well, i just got off the phone with a gentle man over at AEM about 15 minutes ago, and lo and behold, supposedly the intake for our car is available now.

What i was told exactly is that the polished (looks like chrome) is on the shelf, and the red, blue, and silver will be ready next week.

So everyone that has been waiting for this, we are almost there. Mine has been on order for over 2 months now, so i will be getting mine as soon as they hit my distributors shelves.

checked the website. Says it's a CAI, sells for $440 msrp available soon.

yes, its a cai, it will definately sell for much less than 440, i have seen a pre production pic of it and it looks beastly. i will be posting pics, impressions, and what not as soon as i get it.

hey i just installed my intake today, it sounds pretty freaking beautiful. installation was time consuming though, front bumper is a serious pain. only con is worry about driving it in the rain, but overall still satisfied with it, post pics later

which intake?

i installed the aem one

haha wsup john... so you finally got it? how's it sound with ur midpipe and exhaust?

worth the long wait? how much u pay?

it sounds bomb, i think it was worth the wait, but i still gotta dyno it, see what kind of numbers i'm pulling with it. i paid 330, probably could've gotten it cheaper, but i thought it was a still alright price. once i have some time, i'll post a clip

it sounds bomb, i think it was worth the wait, but i still gotta dyno it, see what kind of numbers i'm pulling with it. i paid 330, probably could've gotten it cheaper, but i thought it was a still alright price. once i have some time, i'll post a clip

What does your butt dyno say? Please post pics too!

i am assuming you go the polished one?

yea, i got the polished one

http://img.mypicgallery.com/johnnylee33/cimg0275_large.jpg

that's the filter, sorry it's kinda of a bad pic, i had to rush when i was putting it on, so i didn't take any pictures with the bumper off, but as you know, the filter comes all the way right behind the front grill

http://img.mypicgallery.com/johnnylee33/cimg0276_large.jpg

let me figure out how to post videos and i'll post those later

just me or does it look crooked in the second pic?

That could just be the direction is has to go. If I can recall the way the stock intake is designed, I don't believe it should be a straight line. I could be wrong though. I'm more interested in driving impressions than how straight it is though.

What will happen when water gets into an intake?

Well, it looks like it will get wet during heavy down pour!

well it has a bypass valve I think that aem now includes with most intakes they sell that stops water from entering to the engine. Not sure if it's a very effective method or not.

How is your idle johnny? I know aem cold air intakes have a very distinct humming noise, sounds nice :)

sweet you think you can get some sound clips?

yea, i got the polished one

http://img.mypicgallery.com/johnnylee33/cimg0275_large.jpg

that's the filter, sorry it's kinda of a bad pic, i had to rush when i was putting it on, so i didn't take any pictures with the bumper off, but as you know, the filter comes all the way right behind the front grill

http://img.mypicgallery.com/johnnylee33/cimg0276_large.jpg

let me figure out how to post videos and i'll post those later

do you have volks on your car?

idle is still pretty quiet, but there is this high pitch humming noise, i personally like it, i don't know exactly how to load videos, so if someone wants to teach me, i can put up a clip

do you have volks on your car?

naw, volks are baller status, not quite there yet, maybe down the line

I thought the stock intake on the car was a CAI to begin with?

Man that is one exposed and obvious intake...I think I could definitely kiss my warranty for any engine parts goodbye if I showed up at my dealership with that under the hood.

Yeah, stock is CAI, but it sucks its air in from a duct directly under the mazda emblem. Its sorta open under there, but it really cant benefit from air rushing on it as the car moves.

The benefits of this one are simply a direct source of fresh air.

You might want to develop some sort of shield to block the air from directly hitting the filter. This tends to cause excessive turbulence, and also results in rapidly degrading filter media. A simple metal shield helps prevent this from occuring.

The AEM bypass valves btw, can show upwards of a 5 whp loss on the dyno. They work, but they also eliminate most of the intake gains =/.

actually, if you look at his second pic, there is no bypass valve there. yes, the bypass does cause some power loss, but does protect the motor. but i dont think it's really necessary on our cars as the filter is so high. the reason a bypass is needed is when the filter is so low to the ground you can actually submerge the filter and turn your motor into a wet vac.

