what can a sri/cai possibly do to your engine in the long run?

Hey guys, I'm very curious on what an aftermarket intake can do to your car compared to having it stock. Like in the long run do you think a SRI/CIA with say AEM dry flow media filter can do any damage to the engine. Like does it let in more debris that the stock air filter, thus f***ing up the pistons....

I know the fact about hydrolocking with CIAs, so we can skip that part.

Open to opinions, since most people here have either a SRI or CIA. Thanks guys.

Since someone's going to say it, I'll do the honours. Search, search, search because it's been discussed many, many times.

Hydrolocking is generally the biggest concern with CAIs.

your not going to feel any difference between the 2, they both work well. and unless your airfilter falls off then your not going to get debris in your engine. could void your warrenty maybe tho.

SEARCH!! LOL

Anyways, your sri is fine. No debris since your air filter is will filter it out so no worries. Only thing to be worried about is insurance and warrenty. Warrenty part is only for parts relating to your engine. Insurance is for liability purposes and what they are supposed to cover for your car vs what you have on your car

yes warranty but that is if you car potentially fails during the warranty period, if something happens after that warranties will not cover. but can a filter on sri/cia let more debris in compared to the stock filter and airbox assembly is my concern, there are a lot of tests out there to show how well filters work but those are always marketing schemes to make their product stand out. The question is will the aem dryflow filter media gonna filter as good or better than the stock.

thanks for the replies guys.

The AEM dryflow will filter just as good or better than the OEM filter. I mean if you think about it the AEM is a performance filter, I highly doubt it would let more dirt/debris through.

I also recommend putting on a pre-filter, this will prevent larger debris from getting trapped or lodged in between the fins of the filter.

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Originally Posted by SuDD3N5HiFT

yes warranty but that is if you car potentially fails during the warranty period, if something happens after that warranties will not cover. but can a filter on sri/cia let more debris in compared to the stock filter and airbox assembly is my concern, there are a lot of tests out there to show how well filters work but those are always marketing schemes to make their product stand out. The question is will the aem dryflow filter media gonna filter as good or better than the stock.

thanks for the replies guys.

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it filters just the same the only difference is there are less bends and turns for the airflow to travel through. its still designed to filter out dirt.

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Originally Posted by Turok

The AEM dryflow will filter just as good or better than the OEM filter. I mean if you think about it the AEM is a performance filter, I highly doubt it would let more dirt/debris through.

I also recommend putting on a pre-filter, this will prevent larger debris from getting trapped or lodged in between the fins of the filter.

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when you mean a pre-filter are you talking about the bag that some people put onto their filter for cai setups?

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Originally Posted by SuDD3N5HiFT

when you mean a pre-filter are you talking about the bag that some people put onto their filter for cai setups?

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Yes, it's a pre-filter that goes over the filter, it's water repellent. Even if your car is in SRI mode, larger debris will still get pulled up into the engine bay. I just put on a NEW filter this weekend and a pre-filter and the old filter I was running was without a pre-filter and it was cleaned about 4 weeks ago. And since then it had small/larger debris that's in the air stuck between the filter/fins on the filter and that's only 4 weeks. I can imagine during the fall you would get more debris, with falling leaves and stuff like that. I even noticed small pebbles lodged between the filter fins.

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Originally Posted by Turok

Yes, it's a pre-filter that goes over the filter, it's water repellent. Even if your car is in SRI mode, larger debris will still get pulled up into the engine bay. I just put on a NEW filter this weekend and a pre-filter and the old filter I was running was without a pre-filter and it was cleaned about 4 weeks ago. And since then it had small/larger debris that's in the air stuck between the filter/fins on the filter and that's only 4 weeks. I can imagine during the fall you would get more debris, with falling leaves and stuff like that. I even noticed small pebbles lodged between the filter fins.

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I will definitely look into getting a pre-filter to stop more debris to make the cleaning job more joyful, thanks for the insight Turok. Thanks for the all the replies guys.

your worrying a little too much IMO... if you were to buy a cosworth or k&n drop in replacement for the factory air filter it would be the same materials used in CAI or SRI filters, and the OEM filters are super restrictive compared to an aftermarket performance filter.

also, i change air filters everyday and see the shit thats in the airbox (family of mice, leaves, sand, random rocks and whatnot) so having all of that trapped in with your air filter/stock airbox setup, your getting much cleaner air with a SRI or CAI...

lol mice. Those things are sneeaky.

Cleaner air, yes. But it will be hotter with an SRI, and with a CAI you can suck up water in the rain. Don't forget that it isn't perfect.

I thought intakes actually elongates engine life lol

im a potential buyer of a cold air box when one becomes developed to stop the hot air from the engine bay going back into the engine. hot air makes less power too right?

yes.

What's the deal with the Search Nazis in this thread? LOL. I've been part of automotive forums for 8 years, and I've never seen a thread related to the long-term effects of aftermarket intakes. Seemed like a valid question to me.

