3.0 intake air box or CAI

B6 A4
#1

As we start to see the 3.0 move more and more into the performance side of things. Lots of questions always pop up. Just as the questions pop up so do attempts to make more power. In all cars that were interested in getting more power out of we start looking for the most inefficient parts first.

So is the air box on the 3.0 a good platform or is the lure of the CAI just right for the 3.0 motor

Me and a few other members have been looking into this and this thread will help ALL of us find the best way to move forward with making a proper decision on the intake.

Here is my take. The stock intake track can use some adjustments. There is the silencer that is connected to the plastic elbow that connects the MAF/Air box to the throttle body. The silencer causes a disturbance in flow, this intention is to keep the intake noise down as the 3.0 is a lux car and Audi felt the drivers don’t want to hear intake noise. The silencer is a easy removal (DYI to follow) After that we can look at the plastic elbo itself as not the best piece. More on that later.

So the question is? Air box or CAI. Ive done testing on the 3.0 to find the best results and thankfully so have a few other prime AR members so Ill let a few members chime in with there thoughts and feedback before I add my .2

#2

Well here is my .02

As some of you know I took my car to the track this past Friday night. During the time I was there I only got 2 runs in, in which I tested a modded air box and a open element style intake system.
Here I have the 2 slips from the run

http://i1102.photobucket.com/albums/g459/Nick_Mozingo/6ae7c2d7.jpg

The run slip on the left side is with the open element filter. The run on the right is with the pressurized air box (modded). Numbers don’t lie. The car showed that is picked up once the open element was taken off. I have been driving around with the open element system for month now heatsoaking the hell out of my intake. After I hooked the stock air box up to the far with the patches I felt a difference in the car. Throttle crispness, and the car felt more alive.

Last night I removed the intake silencer and really patched the open holes in the air box. Took a short drive after and just by doing a few small things in a short period of time I felt the car perk up even more.

My best explanation would be this. Our intake systems are like river…hear me out lol

Think of a dam, the water coming from the dam is being forced into the river, that being the inlet in front of the car behind the grill of the car. As the air/ water moves through the river there were side creeks that took some of that pressure off of the main river flow. I blocked those side rivers to create a more forceful flow to the end of the river aka throttle body, with there being no where for the air to go it is forced into the throttle body with no exacape route. The faster your car is going the more air is being forced into the intake which is being directly forced into the throttle body. I will be making a DIY soon to patch up those steams that take off the main flow .
Hopefully that made sense ^^ lol on the iPhone so if anything it’s my phones fault.

So for pennies on the dollar we made a more efficient, powerful, crisp intake just from using creativity.

I’ll be going again on Friday to the track to further test this theory. Let’s get into the 15s!!

#3

Interesting to see the performance difference between the 2 airbox variations, .2sec is pretty significant. I actually forgot that the airbox was a potential weakness to be exploited lol.

Hope you can nail the 1/4 mile time down a bit next time you run! I’m hoping we can break 15s on just the tune (shawnhornet ran 16.29 stock), but Ive never drag raced myself so I can’t criticize or offer any advice lol.

Curious to know how you are going off the line with the auto. I was told to just put it in S and try to brake launch.

#4

I think its funny how some of the companys still try to convince us that these air boxes are no good. Ill be honest with you. This is a example of some aftermarket companys just trying to scam us into thinking the stock airbox isn’t any good. Im glad to see this thread and these posts.

zingo kinda just single handedly killed the CAI debate. Zingo can you provide pictures of your CAI Vs. the air box so we can see how the CAI was placed. Ive never seen one CAI actually work. I know the 1.8T guys love them but they seem to love any gimmic there is and I have yet to see any testing like Zingo did. BIG hand of applause to Zingo. that informtion is invaluable

A few things that I think help point out from just observation wise that the air boxes are on the 3.0 are good.

The B5 S4 has a smaller air box and you see lots of B5 guys using there stock modifyed airboxes up to well over 400whp

The point that got pointed out. The air boxes on the 3.0 come stock with a small ram air design.

