hi, can someone explain to me in simple english what cai is and what does it do?i am planning on getting a versa sl hb in a month or so. i test drove one the other day and liked it. i have an old 93 celica with no air conditioning so this was a nice treat. i looked for other cars but versa seemed right for me, price and the safety features. i just wished it had a little more horsepower.
also, this is my first time buying a car. i've been doing internet searches, price quotes and reading all i can about car buying. are there any car salers in this forum?any advice from anyone will be helpful.
my girlfriend and i have request internet quotes for the same car in the same agency but with different email accounts and names. so far the prices differ. one will give a better price others higher.
thank you!
what is a cai and what does it do? first time buying a car
Re: what is a cai and what does it do? first time buying a car (mindpenn)
Well a CAI stands for Cold Air Intake. Its an after market part, and often misused in its proper meaning. A lot of people put on new intake systems on their car, claim to have a CAI when in actuality, they have what is actually a Short ram intake.
First, this is a Short Ram, NOT a cold air:
2nd. This is a true Cold Air intake:
Ok, both of those are on Hondas, but only pay attention to the intake piping. Notice on the first pic, that the air filter is still in the engine bay, while this may help with less restriction in the intake over a factory unit, it is still pulling in hot air, or heated air from around the motor.
In the 2nd pic, notice that you can not see the air filter. This one is move down under the fender well to only pull in outside air. This is a true CAI.
These are aftermarket add ons. They help to free up a couple horse power, and possibly get 1-2 more mpg. Most people will also say, they make a cool sucking sound when at full throttle, this will be due to the lack of noise reducers, if you look at a stock one, you will see a bunch of plastic random boxes that look stuck to the side of your factory intake. Those are there to make the intake silent. Thus when you remove them, you can now hear the intake working.
First, this is a Short Ram, NOT a cold air:
2nd. This is a true Cold Air intake:
Ok, both of those are on Hondas, but only pay attention to the intake piping. Notice on the first pic, that the air filter is still in the engine bay, while this may help with less restriction in the intake over a factory unit, it is still pulling in hot air, or heated air from around the motor.
In the 2nd pic, notice that you can not see the air filter. This one is move down under the fender well to only pull in outside air. This is a true CAI.
These are aftermarket add ons. They help to free up a couple horse power, and possibly get 1-2 more mpg. Most people will also say, they make a cool sucking sound when at full throttle, this will be due to the lack of noise reducers, if you look at a stock one, you will see a bunch of plastic random boxes that look stuck to the side of your factory intake. Those are there to make the intake silent. Thus when you remove them, you can now hear the intake working.
Re: what is a cai and what does it do? first time buying a car (Kolk1)
Nice pictures.
I got the idea. Do you use one?How much are they? (The real CAI) Does it involve a lot of work to install it?Keep in mind that I know nothing about cars but usually when I get into something I learn quick and I am not afraid of tweaking with stuff.
hhmm so removing the stock one and replacing it with the CAI is going to make it louder? I prefer a silent car.
Well, thank you for all the info! I appreciate it!
I got the idea. Do you use one?How much are they? (The real CAI) Does it involve a lot of work to install it?Keep in mind that I know nothing about cars but usually when I get into something I learn quick and I am not afraid of tweaking with stuff.
hhmm so removing the stock one and replacing it with the CAI is going to make it louder? I prefer a silent car.
Well, thank you for all the info! I appreciate it!
Re: what is a cai and what does it do? first time buying a car (mindpenn)
Well, under full throttle it will give it a little growl. But under normal driving conditions, you will never hear it.
Do I have one? No. Will I? Probably someday, but I refuse to pay for an expensive one $200+. What I normally do, is buy a cheap $50 one, and add a K&N air filter. Right now, due to the Versa being a new car, cheap ones are not available yet.
Ive had alot of performance cars, and this is my beater to drive to work every day. So for me, $200 on a intake for my beater, is a waste of money.
Normally, a CAI is going to be about as easy as it can get with a "performance" modification. But, due to the location of the filter, some knowledge might be helpful, since removal of the front bumper, or possibly the drivers side tire MIGHT be required. I have not read up on the install for the Versa, so I cannot give you an idea of a difficulty level. Ive done CAI installs that took 20 minutes, and some up to 3 hours. If I remember right, it was a G35, and the front bumper and alot of inner structure had to be removed.
