Proper Intake Setup - CEG Archives

Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives

Here's a pic of my engine bay,
not just for a little whoring,
but to show what a proper sized (2.75") intake looks like.

There's a 90 degree 2.75" to 2.75" elbow on the TB.
And a 45 degree 2.75" to 3" elbow on the MAF.
Seemless and snug fit on the TB, tubing, and MAF.
The 90 degree elbow has a long radius bend.
The tubing is stainless steel (which will be be getting a heat resistant coating in black).

As far as perfomance compared to other intakes;
Short Ram (CTA intake) - high temp, low pressure, high cfm
Short Ram w/ Heat Shield - mid temp, low pressure, mid cfm
CAI (CTA w/ GMK extension) - low temp, high pressure, low cfm
My intake - low temp, mid pressure, high cfm

Cost = less than $90 (with K&N filter)

Damn, thats what I was thinking of building. I just cant seem to fine 2.75" couplers for a decent price, if at all.

Nice job

Hey sleeper, can you direct me torwards those couplings....I need some for my S/C setup!

Here's a great one stop source for all you silicone coupler needs, AJ-USA.

Thanks.....what is the one on your TB? 90 degrees?

Thanks, those prices are way cheaper than anything I have found before.

Originally posted by LoCoZ:
Thanks.....what is the one on your TB? 90 degrees?

Yeah, it started as a 90 degree.
I trimmed the leg on the TB to give it a slight downward tilt towards the MAF and airbox.

where do u get the tubing?

Originally posted by Tour VCT:
where do u get the tubing?

Good prices on tubing can be found at ATP Turbo.

how long should the pipe be? would aluminum work if you had a few coats of heat resistant paint?

Quick question, why is the 90 degree coupler $40 at one site and $14 on the other?? Whats the difference?

edit: I also considered using exhaust pipe for mine, that should be ok, right?

The piece of pipe I am using is 8 5/8" long.
Aluminum is fine (its what the CTA is made from).
I would add a few coats of high temp paint for engine to it for a little extra protection.

BTW, the two silicone couplers that I am using are the X-3003 (on the MAF) and X-3004 (on the TB).

Originally posted by CRZYDRVR:
Quick question, why is the 90 degree coupler $40 at one site and $14 on the other?? Whats the difference?

edit: I also considered using exhaust pipe for mine, that should be ok, right?

Exhaust pipe is fine, its stainless steel.

ATP Turbo.com doesn't even have the 2.75" couplers in stock.
They are back ordered till the end of this month.
Same is true of most places that carry the 2.75" couplers.
The reason AJ-USA.com is so cheap is because they are selling replacement couplers made by Injen.
The couplers are sent from Injen.
Injen may have a 'ricer' product reputaion,
but they do make some very quality parts,
and these silicone couplers are top notch.

Originally posted by SleeperZ:

Originally posted by CRZYDRVR:
Quick question, why is the 90 degree coupler $40 at one site and $14 on the other?? Whats the difference?

edit: I also considered using exhaust pipe for mine, that should be ok, right?

Exhaust pipe is fine, its stainless steel.

ATP Turbo.com doesn't even have the 2.75" couplers in stock.
They are back ordered till the end of this month.
Same is true of most places that carry the 2.75" couplers.
The reason AJ-USA.com is so cheap is because they are selling replacement couplers made by Injen.
The couplers are sent from Injen.
Injen may have a 'ricer' product reputaion,
but they do make some very quality parts,
and these silicone couplers are top notch.

Gotcha, thanks for the info. The $40 price I kept finding was the only thing keeping me from doing this a long time ago.

Originally posted by SleeperZ:

There's a 90 degree 2.75" to 2.75" elbow on the TB.

i thought that 90 degree coupler was not good for flow?

Its a long radius bend, so while not optimal, close.
Optimal would be a small funnel shaped plenum above the TB,
which we don't have room for.

simple, inexpensive, and effective.. i like it, but i already have the CTA, so i'll just work on that foam heat shield.

If you already have the CTA intake;
I would suggest getting the 2.75" to 3" 45 degree elbow.
Attach it to the TB and cut the CTA intake pipe to the correct length.
This will improve mid to top end performance by removing most of the turbulance caused by the CTA intake not fitting properly on the TB.

Originally posted by SleeperZ:
Its a long radius bend, so while not optimal, close.
Optimal would be a small funnel shaped plenum above the TB,
which we don't have room for.

do you have an image of what this plenum would look like?