I have many more thoughts but the points I used above seem to be the top ones

#5

Yeah I’m hoping I can get my launch down a little better, if I pick up to where shawn is at for 60’ I’ll be in the 15s. Come Friday I should have a lot more track time in. Yep, put it in Sport, turn off the ESP and brake launch it, from what Count told me if you hold the brake and throttle for 3 seconds or longer the cars throttle will be cut off or back, as a saftey feature to the car.

It’s funny because Count and I had a convo about that very thing, how not that companys put time behind the wheel before they sell their products. Something that JHM actually does. Which is why I love em, no homo…lol
Here is a pic of my CAI

http://i1102.photobucket.com/albums/g459/Nick_Mozingo/63c54de2.jpg

and here is my stock modded box

http://i1102.photobucket.com/albums/g459/Nick_Mozingo/2951c23f.jpg

Can you guys see the difference? :stuck_out_tongue:

#6

Awesome. Saw your other thread, that’ll be an easy and rewarding weekend mod :smiley: Does the modified airbox sound much different?

Yea the auto launch is weird. A guy was saying that you can try to brake launch before the throttle cutoff and actually gas it before the light goes green to get a better 60ft. Tricky to time that though. That whole issue will be fixed with the auto launch assist ;D ;D ;D

#7

For what it does, it is a very easy task. It feels like I paid for a bolt on, instead just 69c for a PVC cap lol

Right, well the brakes will lock up and hold the RPMs at 2200 then release the brake and launch at that RPM,
I can not wait until launch assist is available. Should help out so much in the 60’

#8

Kinda wanted to update and post in this thread. In true fashion. I made several attempts to play with some of the extra pipes I had in my garage. No matter how hard I tryed I couln’t get any configuration of CAI to make better power on my G-TECH I know I know. Still It did show accurate results or on my but dyno.

The Zingo air box mod keeps proviung itself to be more and more valuable each day.

I was looking on what else we can to to help gather more incomming air. I have a few IDeas but the fact that now TWO peoiple have performance tested the Zingo mod and found rock solid acceleration differences. Its clear now we know the formula and we can look to tweak it.

#9

props to all you guys!, love this site :slight_smile:

#10

Solid work. The cleaner intake tract will decrease impact/velocity/dynamic pressure losses, allowing more of it to be converted to static pressure during cylinder filling. The cooler intake charge (not sourced through the radiator like the CAI) will also increase the dynamic pressure (since the air will be denser… a given volume at a constant velocity will contain more energy when the air is denser).

#11

quoted for truth. Great post and addition Beem. As always we value your input.

#12

Awesome post. While I prefer the simple real world proof I like to have a technical answer for people as well, and that is pretty darn technical :stuck_out_tongue:

#13

Happy to help. The important thing to consider is that we are dealing with high velocity compressible fluid flow.

Equations like P1A1=P2A2 don’t work (you’ll see people quote that for exhausts, ie a smaller exhaust flows faster but it doesn’t at all). The bernoulli equation is the best fit (essentially inviscid flow since the viscosity or air is so low and the velocities and therefore inertial forces are so high)… what that yields is the relation total pressure = static pressure+ dynamic pressure (works to about 30% Mach 1). Static pressure is what a pressure gauge would measure (force exerted by the fluid), dynamic pressure is a measure of how much pressure will be created when the fluid is stagnated. So faster flowing air will result in more total pressure in the cylinder. This phenomena is what causes you to feel a force exerted by winds, the air is moving, stagnates upon you and converts the inertial energy to static pressure (which by definition exerts a force). It also explains why once car running big turbos with an open hot side and hogged out heads will make say 600whp at 25psi while a stock head car running 40psi through tiny little hot sides wont make anymore power (tials). The higher flow capability of the first car allows greater fluid velocities for a given pressure differential, so while the second car appears to have more boost both cars end up having similar cylinder pressures and therefore power outputs.

#14

:o :o :o :o

i just got a heqadache. thank god youre on our side :wink:

#15

I 2nd that ^