I'm getting mine installed tomorrow! It's been on order for around 2 months! finally! :)

lol, dont feel bad, mine has been on order since end of april,

Is it just me or does it look like a quick-job? No research or test going on, just grab an existing model and modify the tubes to fit the RX-8. Sorta like what K&N did with their first idiotic filter (Short-ram-hot-air-intake).

I know AEM normally puts out quality products. They do a lot of testing before they put stuff out. I can't see them half assing it with cai. As long as it took them to release it, I doubt they'd want their reputation with us to be any worse than it is.

I'm surprised that nobody has tried the AEM computer, I keep waiting for a writeup

designing an intake is a very complex process. anyone can take a couple of tubes and make an "intake".

what really takes time is designing an intake that will actually yield the most gains. what length tubing, what diameter, what bends, etc. lots of trial and error. a matter of an inch can be the difference between making 5 hp or losing 5 hp.

as to the aem ems, i was speaking with a tech over at aem about it, and even though they dont make a direct plug and play and arent looking to do one anytime soon (we all know that the computer in the 8 is very complex), the universal ems would be more than capable of doing the job. it would be a matter of integrating it with the 8 and creating a good map. i am actually looking at the possibilities, but there is a lot that has to be looked at. it would be a pretty big investment just for the unit, even for me being an aem dealer, then there would be the time to integrate it and create map.

man that filter is way exposed to the outside, running over a large puddle definitely poses a high risk of soaking that filter!

Why would you need a bypass valve for a rotary? It doesn't hydro-lock like a piston engine! I've heard that it IS possible to hydro-lock a rotary, but never seen or heard of it before personally. A common thing to do for 2nd gen rx7 owners is to unplug a vac line and have it injest water straight into the engine to clean the carbon, called the "water trick." This is WAY more water than the AEM intake would ever injest, and people do this without any issues at all except for a rough idle until all the water/steam is gone.

Besides, for any CAI to injest anywhere close to the amount of water it'd need to hydro-lock a rotary it would have to be completely submerged under water for an extended period of time with the engine still running, if it could even stay running. If that happens, you already have some problems anyways.

man that filter is way exposed to the outside, running over a large puddle definitely poses a high risk of soaking that filter!

driving in rain poses a high risk of soaking the stock filter in the stock intake box.

driving in rain poses a high risk of soaking the stock filter in the stock intake box.

righto :rolleyes:

I wouldn't be surprised if AEM (if they're serious about the RX-8 market) would redesign something better in the near future and scrap this one. AEM does have good reputation with their products, especially for Hondas. But that's what I've been stressing in the past, they're serious about the Honda market and therefore create better products for them. For the RX-8? They're about as serious as the $20 CAI chip found on ebay. I really hope they turn around someday.

For now, I'll stay away and stick with Racing Beat.

I wouldn't be surprised if AEM (if they're serious about the RX-8 market) would redesign something better in the near future and scrap this one. AEM does have good reputation with their products, especially for Hondas. But that's what I've been stressing in the past, they're serious about the Honda market and therefore create better products for them. For the RX-8? They're about as serious as the $20 CAI chip found on ebay. I really hope they turn around someday.

For now, I'll stay away and stick with Racing Beat.

What are you basing this on? The way the pipe looks?

They do a lot of testing before they put stuff out. I can't see them half assing it with cai.

Why? They did with the mazda 6's. First they openly bashed Injen on the forum, saying how they properly engineered their intake, and it won't throw a check engine light like injen's did.

What happend? Check engine lights up the wazzo. Suddenly all the AEM reps disppear off the board, and we never hear from them again.

I'd consider aem's testing to be as in-depth as buying stamps at the post office...

"oooh there's more then one color????"

I don't think i need to bring up the 3si.org forums, where the AEM EMS updates are responsible for a good amount of destroyed engines due to lack of testing the updates prior to them being released. EA anyone?

I don't think i need to bring up the 3si.org forums, where the AEM EMS updates are responsible for a good amount of destroyed engines due to lack of testing the updates prior to them being released. EA anyone?

not taking any sides on that one, as i dont know the whole story, but were those maps ones that aem posted, or ones that users posted on aem's forum?

as to the aem ems, i was speaking with a tech over at aem about it, and even though they dont make a direct plug and play and arent looking to do one anytime soon (we all know that the computer in the 8 is very complex), the universal ems would be more than capable of doing the job. it would be a matter of integrating it with the 8 and creating a good map. i am actually looking at the possibilities, but there is a lot that has to be looked at. it would be a pretty big investment just for the unit, even for me being an aem dealer, then there would be the time to integrate it and create map.