Install of a CAI is pretty straight forward, the only part that might give you a hard time, like mentioned above, is getting the filter installed. I would guess on the Versa, the filter ends up being behind the fog light(or lack there of) in that area between the fog light cover, and the drivers side tire.
If you want to stay as quite as stock, then I would possibly go the other route and get a lower crank pulley, they say it adds Hp, but truely it frees up Hp that motor is already producing, but with less rotational mass, the engine runs alot smoother, and revs quicker.
Do I have one? No. Will I? Probably someday, but I refuse to pay for an expensive one $200+. What I normally do, is buy a cheap $50 one, and add a K&N air filter. Right now, due to the Versa being a new car, cheap ones are not available yet.
Ive had alot of performance cars, and this is my beater to drive to work every day. So for me, $200 on a intake for my beater, is a waste of money.
Normally, a CAI is going to be about as easy as it can get with a "performance" modification. But, due to the location of the filter, some knowledge might be helpful, since removal of the front bumper, or possibly the drivers side tire MIGHT be required. I have not read up on the install for the Versa, so I cannot give you an idea of a difficulty level. Ive done CAI installs that took 20 minutes, and some up to 3 hours. If I remember right, it was a G35, and the front bumper and alot of inner structure had to be removed.
Install of a CAI is pretty straight forward, the only part that might give you a hard time, like mentioned above, is getting the filter installed. I would guess on the Versa, the filter ends up being behind the fog light(or lack there of) in that area between the fog light cover, and the drivers side tire.
If you want to stay as quite as stock, then I would possibly go the other route and get a lower crank pulley, they say it adds Hp, but truely it frees up Hp that motor is already producing, but with less rotational mass, the engine runs alot smoother, and revs quicker.
Re: what is a cai and what does it do? first time buying a car (Kolk1)
I would not mind a little growl.
Does installing a CAI or changing the crank pulley will shorten the life of the motor? The reason I ask is because I was reading about how to get better fuel mileage and more hp. I came across turbulators and other devices. But people commented that they shorten the life of the motor.
Can you do both? change the crank pulley and installing a CAI?
Less rotational mass would be kinda of like when you use the small gear cassette on a mountain bike?Kolk1 wrote: If you want to stay as quite as stock, then I would possibly go the other route and get a lower crank pulley, they say it adds Hp, but truely it frees up Hp that motor is already producing, but with less rotational mass, the engine runs alot smoother, and revs quicker.
Does installing a CAI or changing the crank pulley will shorten the life of the motor? The reason I ask is because I was reading about how to get better fuel mileage and more hp. I came across turbulators and other devices. But people commented that they shorten the life of the motor.
Can you do both? change the crank pulley and installing a CAI?
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proxim2020
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Re: what is a cai and what does it do? first time buying a car (mindpenn)
Yes you can do both. Crank pulleys do not shorten the life of a motor, people do . Those who tend to swap out crank pulleys are those interested in racing which will eventually shorten the life of the motor. The pulley sits on the outside of the motor and has no bearing on what rpms the engine runs. It may cause your idle speed to be slightly higher than normal since that extra weight would be gone. A light weight pulley is equivalent to swapping out your heavy wheels for lightweight wheel. You free up some hp since you're not trying to turn a heavy wheel. An under drive pulley, which is a pulley that's smaller than the original size, will cause problems. The smaller pulley causes the serpentine belt to circulate faster. The A/C compressor, alternator, and water pump use this belt. Since they spin faster, their life expectancy is lowered.
A CAI won't shorten the life of a motor either. Most stock intakes work on a vacuum system. The intake tends to suck air in depending on how wide the throttle's open. Aftermarket intakes allow the air to reach the throttle freely. So when air's needed, you're not struggling to get it into the engine. The engine still makes the determination of how much air it wants. On another note, poorly designed or poorly maintained filters can cause damage to the mass airflow sensor, throttle body, and engine internals. If the filter isn't capturing the dirt, it will continue down the line. It can gunk up the throttle body and restrict you airflow. It can also gunk up the MAF easily. This can cause codes to trip, emission problems, and mpg problems.
