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Does Livernois tune need to have the airaid cai?


cobria

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Hey all I have been saving my pennies for the last couple of months since I bought my car and am ready to order a tuning package. I have been reading all the posts pretty religiously and my question is, with the Livernois tune do you really need the airaid cai? I noticed a couple of post where people have been selling their cai and going back to stock, and I also noticed that Rick at Livernois did not appear to have the Cai on their 2010 test car before they sold it. I plan on running the 4+ since everyone seems to agree that this is the best combo and 93 octane is readily available here. Please weigh in and let my know what you guys think as I am ready to order and can't decide on the cai or not. Also weigh in on the mycal tuner vs sct. I don't plan to track this car, just looking to improve the shifting. After driving a stick for a bazillion years the down shifting of an automatic in the corners leaves something to be desired.

 

Thanks,

 

David

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You can roll with the OEM intake.

 

No aftermarket CAI, no matter which brand, is needed for the tune file(s).

 

Good luck with your purchase, you'll wonder why you ever drove it stock quite honestly.

 

The tunes really spruce up the performance aspect(s) of this car rather nicely.

 

Mike :yo:

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Thanks for the quick replies. To clarify my original post I realize you don't "need" the cai, but was really wondering if it was worthwhile to add one. I previously had a cai on my 93 from sho shop and while it sounded better did not seem to make a huge difference.

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I saw a post a while back were somebody had tried a dyno install and said he only saw the gain with the hood open, minimal or no gain with hood closed.

 

I personally believe it does add a little power. Not the same situation but I had a 302 in my 79 Cobra and went from paper to K&N on the dyno. I got almost 4 HP difference in that case... In this case your going from paper to high flow and eliminating the air box. Airaid says 9HP, hard telling what it actually does for you.

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I think EBB did a test with, and w/o the CAI, and he actually saw a slight INCREASE in IAT's with the CAI installed.

 

Not entirely sure, hopefully he'll chime in here on the discussion.

 

That said, AirAid claims 9hp, but not entirely sure on that personally.

 

But it does look a helluva lot better, and it does add some needed "whooshing" noise under accleration, which is always cool in my book.

 

Sent from my DROID3 using Tapatalk 2

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NO..

 

I found my IAT Temps were lower by around 10 Deg with my custom CAI vs. the AirAid CAI package. My custom CAI is a RotoFab "J pipe" from a G8 GT with a round filter, (can be an AEM, K & N etc) is much like the one K & N sells (with Intake pointed towards fender). I also added a diverter to keep the heat from the engine escaping towards the filter under WOT. AirAid seems to heat up much faster than my custom (sorta home made) CAI.

 

I am making NO performance claims either positive or negative... but cooler air is ... just that... COOLER AIR.... Those temps of 10 deg less were at almost all driving conditions, Plus, my IAT cooled down quicker with my custom CAI.

 

I think the AirAid system looks great, but the filter blocks the air intake, at least on my Flex, which disrupts the air flow, in my opinion. Solution... a "J" bend to give the AirAid box more air around the filter, or a shorter filter.

 

Thing I like about the AirAid is how nice it looks, much like the RotoFab CAI on the G8 GT.

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So does mine...

 

I do want to preface this by pointing out my results were with a 170 deg T-Stat and stock tune. Results may be different with custom tune files installed.

 

The filter in pix is an AEM non-oiled filter with a K & N Filter wrap. I am currently using a Spectre oiled filter with the same filter wrap. There is also a piece of PVC inside the two rubber hoses connecting the "J pipe" to the factory piping, which has been flared to smooth air flow.

 

IMG_0860.jpg

 

Air is also pulled up from area behind head lamps and in front of wheel well. I haven't tried it on Flex, but on my G8's I opened up a holein the lower pan, added a scoop flap, and also blocked off heat from radiator and engine.

 

IMG_0861.jpg

 

Note how open the filter area is to the outside, via grille opening.

 

IMG_0734.jpg

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That looks nice, and gives me something to ponder. I think I'll just get the tune for the moment and think about the intake a while longer. On my gen 1 we fashioned a ramair that ran from the lower bumper straight into the airbox with a K & N panel filter. I'll have to take a closer look at the stock box and see if something like that might work on this car. My gen 2 with the intake and the edelbrocks was so loud you could hear me coming from a mile away. I really like how quiet the new one is, so I'm torn between having the performance and sound upgrades of a new intake versus the ultra quiet setup the car has now. Does anyone have any thoughts on the tuners themselves. I realize the sct will get the job done, but the mycal tuner looks like it might be a cool toy.

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I did this back in the summer of 2010, before there were any aftermarket CAI's, and because I had the "J pipe" due to an issue with some of them from RotoFab. Got a couple replacements from them, which I installed. This old one has not had any issues, though evidently some had cracked. Whole system cost me under $80. If nothing else, I did it for "Visual Fluff" and make no claims as to performance. The IAT sensor fits into a drilled out brass fitting, and is sealed with liquid electrical tape.

 

My IAT temps run at or within a couple degrees of ambient outside temp, lower than stock box or AirAid, and the engine temps seem to cool down faster after WOT runs or in heavy stop and go traffic. Torrie's 170 T-Stat keeps my Flex between 10 -12 deg cooler than with stock T-Stat.

 

I do want to also point out that Scrming and I have the same Carriage Works grilles, in different finishes, which allow/require the stock grille backing to be removed, which I believe really opens up and helps cool our vehicles. The drawback may be slight decreases in aerodynamics but not a big deal to me!!!!

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  • 2 weeks later...

Cobria: Thank you for asking this question! I am going over to Livernois on Friday and was just getting ready to ask the same question, did a search and don't know how I originally missed the thread! I knew, like you, that I did not "need" it, but the feedback here really answered what I (and you) wanted to know. Once again, This forum is incredible!

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TSS, I agree with you. It's amazing that in a couple of minutes you can get real world answers to questions you probably would never get answered elsewhere. Thanks to all for being a part of this great community. I finally got around to ordering my tuner this morning. Can't wait for it to get here so I can play!

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Got my Tuner in over the weekend. I had to wait for Rick to get back on Tuesday, damn holidays, but he immediately emailed me the tunes. After I screwed it up once, he promptly replied how to install the tune correctly. Thanks Rick. I of course went straight to the stage 4 tune and all I can say is WOW! My car finally shifts the way it should. Much better response for downshifting. It finally feels more like the manual I'm so used to, not to mention the fact that it just screams now. At 60mph it takes off like it was standing still. I love it. Had to go pretty easy tonight as It was late, and dark, and I can't see where all the cops are hiding, but can't wait for my drive to work tomorrow. That's if I can wait. The wife and kids are asleep and I may just be sneaking out for another ride:)

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I know the feeling... After a year and a half, I still try to find excuses to take the car every night (grocery, buy milk, rent movie, get McDonald's, buy a slush, etc.). My wife probably thinks I have a mistress!! Every time it takes me twice as long as it should!

And even though I love my job, I love it even more the fact that it is 25-30 minutes ride...

Enjoy your ride!

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