Modacar is advertising it as plug & play specifically for the RX-8 :confused:

thats funny. i checked out the modacar website, and it seems that the unit is listed for the rx-8, but if you look at the year, it is 00-02. if you check aem's website, you will see that there is no application for the PnP ems. aem also said that they weren't looking at developing a unit anytime soon.

i would like to see what the intake produces as soon as someone gets a dyno

well, went to order mine today, and my distributor says aem is all out of em till the 22nd. argh.

lurch,

It was an AEM EMS update that AEM released. There was a major issue in the upper rev range with the software update suddenly pulling the fuel back...They released an update soon after...but it was one of those "oops" jobs, and if you read the fine print, they aren't responsible for engine destruction. (My father owns a 91 dodge stealth heavily modified with an AEM EMS...luckily he caught what was going on in time).

I dont understand this post..... AEM would never release a half-assed product for any reason. Why do you think it took them 1 year to design it? They redesigned it many many times to build an intake to make power and look good. To my knowledge there intake makes the most horsepower. I even asked AEM just to make sure and they said it took longer to design the rx8 intake than it did for almost any other car they have made intakes for. Just thought I'd let you know.

Jon
PTP Motorsports

I wouldn't be surprised if AEM (if they're serious about the RX-8 market) would redesign something better in the near future and scrap this one. AEM does have good reputation with their products, especially for Hondas. But that's what I've been stressing in the past, they're serious about the Honda market and therefore create better products for them. For the RX-8? They're about as serious as the $20 CAI chip found on ebay. I really hope they turn around someday.

For now, I'll stay away and stick with Racing Beat.

Try and upload those videos.. I would love to hear how it sounds.

AEM did a lot of research and if i remember correctly they kept us updated pretty well, but they did go missing for quite a while. BUT if they were gonna release a half ass product, they wouldn't have waited a full year to do so. They already had one fitted on an 8 long ago, but decided to hold off.

And after driving in a car with an AEM intake on the 8, it did have a smooth idol and there was no cell

Just because it takes a product a year to come out, doesn't mean they spent an entire year on its development.

DC Sports worked on the headers for the mazda 6 for about 2-3 weeks...but it won't be out for many more months...doesn't mean they're still working on the headers, they are just working on setting up the production/CARB cert, etc etc. The R+D process is pretty quick and short. Its the marketing, certifications, production, and advertising that takes up the bulk of the time.

i want to hear a vido and sound clips if ya got it

so do we have any dyno results?

I dont understand this post..... AEM would never release a half-assed product for any reason. Why do you think it took them 1 year to design it? They redesigned it many many times to build an intake to make power and look good. To my knowledge there intake makes the most horsepower. I even asked AEM just to make sure and they said it took longer to design the rx8 intake than it did for almost any other car they have made intakes for. Just thought I'd let you know.

Jon
PTP Motorsports

why not k&n did. so far if it anything like a tube and a filter it does not work.

beers

Kn is pretty new to the import market. Aem has been here for a while supporting the import industry. Not saying anything about this intake only but in general they make pretty good products. But I would probably still lean more on rb since they devote solely to rotary engines.

A rep over at AEM that i spoke with last week concerning my cai just called me today to let me know that they were going to be shipping my intake either today or monday. (no you cannot call aem directly and order the intake from them, i ordered mine through my supplier, and asked that it be drop shipped to my location.) This means I (hopefully)should have it next week sometime. I will also try to get my car dyno'd this weekend so we can see baseline vs cai results. I will be also making several runs using hymee's scanalyser to see what changes this makes to a/f ratios and air flow, etc. :) :)

One problem with this AEM setup is that every time you want to clean the filter, you have to take the bumper off again. It's an annoyance plus the more you take the bumper off the more you are stressing those fasteners...
However, one plus is that you can inspect the filter's cleanliness with a flashlight... that's good.

well, i have owned 3 civics, where the filter is much lower to the ground, and drove for over 2 years on one with no appreciable loss due to a dirty filter, so you can probably estimate max once a year cleaning the filter if you are anal about that sort of thing. it has been shown that a k&n filter can accumulate approximately 1/4 of dirt and debris before any noticable loss of air flow.

update: received an update from aem, i received a tracking number, they shipped my intake today. i should have my intake monday. hooooray

Without a UOA...you'll never have any actual "factual" method of measuring the dirt uptake of a dirty airfilter.

