intake questions...

[danutt 4]

i went cruzin today and did a little bit o window shoppin and spotted an intake pipe for a CAI.

planning to put the pod just where the lower vent is in the bumper and run the pipe back to the throttle body any suggestions?intake temperature should be way way way down from under bonnet temps :mosh: also would i have that nice intake sound in the front bumper or will i not have the sound ne more???

[Guest Andrew]

well if you ditch everything that goes to the throttle body that is there now , your car won't work.

The intake is already plumbed to the outside.

[*sic 1]

i have a full cai, some cars will not benefit from having one some will. dyno time.

the sound should be the least of your worries.

mine sounds badass i must say, gotta love the SHHHHHHUUUUUOOOPPPP when you turn the car off, people are always like WTF?!

[danutt 4]

hey *sic how come yours makes that sound?post a pic of your setup bro. :mosh: yea im not scraping the whole intake so the car wont work im just extending the intake with the pod to the front bumper for colder air so yea it in theory should work.it would be trick to have that induction sound at the same time as the pod being behind da bumper

[Guest Andrew]

it really won't do anything.

[danutt 4]

its gotta make a difference andrew think about it the air will be alot colder and as a rule sum1 mentioned before for every 10 degrees lower intake their will be an increase in hp so yea *sic please post a pic or 2 of your setup :mosh:

[Carl 3]

its gotta make a difference andrew think about it the air will be alot colder and as a rule sum1 mentioned before for every 10 degrees lower intake their will be an increase in hp so yea *sic please post a pic or 2 of your setup :mosh:

10 degrees lower equates to a 1% gain...if you're running a 318i then at best that'll equate to a 1-2hp gain ASSUMING that you'll be sucking in cooler air.

The stock setup is quite good at sucking in cool air, the only time you running into sucking up hot air is if you replace the stock panel filter with a pod and not stick a CAI on it.

We hate to burst your bubble but be realistic about what you're going to get, at best it'll be a tonal change, YOU WILL NEVER notice a 1hp gain.

[petone 0]

Heres the 2 different intakes i've had on mine

This is my current setup:

and my older one, the pod sat behind the foglights.

Both have that intake noise, I have to say they do sound cool, especially when you take it to redline under load.

[cainchapman 0]

It all counts though. If he spends a little bit each time on improving the entire system. He will have something better than what he started with.

1% increase in my car is not very much either. Arse Dyno won't notice, a better induction noise with a little more power is still a good thing. Then there is the debate on whether you actually get a 10 degree drop in temperature anyway. Maybe, as our equipment in roadside cabinets in Oz had an internal temperature rise of 20 degrees (different system, I know, but the theory is relevant)

The rumoured 10% for Powerchipping my car for $1100 is not a great return on investment either. 22kW is bugger all and I will only notice it for the first week of driving and want more. So a flat panel K&N delivers better bang for my buck than the Powerchip.

Photo if the top setup is nice too!

Have fun.

[*sic 1]

*sic please post a pic or 2 of your setup :mosh:

yea i will once i clean the biarch and get my sideskirts on.. ill take a whole series of pics, interior, engine bay and exterior..

hopefully this weekend...

[Guest Andrew]

its gotta make a difference andrew think about it the air will be alot colder and as a rule sum1 mentioned before for every 10 degrees lower intake their will be an increase in hp so yea *sic please post a pic or 2 of your setup :mosh:

record the temp in the engine bay near the intake and outside the engine bay. I'd be suprised if it was more than 10 deg cel if even that.

[gmccormack 0]

I'm sceptical of any intake mod that does away with the black plastic shield behind the headlights in the hope of gaining better airflow or lower intake temps. Keep in mind any air entering the stock intake system has come from in front of the shield so is already stone cold, not engine bay temp. And as the car moves down the road the shield creates a slight tunnel ram effect in the intake air charge. The area of the shield is much greater than the cross sectional area of the intake tube, so any air hitting the shield as the car moves down the road either spills around the shield or is forced down the intake at a higher pressure than if the shield was absent, as in the case of a pod filter or CAI of equal cross section.

[petone 0]

It all counts though. If he spends a little bit each time on improving the entire system. He will have something better than what he started with.

True, but the problem is before any worth while gains are made he will have spent as much as what a engine transplant will cost.

