Cold Air intake or not?

[cLoaKd]

Hey guys,

I recently bought an 05 Acura RSX Type-S/ITR DC5 and I was wondering if I should buy an Injen Cold Air Intake or not.

I read that hydro-lock can happen with CAIs and I don't know if the gains would outweigh the risks. How common is hydrolock? I'm from northern california and it rains every so often, so would it be a good idea to get one of these? Of course I would be running this with a bypass filter/hydroshield, avoiding as many puddles as I can, but how effective is this?

What do you guys think? Thanks in advance!

 

[DC5RS]

I was in the same position as you, since you living in the states i would buy something different. For summer time the CAI is excellent no doubt, for winter time for a peace of mind i would get an aemv2, mugen or similar.

If you have no prob switching the intake i would go with 2. If not i would get an SRI (short ram intake) and probably suffer the so called heatsoak (which i still havent notice my self after 1 year of owning the aemv2 on one of the hottest countries of Europe)

Cheers

 

[davidpingu]

SRI FTW! The one I'm selling in the for sale section to be precise :xgrin: xrofl

Seriously though I agree with the above comment. The Injen seems to come out on top for all the major tests that were done and with good reason. It's situated in a very nice spot for all that nice cool air, especially on a cool morning! The open filters also sound a bit more growly if you like that sort of thing.

Problem is, as you've rightly said, its strength is its very weakness. For most of us here the DC5 is our pride and joy so we are happy to sacrifice the 2 - 6bhp sort of peak power the Injen will yield over closed box applications and instead think about looking after the internals as best as possible.

Think it all comes down to whether your DC5 is going to be your track slag and you're going to treat it mean or whether you're going to treat it like a true gentleman :xlol:

 

[Shortstuff]

I have an AEM CAI, and from what your saying I would think maybe it rains alot more there than it does where you are?

Does it flood much where you are?

My understanding is that the AEM CAI or Injen give some fantastic gains, up near with the Gruppe M for less than a 1/4 of the price. You can get hydro bags to help protect you from water going up in the winter.

Only issue I had, when we had alot of rain, the filter got a bit too damp/bogged up for good performance, once dried out it was fine.

 

[Alexander0628]

Same as above only issue iv had is when we had a lot of rain filter got damp, but If it's a lot dryer over by you, bang for buck it's worth it, sounds sweet too.

 

[Col R]

[SIZE=9pt]Hey there, [/SIZE]

Firstly, congratulations on your purchase! I‘m still waiting patiently for a DC5

Maybe you should be a bit more specific. Assuming you currently have a stock setup, I think it depends on what you hope to achieve i.e are you hoping to increase peak performance? For a more throaty induction sound? Both?

I‘d take on board what others have suggested but without doubt, I‘d install either the Gruppe M induction kit/Tegiwa copy or the J‘s Racing kit. Reason: provide serious v-tec induction sound, increase performance, no risk of hydrolock, no need to change from one set-up to another which will cost you more time and money in the long run, easy to access/service and they both look good in the engine bay. Do your research as everyone (myself included) has different opinions.

There are pro‘s and cons and I‘ll give you an idea of the basics. You‘re obviously aware that if you drive during/after a heavy flash of rainfall with an injen or an AEM long arm induction kit then you run the risk of hydrolock. IMO socks are no use as you will suck water/moisture content through which could be damaging long term, if not short term. However, performance gains are up there with the Gruppe M (apparently).

Others will quite rightly state that short ram induction kits hinder performance due to heat soak, I believe this to be true. Others also suggest that the AEM V2 is better as it sits lower down in the engine bay, but it also sits right on top of the gearbox and IIRC the radiator hose which sits right under the intake pipe before it enters the throttle body so IMO, it sounds good but hinders performance. As others have stated it does give you piece
[SIZE=9pt]of mind in the Winter, but you‘d probably want to have a better design for summer...[/SIZE]
[SIZE=9pt][/SIZE]

There are others such as the ARC which looks an aftermarket part for a cyber man, the ITG Maxogen which is really just an expensive dress-up item, custom jobs, cheap efforts etc. If moneys an issue and you can‘t afford/source the Gruppe M (Tegiwa copy) or the J‘s Racing kit then I‘d settle for the original airbox mod and save your cash for vtec!

All in all, it‘s entirely up to you and down to what you decide best suits your needs but as tempting as long arm kits are, I‘d steer away from them (or the
[SIZE=9pt]puddles). I‘d also suggest doing a search on this forum as there must have been a huge debate on this at some point?!!![/SIZE]

 

[Mark_teg]

^^ Great post! You should post more often

 

[DC5RS]

You said you dont own a DC5 and you know all that details? as Mark said you should visit us more often

 

[Col R]

Thanks for the words of encouragement guys . Will do... Wasn't sure what kind of response I‘d get, but at the end of the day I thought it‘s just an opinion which is what was asked for. If nothing else, hopefully it‘ll help the OP look for the ‘right‘ answer to his question!

Sure, I'm fairly new on here but I do love the DC5 and I'm enjoying this forum. Rather than clog up this thread which I know you guys are against I suppose I should formally introduce myself, so if I find time over the weekend I‘ll do just that. So back on track and over to the OP, has this thread helped you decide which route you want to follow?