What's "UOA"?
Damn acronyms... :p

Used Oil Analysis

perhaps one of the most effective way to analyze the condition of your motor without actually opening it :D

well, fed ex just delivered a package to my grubby little hands 15 minutes ago, and lo and behold, its the aem cai for the rx-8, in blue to match my car of course, and from what i have seen so far it is a pretty close match, but i have to hold it up the car in sunlight to see. :D

any way, ill try to get some pics of it tonight or tomorrow so everyone can see what it comes with. it wont be going in till this sat at the earliest as i need to redo my base line dyno before i install it. hopefully i will get it in and dyno'd sat night. :D:D:D:D:D:D

remember to post us pics and vids while ure at it :)

vids might not be able to do, but ill definately post pics and sound clips, as well as dyno plots

man, i dont know if i can wait til sat. my hands are already twitching whenever i get near a screwdriver or socket set.................

remember to post us pics and vids while ure at it :)


had a video up but not much peopel saw it

pic of box contents, looks well designed (same as any other aem i have ever seen), instructions very comprehensive, covering removal of old intake, and all steps necessary to install new one.

color is a pretty close match to my winning blue, but havent had a chance to compare in the daylight.

http://home.comcast.net/~lurch519/misc_005.jpg

had a video up but not much peopel saw it
give us a link to the vid

ok, dont know if i can wait til sat. may put it on tonight...............arghhhhhhhh....the suspense is killing me

very easy to put on, it took me anywhere from 30-45 min with some breaks for drinks and internet. putting mine back on tommorow

I wanna see some dynos #'s

well, coulndt do it tonight anyway, got home late......oh well, i guess i can wait til sat night. gonna have that itch all week though. but i will perservere, for the good of all my fellow 8 owners.

:D :o haaaa... dude... i think you mount that shiet wrong... there's no way in hell an intake would be that exposed like that.... i think it should run how ssr's intake run... behind the bumper ! :eek:

conmeng... who are u talking to? johnny?

i hear the instructions that AEM gives u to take off the bumper is a bit off, so if u wanna take off the bumper, use the DYI on this forum.

well, i went and installed my aem cai today. i feel (according to the butt dyno) that it added a little more power. the sound is definately different, especially when the tertiary ports open. like whoa. a buddy of mine said it almost sounds like a ferrari. loud.....very loud :D

Anyone know where to get this cheaply/reliably yet? I know you can get it straight from AEM or AEM dealers, but most of them are asking a lot. I see the ones are ebay are really cheap, are those reliable for shipment yet?

you cannot purchase the intake directly from aem. i know this because i am an authorized aem dealer, and i had to order it from my distributor. you can find them on ebay for around 300ish, just make sure you choose a seller with a good feedback rating.

Anyone dyno this CAI yet?

a short sound clip of the aem revving to about 9k

right click and save to hear short sound clip for the ame (http://home.comcast.net/~lurch519/Recording1.wav)

and 2 scanalyser graphs overlaid to show difference in airflow, stock vs aem cai. its not perfect, but you can see that the aem gives a noticable increase in airflow over stock


solid line is stock, broken line is with the aem
http://home.comcast.net/~lurch519/AEM_SCANALYSER_RUNS.jpg

updates?

i posted a graphic with before and after scanalyser graphs, and a sound clip just prior to yours benny, i dont have any pics yet, and i am getting a stock airbox to modify so it will look almost stock under the hood

any HP figures?

hmm, it sounds alright

no, no dyno time yet, havent had time

looks pretty good, wish it had a sort of cover because the pipe there doesnt look too great imo.

looks pretty good, wish it had a sort of cover because the pipe there doesnt look too great imo.

i am actually waiting for another stock airbox to arrive so i can cut it up and run the aem through it. this will serve 2 purposes.

one, i will be able to store oil, funnel, rags, etc, for daily driving.

two, if i do it right, when i go to the dragstrip, i should be able to pack the box with ice, and hopefully reduce the air intake temp for slightly better performance.

plus, i will be able to make the engine look stock at a glance, and the engine cover will rest properly.

i am actually waiting for another stock airbox to arrive so i can cut it up and run the aem through it. this will serve 2 purposes.

one, i will be able to store oil, funnel, rags, etc, for daily driving.