Just a general rant about intakes, I've heard so many different theroies from so many different people I have no idea what an ideal setup is. The only thing they have in common is that air should be a cold as possible. Some people have said that its best if the air is stationary, others say the ram-air effect does work though you have to be going about 150kmh to have any noticable effect. Then there all that talk about pods creating vortexes, or swirls or whatever. I've heard all that different rubbish from people who have all been playing with motors for a long time.

As sic has said, the only way to tell is dyno time.

Sic- about time we saw some decent pics of your car.

[nz320i 0]

Heres the 2 different intakes i've had on mine

This is my current setup:

and my older one, the pod sat behind the foglights.

Both have that intake noise, I have to say they do sound cool, especially when you take it to redline under load.

hi there, just wondered if you culd send me a pic or two on that top engine bay it would give me some ideas as i am doing a pod filter at the moment

Thanks

Chris.

[bumpstop325 0]

Nice shinny alternator mike.

I have heard bits and pieces aswell. by all mean go ahead and do it. but make sure if you dont like it, make sure you can change it back. easy as!!

[seven 0]

where would one find a good deal on a K&N panel filter for an E36 328 anyhow? would it be much of an aural/reliability improvement from a cheap pod filter from repco?sorry for the hijack

cheers

Aaron

[danutt 4]

its sweet seven im dun wit debating intakes i just settled taking the black cover from behind the lights away to allow more air or cooler air into the engine bay and il get a heat shield too soon i just love the sound high in the revs .im getting an exhaust on it soon and yea wen is the next cruze here in auckland or a meet or sumthing where we can see mad ass beemas and take pics and footage etc ???thanx

:mosh:

[cainchapman 0]

There is a distributor down Church St, Onehunga. Forgotten their name sorry.

[WarNox 1]

the only thing i know of in onehunga is tht AA wreckers, european wreckers, have lots of bmw stuff but charge the same as dealership pretty much, i swear its so much cheaper to import parts than buy them here!!

[WarNox 1]

where would one find a good deal on a K&N panel filter for an E36 328 anyhow? would it be much of an aural/reliability improvement from a cheap pod filter from repco?sorry for the hijack

cheers

Aaron

oh and u can get a K&N to fit into ur current air filter place in an e36, but u have to order it in i think, the cheap ones from repco just have way worse air flow and get clogged more, if u do smtin do it right, well thts wht i say!

the size of an e36 air filter is, 33-2070 , so just ask for a K&N that size, i think thats how it works!

good luck...

make sure u come bak nd tell me if it worked and how much it was thnx

[cainchapman 0]

The one for the 540 is about $180. Next months purchase. Cats out this month. Keep an eye out for the dyno results.

[Carl 3]

I paid $120 for my E30 K&N flat panel from R&R

[cainchapman 0]

Air Intakes.

Greg Stirling

Half of what a car engine needs for combustion is petrol. The other half is air. Petrol costs money but air is still free so if you want to improve your car's performance why not start there?

Air Filters:

There are a huge variety of air filters on the market and making a choice is not easy. You've got to consider your car, your budget and what you expect from the filter. Most brands of cars will have at least a replacement panel type filter available while more popular performance cars will have a range of intakes and filters available to enhance performance, noise and looks. What is available will depend on any number of factors. Is your car naturally aspirated or supercharged/turbocharged, injected or carburetted, modern or old, popular or rare?

Standard air filters that can be bought at any parts supplier are a compromise between performance, noise and cost. Most lean towards being cost efficient while trapping most of the dust particles it is designed to keep out. They do their job well and are relatively cheap because of their paper build.

But if you own a fairly new car or have a performance engine in your car you might want a higher quality air filter. A better quality filter should still trap as much of the dust particles as a standard filter but also allow greater air flow.

There are generally two types of air filters: panel replacement filters for standard air boxes and pod filters which attach to the intake tube. An air box is simply a factory fitted box which houses the air filter and only allows air to pass through the filter before entering the engine. An intake tube then attaches to this box to connect it to the engine.

Putting a panel replacement filter into your air box gives you a compromise between the same noise of the factory standard filter and the very slight performance increase of a better filter. Because it still uses the restrictive piping from the factory you will notice very little change to a standard filter. You might have more peace of mind knowing you've got better filtration of the air going into your engine though. If you're really lucky you might gain a fraction of increased performance.

The next step is to remove the air box and fit a pod filter onto your standard intake tube. They can have more of a performance gain, although it is still very slight, and you will notice an increase in noise from the sound of the air being sucked into the filter. It is also possible that you could be now sucking in more hot air from the engine bay than from outside the car so ducting in cold air is always a good idea.