Unfortunately I don't have a drawing.
My current idea is simply an old air cleaner assembly look of a flat round piece that is funnel shaped towards the TB.
See the very crude pic below.

Plenum

|------------|
| ------ Intake Pipe
\ ------
\ /
---| |--

TB

How many clamps did you have to buy?

Originally posted by SleeperZ:

There's a 90 degree 2.75" to 2.75" elbow on the TB.
And a 45 degree 2.75" to 3" elbow on the MAF.
Seemless and snug fit on the TB, tubing, and MAF.
The 90 degree elbow has a long radius bend.
The tubing is stainless steel (which will be be getting a heat resistant coating in black).

How many do you see?

I can't see all of them, hence the question.

Looks like 4. If nothing else, get an extra in case you need another.

Originally posted by nimrod:
I can't see all of them, hence the question.

each elbow needs 2...how many elbows/couplers do you see? (elbows can be various degrees, 90, 45, etc)

Yes, total of four clamps.

SleeperZ, what type of K&N filter do you have? Is it just the flat, stock replacement filter?

Originally posted by CONTOURCODY:
SleeperZ, what type of K&N filter do you have? Is it just the flat, stock replacement filter?

Yes

Originally posted by SleeperZ:
Here's a pic of my engine bay,
not just for a little whoring,
but to show what a proper sized (2.75") intake looks like.

There's a 90 degree 2.75" to 2.75" elbow on the TB.
And a 45 degree 2.75" to 3" elbow on the MAF.
Seemless and snug fit on the TB, tubing, and MAF.
The 90 degree elbow has a long radius bend.
The tubing is stainless steel (which will be be getting a heat resistant coating in black).

As far as perfomance compared to other intakes;
Short Ram (CTA intake) - high temp, low pressure, high cfm
Short Ram w/ Heat Shield - mid temp, low pressure, mid cfm
CAI (CTA w/ GMK extension) - low temp, high pressure, low cfm
My intake - low temp, mid pressure, high cfm

Cost = less than $90 (with K&N filter)

What are the Part #'s again?
http://www.ajusa.com/cgi-bin/injen/universal?category=HOSES

And the from here as well.. Thanks!
http://www.atpturbo.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=tp&Category_Code=SIL-STR

From Aj-USA;
X-3004 - 90 degree on TB
X-3003 - 45 degree on MAF

From ATP;
ATP-STL-007 - 2.75" stainless steel piping
or
ATP-ALM-001 - 2.75" aluminum piping

You should use stainless steel to help keep intake temps down. If you go with aluminum, you can either paint it with high temp engine paint (that has ceramic in it) or wrap with exhaust wrap, to help keep intake temps down.

While using the stock box would it help to use a K&N filter?

Originally posted by TronX:
While using the stock box would it help to use a K&N filter?

Yes.

Originally posted by LoCoZs/c:

Originally posted by TronX:
While using the stock box would it help to use a K&N filter?

Yes.

What makes K&N work so much better than a normal air filter?

Originally posted by TronX:

Originally posted by LoCoZs/c:

Originally posted by TronX:
While using the stock box would it help to use a K&N filter?

Yes.

What makes K&N work so much better than a normal air filter?

Better airflow.

Originally posted by LoCoZs/c:

Originally posted by TronX:

Originally posted by LoCoZs/c:

Originally posted by TronX:
While using the stock box would it help to use a K&N filter?

Yes.

What makes K&N work so much better than a normal air filter?

Better airflow.

I've been trying to find a K&N #33-2132 for cheap.

Hey thanks Sleeper I might just see about doing that instead...this may be a dumb question whats a TB anyhow? and all those diminsions of the hoses and stuff r the things u first listed right? so all I need to do is get the stuff in those diminsions? THANKS!
---------------------------
1997 Mercury Mystique ZETEC almost 70K miles and still runs great, need pre-98 fog lamps from Mystique that r in good shape(will pay up to $120 (including shipping if needed) for them)gotta watch my budget.

TB = throttle body
All the necessary dimensions are in my first post,
the actual part numbers are somewhere in this post as well.

That's a sweet set-up. I won't ask any stupid questions.

Did you see a gas milege gain?

Originally posted by TronX:
I've been trying to find a K&N #33-2132 for cheap.

Hmm..look at my sig. you might find a cheap one there.