two, if i do it right, when i go to the dragstrip, i should be able to pack the box with ice, and hopefully reduce the air intake temp for slightly better performance.

plus, i will be able to make the engine look stock at a glance, and the engine cover will rest properly.


that's a real good idea

I'm really considering getting the AEM. I don't think I'd do the box mod thing though. I kind of like the look without the engine cover and it'd give a good excuse to keep it off :p I don't go to dragstrips either. :) Props for the ingenuity!

i am actually waiting for another stock airbox to arrive so i can cut it up and run the aem through it. this will serve 2 purposes.

one, i will be able to store oil, funnel, rags, etc, for daily driving.

two, if i do it right, when i go to the dragstrip, i should be able to pack the box with ice, and hopefully reduce the air intake temp for slightly better performance.

plus, i will be able to make the engine look stock at a glance, and the engine cover will rest properly.

wow now that sounds like a good idea, just get some watertight/airtight freezer bags and put some dry ice or something that wont melt too fast in there and cram it in your intake box and let it sit a while.

i've never heard of anything like that before haha.

well, if you ever go to the dragstrip, you will see guys running v8 muscle cars, and what they do is put a bag of ice on their intake manifold in between runs to cool it down. my idea is a little better as it is cooling the air as it enters the motor. :D

Hey i was just wondering if ebay is still the only place where you can get the intake.

nope, you local authorized aem dealer can now get it for you, but i hate to say it but ebay is probably the cheapest place for the intake

How long dose it take the ebay dealer to get it too you.

no clue, depends on the seller. i work for a car stereo and performance shop, so i just ordered mine through my distributor.

yea, i got the polished one

http://img.mypicgallery.com/johnnylee33/cimg0275_large.jpg

that's the filter, sorry it's kinda of a bad pic, i had to rush when i was putting it on, so i didn't take any pictures with the bumper off, but as you know, the filter comes all the way right behind the front grill

http://img.mypicgallery.com/johnnylee33/cimg0276_large.jpg

let me figure out how to post videos and i'll post those later

i just bought the same intake from aem but have not installed it yet, waiting for that airflow adapter which will stop water from getting into my engine, aem highly recommends it. i do have a question, can you still place the cover over it once you do the installation.

yes and no on your question. the cover will fit, but not be securely held down as the nipples on the cover that attach to the factory airbox will not have anything to grab onto as the factory air box is removed.

as to the "airflow adapter", its actually called an air bypass valve. by using that, you most likely will negate any positive hp gains that the intake will provide. also, it will only prevent the intake from acting like a straw and pulling a solid column of water up into the engine, meaning that the end of the intake is fully submerged. if you are driving through that much water, well, you shouldnt be driving through that much water.

with or without the bypass valve, driving in the rain will get some water in the motor, but not in significant quantities to affect your motor

ok, so your suggestion is not to get the bypass valve. i wonder if a cover that part of the grille with black plastic do you think that will work. also did you install it yourself or had it done at a specialist, i see on the posts that the bumper has to come off for installation.

i did the install myself. i do most of the work on my car myself, as i have access to plenty of tools, as well as a garage where i can work out of the elements. as to the bypass valve, i have used aem cai's for years, since about 2001 starting with my civic, and have never used a bypass valve. with the civics the filter is much lower to the ground, even with out lowering the car, than the filter for the rx8 cai is. i have had my aem on for about a month now, have had absolutely 0 problems with the rain.

there is really no way you can cover up the area to prevent water from getting in, as there are so many crack and crevices that water can get in through. again, the bypass doesnt protect against moisture from entering the intake system, which will happen whether you have the bypass on or not, what it does is prevent the intake from acting like a straw and sucking up water and hydrolocking the motor.

"AEMs patented Air Bypass Valve virtually eliminates the chance of hydro-lock in the event you submerge the filter of your AEM Cold Air induction system in water. On most systems, the valve installs along the upper portion of the inlet pipe and shuts down induction at the filter when it becomes submerged, rerouting air through its external diaphragm to keep water out and air flowing in. Patent #6,394,128."

this is taken directly from aem's website. notice that it says that it will help save you motor if you SUBMERGE the filter in water.

The filter getting splashed or minorly wet isn't an issue. The water would be completely vaporized quite rapidly...and if it didn't, you just got some free water injection :).