Intake Tube:

Finally there's the option to replace your intake tube as well as your filter. Just like filters there is a large range of intake tubes available in a variety of styles, brands and quality.

The most important thing to remember is that the filter and intake tube will be the point of entry for air into your engine so you don't want to put anything on there that will cause damage. You don't want to leave any packing from your new intake tube inside it just to have it sucked into your engine. You also don't want to place your filter somewhere that could cause it to be damaged by water or debris from the road.

A cold air intake is generally considered to be an intake tube that will place the air filter away from the hot engine bay. The reason for this is that cold air is better for the engine than hot. Without getting too scientific about it basically colder air is denser and the more air you have in the engine the better combustion will be. So it makes sense to prevent hot air getting in.

Because of New Zealand's climate you should be aware that some cold air intakes will not be suitable. Some place the air filter where rain can get into it such as low in the front bumper. Others have a better option of leaving the filter within the engine bay but also sealing it against the engine bay by having a tube air ducting cold air from out front of the car.

Performance:

It is important to note that on most cars you will generally gain no real power difference between a standard filter and a new filter and intake. What you might gain however is better throttle response and some noise from the intake. Most people interested in performance would agree that the noise is something they like to have, much like a good exhaust system although nowhere quite as loud of course.

Just keep in mind that getting more air into the engine isn't going to help if all the dust and dirt make it through your filter too. A cheap no name brand pod filter might look better than the plastic air box but it you're not filtering the air properly you've wasted your money. On the other hand don't go spending $500 on a big name brand cold air intake imported from Japan or America if your car isn't a top of the line machine. You're not going to gain enough to justify a huge outlay.

Go with known name brands and ask around to see what other people have. You'll find most people in car clubs or associated with racing will have a range of opinions of varieties they have tried. You might even be able to pick a good second hand one. You'd be lucky to find a performance shop that doesn't carry any performance filters so ask around.

Perhaps the most widely known brand is K&N. Their filters flow much better than standard, trap far more dust particles and come in a huge variety of sizes and styles for any application. They are priced quite reasonably for such a quality filter, being around the middle of the market. They use an oiled cotton filter which is guaranteed for a million miles. All you have to do is use one of their filter cleaning kits on it every 10,000kms or so to keep it in perfect condition.

Other options:

If it's not enough to simply swap your filter or intake tube there are a few other things you can do to help.

Using plastic tubing you can find a way of ducting cold air from the front bumper or basically behind anywhere outside air gets in and then direct it to the air filter. Some cars might have something similar attached to the factory air box so you can look at leaving it in place to increase the flow of air to the filter. Make sure that any tubing is properly attached to the car and in a sensible location. You don't want it low enough to take a drink from large puddles.

Some cars can adjust the position of their headlights enough to let in a small gap of air towards the filter. It may not be much but every little bit helps (especially if it's free).

Move the battery to a better location in the engine bay or even have it mounted in the boot by an autoelectrician. Batteries cause heat so if one is close to your filter or intake tube it can heat the air up around it. Remember that if you've got a new intake made of metal that if it gets warm it can have an effect of warming the air inside.

Coat your intake tube in heat protection. It is a little bit extreme for the average person but a coating or wrap around the intake that prevents it heating up can help. Basic physics suggests a reflective coating, such as chrome, will be better than if you have one in a matt black colour. Basic looks suggest that chrome is better eye candy too.

You can always go to a few other extremes like placing the air filter outside the engine bay but that isn't recommended for anything except the track.

[Rod 0]

The NZ distribtor for K&N filters is:

PIONEER AUTO PARTS

278 Church Street, Penrose, Auckland

Ph (09)634-4115

Fax (09)634-6499

Cain was not wrong with the location. I have not been in there for awhile, however they used to deal directly with the public and their prices were good. They also apear to now have branches in Palmerston North and Christchurch:

PIONEER AUTO PARTS: Palmerston North

696 Tremaine Ave, Palmerston North

Ph (06)356-1717

Fax (06)356-1758

PIONEER AUTO PARTS: Christchurch

12 Mowbray St Christchurch

Ph (03)366-5625

Fax (03)379-6814

The aCourts directory (www.acourt.co.nz) is always useful to find this type of imformation. The K&N website (www.kandn.com) also has plenty of useful information, including the calculations required to select a suitable filter.

[my_e36 43]

where would one find a good deal on a K&N panel filter for an E36 328 anyhow?

eBay is your friend. I had 3 of those landed in NZ for less than $100 each.