An SRI or CAI won't void your warrenty, unless the failure can be proved to be related to the intake (which won't happen).

Also, hot air is the enemy of power, but I challenge anyone to hold their hand on their "cold" air intake after their next drive home from work. CAI's would work much better if they weren't made from aluminum.

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Also, hot air is the enemy of power, but I challenge anyone to hold their hand on their "cold" air intake after their next drive home from work. CAI's would work much better if they weren't made from aluminum.

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Actually.. funny you mention that.. I did hold my hand on the upper section (the section which connects to the turbo inlet) of my CAI on weekend after a 30-40min drive in hot weather (to test out the new TIP I installed) and it wasn't scalding hot, it was pretty warm and the lower part of the CAI was actually cool to the touch.

However on hot days, like yesterday, with stand still/stop and go traffic it was very hot all the way down to the lower section of the CAI.. so I guess it depends on what your driving conditions are like..

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Originally Posted by Turok

Actually.. funny you mention that.. I did hold my hand on the upper section (the section which connects to the turbo inlet) of my CAI on weekend after a 30-40min drive in hot weather (to test out the new TIP I installed) and it wasn't scalding hot, it was pretty warm and the lower part of the CAI was actually cool to the touch.

However on hot days, like yesterday, with stand still/stop and go traffic it was very hot all the way down to the lower section of the CAI.. so I guess it depends on what your driving conditions are like..

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Yes, and when you take your car to the track where you're doing lap after lap, the CAI is the obvious winner. Definitely not for dynos and stoplight drag racing, however.

BTW, that's quite a collection of Mazdas you've had (even more than me!). The only thing missing from that list is a GLC sedan!

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Originally Posted by Gen1GT

Yes, and when you take your car to the track where you're doing lap after lap, the CAI is the obvious winner. Definitely not for dynos and stoplight drag racing, however.

BTW, that's quite a collection of Mazdas you've had (even more than me!). The only thing missing from that list is a GLC sedan!

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Thanks :) Ya no GLC sedan for me. How many mazda's have you owned?

I wouldn't worry too much about installing either an SRI or a CAI. This past winter, my car went through a watermane flood that was literally knee deep. I attempted to coast through it but then got stuck in the damn flood.:bang I hestitately throttled my way out of it and was fortunate enough that nothing happened. I was lowered on prokits and had the mazdaspeed intake with heat shield (perhaps the heat shield helped drastically). :chuckle.

I wouldn't be too worried about stuff getting past the filter, most of the filters nowadays are quite durable, if anything happens, the debris was probably in the pipe prior to the install. As for long term effects, better mpg? I really doubt anything negative will occur to the engine.

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Originally Posted by Turok

Thanks :) Ya no GLC sedan for me. How many mazda's have you owned?

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1989 B2200
1990 Protege GT

...in addition to the three cars in my sig I own right now. When I was a teenager, my brother always had 1982-ish 626 RWD's, which I'd love to see again sometime. My sister had a 1993 Protege SE, my mom drives a 2000 626. Unfortunately, my next car won't be a Mazda. I'm sick of driving economy cars (there's just too much crappy plastic inside new cars); I'll be getting an MB or BMW et al.

haha...and now I have a sig!

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Originally Posted by Gen1GT

1989 B2200
1990 Protege GT

...in addition to the three cars in my sig I own right now. When I was a teenager, my brother always had 1982-ish 626 RWD's, which I'd love to see again sometime. My sister had a 1993 Protege SE, my mom drives a 2000 626. Unfortunately, my next car won't be a Mazda. I'm sick of driving economy cars (there's just too much crappy plastic inside new cars); I'll be getting an MB or BMW et al.

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Nice, my brother's wife drives a Mazda3 GX or GS, my parents have had mazda's after they got sick of owning VW's as long as I can remember. Now they drive a 2008 Mazda 6. Well that sucks your leaving for a bmw :) Hopefully your getting a M3 or M5 :D

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Originally Posted by Turok

Nice, my brother's wife drives a Mazda3 GX or GS, my parents have had mazda's after they got sick of owning VW's as long as I can remember. Now they drive a 2008 Mazda 6. Well that sucks your leaving for a bmw :) Hopefully your getting a M3 or M5 :D

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Unfortunately, I have two kids and we're going to have another one. I'm leaning towards an E350 wagon, which has a rear-facing, fold down third row seat.

Problem with CAI's is that they do and can develop small or large puncture holes over time. I just went through that very thing when the anchor mount welded to the base (Filter end) of my AEM Cold Air Intake broke and caused a massive hole in the aluminum cylinder body. I had been sucking non filtered air into the engine for weeks until I discovered it and managed to patch it up with a plumber's coupling, it works perfect again. You'll know when you have this problem because your regular acceleration phase develops a lag as you press quickly on the pedal, like going into WOT. This is a possible confirmation to your original question.