp, higher pressure, and possibly from lower compressor efficiency
- more absolute temp drop across the IC due to the greater differential between the inlet temp and the air flowing across the IC, but the outlet temps will still be a little higher
- more exhaust backpressure from the increased load on the turbos to compress enough of the hotter intake air to feed the engine at the resulting intake temp and set boost pressure
- more backpressure means less flow through the engine, which means less power

Of course, this doesn't mean that you should always choose the intake that gives the coolest air. There are packaging concerns to deal with, and restricting the intake air has many of the same effects since the turbos have to work harder to produce the same compressor outlet pressure when there is a bunch of vaccum at the compressor inlet. But be careful not to fall into thinking that compressor inlet temps don't matter, even if other considerations lead you to decide to compromise in that area. Compressor inlet temps do matter, but they aren't the only thing that matters.

-Max

 

I like the blitz intake looks wise. But have no real experience with any of them experience.

 

I'm using the apexi unit, and it's fine. As far as choosing intakes though, rather than brand, I would look for one that would fit with the intercooler that you may plan on buying in the future (if you do so). Most intakes work reasonably within the same range, so the performance of one will not far outdo any other. Other factors like cold air, and protecting them from heat will influence their function more than the filter.

 

wow i forgot all about this little thread i started, i've started saving my pennies for the rotary extreme intercooler kit and their intake etc. hopefully get a good result

 

Where can I get it online and will it work with the HKS intake?

 

Just get a piece of sheet metal, and bend it to how you want it. Drill a couple holes and there ya go!

 

There's got to be more to it than just that! :P

Obviously I need to block off the radiator, but how about behind the intake and maybe some off the bottom? And what gauge alum and what makes for a good heat shielding material?

 

Speaking of foam filters, does anyone here know anything about the TrueFlow oiled foam filters? Someone on the RX8 forum posted a link (I've lost it, somehow) but they posted pretty detailed descriptions of why oiled foam (at least, their oiled foam) elements were superior for both filtration and flow to gauze, paper, etc. I was wondering if their foam was a different type of thing than the typical stuff that everyone hates.

jds

 

I don't know about those, but technically you are supposed to oil all foam filters (even HKS).

 

make your own cold air home depot style, but use real filters though

 

BTW, I just looked at the TrueFlow site and their filters appear to be slightly different than the older HKS style filters. However, the statement about the filters not losing performance even when dirty is just about true for all foam filters unlike the other non-foam filters (which is one of the reasons why I chose the HKS intake).

 

Well for those of you wanting a boxed CAI but the open filter look.... I have the M2 CAI and instead of putting the aluminum lid on it I went to Home Depot and bought a sheet of lexan and cut it to size and used it as the lid. Looks pretty sharp.
And if you want to lessen the workload a little on the turbos by opening the box up... If you have the inlet headlight cover you can just take the lid off and its still blockin most of the radiator air while sucking in most of the air from under the car and through the headlight cover.

hope that helps someone out...

 

i got the apexi, b/c it was cheap, and has had decent reviews on this forum. the only negative of the apexi, is that it sucks in hot air, but with this cold weather, i dont think it matters. i hate cold weather, but my car loves it

 

i have the apex with a piece of sheet metal bent to act as a heat shield. i can't complain at all.

 

I have a set of the blitz sus on my car.Pricey yes.But damn well worth it.You dont have to worry about the foam crap getting sucked in.You dont have to replace them.Cleaning them is as easy as taking the cones off and using a high pressure air hose to blow all the crap out.Easily done in like 5 minutes.
They look great as they have stainless steel mesh and a nice polished front.I personally think they look the best out of all the others out there.
When I was first looking for an air intake I saw them and liked them for their looks first.Then I realized they came with some other great bonuses as well.Spend the extra dough and save money in the long run.A close second to the blitz ones are the apex ones.But with the paper filters you still end up needing to replace them eventually.And each replacement cone is like 50 bucks.Once again you end up spending more money over time.

 

I say, go with the intake that makes room for any future upgrades you might have, otherwise do it for looks. As for cooling, a go IC will make a big difference for power and lower eng. temps but I think replacing the stock radiator and oil system is really the key to keeping your eng. cool and long lasting!!

 

i have blitz and love it. but oout of the 2. i would do Apexi.

 

can someone post pics of their blitz intakes.

 

has anyone seen the rx 8 on the cover of modified magazine? that car has a custom ram intake which im sure we could all adapt to our cars.In which case the open element filters become ram airs.Not a bad idea at all.If someone has a pic please post it.It will help everyone realize what the hell im talking about.