Now here's an interesting question...is it even possible for a rotary engine to hydrolock? Hydrolock is normally when water gets into the cylinders (water doesn't compress) and the piston moves up, can't compress the water, and a massive amount of force travels down to the rod, and either bends, brakes, or does massive damage to the rod/rod bearings.

You guys don't have pistons, cylinders, or rods :). Might put a bit of stress on the E shaft, but I imagine you could probably just drain the water out and be alright...Maybe someone with actual knowledge can post about it.

thanks lurch and crossbow you guys have been very helpful. Now lurch i have another question. racing beat claims that it gets extremely noisy inside with this intake is that true or is it just right, which is what im looking for.

once the tertiary ports (third set) open around 7000 to 8000 rpm, it gets quite loud, almost like an exotic sports car. think of it like a 2000 honda civic si with an intake, when the vtec kicks in, it gets loud. on the 8, i would say its about 2 times as loud as the si when the tertiary's kick in. i like it. off throttle, its all right, at idle, especially when you are standing in front of the car, the intake sings, such a sweet sound.

as to the install, it is pretty straightforward. i must say that the instructions that are included with the aem arent quite right, as it tells you to undo some stuff that is just not necessary. i would say if you are going to do it yourself, set aside at least 4 hours. i did mine in about 6 hours, but i was doing it outside that day and it was raining off and on.

we all make mistakes with our purchases sometimes and we need to admit to that, i had 19" wheels on a ford probe GT before this car and that was a big mistake being that i am from nyc. now i need for you to be honest about your AEM cai that you purchased, are you completely happy with it. i will get mine this week and have 30 days to return it as long as i don't install it with a 20% penalty of course. i really want it to sound nice but not extremely loud, do you think the air bypass valve will not make it as loud if i purchase that, i'm not concern with losing a few horsies. thanks lurch you've been of great help.

i am completely happy with my aem. normal cruising noise is fine. as the rpms come up under full throttle, it gets louder and louder. i like the fact that it gets louder as i am used to hearing the engine and knowing when to shift, with the stock airbox on, if i had the radio even a little loud, you couldnt hear the engine and the shift beep. i cant say that the air bypass will make it any quieter.

so long lurch, and enjoy what i think i one of the most exotic looking cars under 35, 000, even more so than the z.

thanks mamboy, where are you from by the way

are you talking about this water bag thing that goes over the filter?

if so, then you would probably have to take off the front bumper. o yea, for those of you who plan on putting on the aem intake, the aem instruction is really bad, they make you do alot of unnecessary stuff. follow the instructions of how to take out the actual intake, but all you really need to take off after that is the front bumper and one other part. there's no need to take off the wheels and unplug the electronics inside the wheel and underneath the car.

the black back is not actually a water bag, that is a filter cover that helps keep larger debris from the filter, basically a prefilter. you can choose to put it on or leave it off, i left mine off.

btw, lurch519 do you already have a bypass valve on yours? cuz i'm thinking i'll really need one down the line when i starts raining

no i do not, and i will not be putting one on. i have driven through torrential downpours in my old civic, which was lowered 2", without a bypass valve on, with zero problems. as long as you are not driving though deep (by deep i mean in excess of 6") puddles or standing water, you should have no problems. the biggest problem is people driving through standing water or deep puddles, and keeping the rpms up, when you do this and have the filter submerged up to the intake piping, at the higher rpms you are sucking water up the piping just like a straw, which is bad for the motor.

again, rain will not affect your car with an aem cai. it is standing deep water that is a concern.

icic, thanx for the info man. it's just cuz our filter is so exposed that i get kinda worried about it. it's kind of like i just want a bypass for the winter season and take it off for the summer.

And you should never drive through standing water period to begin with (of any depth). Its funny that when people come across an area with water deep enough to kill the cars, they fail to notice the other dead cars on the side of the road, and drive through anyway :(.

If your in 12-18 inches of water, your screwed regardless of whether or not you have an intake. The amount of useless deaths caused by people trying to drive through standing water is depressing. Street flooded? Turn around and find another route!

I was reading this forum and somebody said that you had to take the bumper off everytime you have to clean the filter. Is this true? I live in the desert where dust is pretty prevelant and I don't think cleaning it once a year is going to be sufficient. And I don't want to be taking my bumper off to much as it will eventually wear out the clips or screws holding it in place.

i havent looked too close, but i believe you can just remove the big plastic piece that sits underneath the engine.