Intakes aren't normally too loud for small cars, but if it did become a problem you could easily fix it. Wrapping the intake with insulating material will help cut down on exterior noise and also will help the pipes resist the heat from the engine bay. My truck has a 3in intake made from not so thick aluminum. The sucking sound is enough to get you to have to shout while standing in front and engine noise radiates back out the intake. Me likey
A CAI won't shorten the life of a motor either. Most stock intakes work on a vacuum system. The intake tends to suck air in depending on how wide the throttle's open. Aftermarket intakes allow the air to reach the throttle freely. So when air's needed, you're not struggling to get it into the engine. The engine still makes the determination of how much air it wants. On another note, poorly designed or poorly maintained filters can cause damage to the mass airflow sensor, throttle body, and engine internals. If the filter isn't capturing the dirt, it will continue down the line. It can gunk up the throttle body and restrict you airflow. It can also gunk up the MAF easily. This can cause codes to trip, emission problems, and mpg problems.
Intakes aren't normally too loud for small cars, but if it did become a problem you could easily fix it. Wrapping the intake with insulating material will help cut down on exterior noise and also will help the pipes resist the heat from the engine bay. My truck has a 3in intake made from not so thick aluminum. The sucking sound is enough to get you to have to shout while standing in front and engine noise radiates back out the intake. Me likey
Re: what is a cai and what does it do? first time buying a car (proxim2020)
Good, thanks for the info.I will be getting a Versa sl within a month and would like to know more about cars since I never had anyone to learn from. Forums are a good way to find information (good and bad). But is better than not knowing anything.Once I get the car I would like to change a few things, just simple stuff.
by the way I love halo.... waiting for the new titles that are coming out this year (the multiplayer game, halo3, halo wars).
and thanks for the link from my other post.
I will be posting more about this subject once I get the car.
thanks everyone.
by the way I love halo.... waiting for the new titles that are coming out this year (the multiplayer game, halo3, halo wars).
and thanks for the link from my other post.
I will be posting more about this subject once I get the car.
thanks everyone.
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audtatious
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Re: what is a cai and what does it do? first time buying a car (mindpenn)
If you have car purchase questions you can post them in this forum:
zeroforum?id=105
There is also a car buying article on the NICO homepage that may be helpful.
zeroforum?id=105
There is also a car buying article on the NICO homepage that may be helpful.
Re: what is a cai and what does it do? first time buying a car (audtatious)
Agreeing with what was said above.
Yes a lightened crank pulley is just less weight the motor has to spin. It will not change the Rpms of the motor. So if 75mph = 3000rpms, then after the lightweight pulley swap 75mph will still equal 3000rpms. I have a 4 speed automatic, so I think thats roughly what RPMS im at, at 75mph. He mentioned a smaller crank pulley, those will change the speed of what your other item spin at, like your altenator and so on so they would now spin faster. So either A) get a lightened full size pulley, or B) get a full pulley kit. Right now the only one ive noticed available for the Versa is a lightened full size pulley by ZPI. That one would be perferable since you can use your stock belt, and all of your accessory items will continue to spin at the same speed.
I havent used a lightened crank pulley on a automatic car, but on manual/stick cars, they tend to make a good amount of difference.
Yes a lightened crank pulley is just less weight the motor has to spin. It will not change the Rpms of the motor. So if 75mph = 3000rpms, then after the lightweight pulley swap 75mph will still equal 3000rpms. I have a 4 speed automatic, so I think thats roughly what RPMS im at, at 75mph. He mentioned a smaller crank pulley, those will change the speed of what your other item spin at, like your altenator and so on so they would now spin faster. So either A) get a lightened full size pulley, or B) get a full pulley kit. Right now the only one ive noticed available for the Versa is a lightened full size pulley by ZPI. That one would be perferable since you can use your stock belt, and all of your accessory items will continue to spin at the same speed.
I havent used a lightened crank pulley on a automatic car, but on manual/stick cars, they tend to make a good amount of difference.