I was reading this forum and somebody said that you had to take the bumper off everytime you have to clean the filter. Is this true? I live in the desert where dust is pretty prevelant and I don't think cleaning it once a year is going to be sufficient. And I don't want to be taking my bumper off to much as it will eventually wear out the clips or screws holding it in place.


NO you do not need to take off the bumper I have taking off my filter about 5 times with the bumper on. Also there was a sick thunder storm with a couple of inches of water i did not hydro lock then engine and no its ok that the filter gets soak and wet..... :D

well, finally had a chance to get on the rollers with the aem. :D :D

so far mods are:

aem cai
royal purple for entire drive train (5w20 in crankcase, and 75w90 in trans and diff)
custom engine ground kit

and the numbers are...............


181.3 hp and 136 torque.

evidence below

http://home.comcast.net/~lurch519/Untitled-1.jpg

you gained 1.2 hp :mad:

im not sure what i gained, as i didnt have an accurate before and after. those were 3 4th gear runs today, all with the aem and etc

ohh i thought you only gained like 1.2.. with cia you get more hp than what the dyno shows.

well, finally had a chance to get on the rollers with the aem. :D :D

so far mods are:

aem cai
royal purple for entire drive train (5w20 in crankcase, and 75w90 in trans and diff)
custom engine ground kit

and the numbers are...............


181.3 hp and 136 torque.

evidence below


Hey that redline seems to have shown similar gains at 6550 to 6750 do you happen to have the dynoRun file for that red line, or could you call the shop and ask them to email it to you, if you can I'll make a cool little comparo.

lol, sorry polak, dont have a number to the shop. was at a car show here in delaware and they had a dyno set up. no number on the sheet, nothing.

are you talking about the quick dip then rise right at that range. thats probably from the intake ports reconfiguring if i remember correctly. secondary's open around 3700, then theres some kind of crosslink port that opens i believe right around the 6200 point, then the tertiary's open, i think thats right

wouldn't the length of this intake decrease torque?

wouldn't the length of this intake decrease torque?
huh, whats your logic behind that ...? if your decreasing torque your loosing horsepower since torque is proportional to HP....

or are your mearly trying to snide in that stock is still the holy grail of intakes for the rx-8...? I was like you till I dyno'd REVI and installed the Ram Air soon afterwards I've leaned out my AFR's significantly for just intake mods.

wouldn't the length of this intake decrease torque?

:rolleyes: quite the logical engineer we have here don't we

Calm down people. Good grief, heaven forbid someone doesn't praise the almighty AEM :rolleyes: Perhaps he meant low end torque...

Intake tract length and diameter changes definately shift the old torque curve around a bit. Most CAI installations result in a loss of low end power while gaining in the upper end.

actually, a longer intake runner should bump up the low end torque due to resonant frequency. look at the integra with the dual intake runner lengths. long runners for low rpm, short runners for high rpm.

when the intake ports open on an engine, you get a vacuum wave traveling up the intake tube, when it gets to the end, it reflects back as a compression wave. at different rpms, you will get different volumetric efficiences, due the compression wave timing reaching the intake port and pushing a bit more air into the engine.

Calm down people. Good grief, heaven forbid someone doesn't praise the almighty AEM :rolleyes: Perhaps he meant low end torque...

Intake tract length and diameter changes definately shift the old torque curve around a bit. Most CAI installations result in a loss of low end power while gaining in the upper end.

Thank you...this is exactly what I ment.

Thank you...this is exactly what I ment. Well my apologizes in this case, however it's incorrect... lurch519's explaination longer runners will give you more lowend short ones for highend, although with all the quirks with the MAF in the 8 I find it hard to make such generalizations.

Well my apologizes in this case, however it's incorrect... lurch519's explaination longer runners will give you more lowend short ones for highend, although with all the quirks with the MAF in the 8 I find it hard to make such generalizations.

Wouldn't the diameter of pipe also contribute to the gains. Now that I think of it, The CAI with 3" wide piping will yeild more high end and vice versa. The Aem piping looks like 2.25" so it should increase torque but might not breath as well in the high rpm range.

the aem is actually bigger in diameter than the throttle body itself. the section where the maf goes is about the same diameter as the stock maf pipe.

aem piping ranges from about 3" to 3.5 inches.

while longer intake tract would by itself increase low end torque, the large increase in diameter offsets this