- Oct 18, 2009
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On one of the GM truck forums I visit sometimes, fullsizechevy.com, there are numerous threads about hi flow air filters, CAI's and which is best, etc.
As a point of reference, Black Bear Performance, a tuner/performance part seller of some note, did a series of dyno runs to assess performance increases, or lack thereof, of CAI's and their hi flow air filters. The vehicle used was a bone stock 2008 Chevy Silverado 5.3L with 130,000 miles. The CAI's tested were the usual suspects.....K&N, Volant, AEM, CAI, Inc., and a ringer, the Airaid MIT (Modular Intake Tube).
When the dyno runs were completed, none of the CAI's with their wonder filters outperformed the MIT. Yes, the stock air box with stock AC Delco air filter, outfitted with the MIT, performed at least as well as any of the CAI's if not outright better.
The data: http://www.fullsizechevy.com/forum/...ependent-intake-test-results.html#post5605592
Now, given this empirical data, one would think the simple answer to any intake upgrade question, at least for full sized GM trucks, is an Airaid MIT and leave the stock air box and filter intact.
But, nooooo, even when presented the aforementioned data, one still sees comments like, "So, if I put an MIT on and then a drop-in K&N filter in, I should get even better performance, right?" Short answer....NO.
I guess it's just too much to expect someone of short attention spans to comprehend the data presented, that the major contributor to the performance increase when using a CAI or MIT on our trucks is the air tube, not the air filter.
Now, from that test data, it's gotten me to wondering if all the performance gains from using CAI's is simply from having a smoother flowing air tube vs. the usually restricted and convoluted OEM air tubes, and not the air filters at all. It'd be interesting to see if the data gained by Black Bear follows across other car lines/models.
As a point of reference, Black Bear Performance, a tuner/performance part seller of some note, did a series of dyno runs to assess performance increases, or lack thereof, of CAI's and their hi flow air filters. The vehicle used was a bone stock 2008 Chevy Silverado 5.3L with 130,000 miles. The CAI's tested were the usual suspects.....K&N, Volant, AEM, CAI, Inc., and a ringer, the Airaid MIT (Modular Intake Tube).
When the dyno runs were completed, none of the CAI's with their wonder filters outperformed the MIT. Yes, the stock air box with stock AC Delco air filter, outfitted with the MIT, performed at least as well as any of the CAI's if not outright better.
The data: http://www.fullsizechevy.com/forum/...ependent-intake-test-results.html#post5605592
Now, given this empirical data, one would think the simple answer to any intake upgrade question, at least for full sized GM trucks, is an Airaid MIT and leave the stock air box and filter intact.
But, nooooo, even when presented the aforementioned data, one still sees comments like, "So, if I put an MIT on and then a drop-in K&N filter in, I should get even better performance, right?" Short answer....NO.
I guess it's just too much to expect someone of short attention spans to comprehend the data presented, that the major contributor to the performance increase when using a CAI or MIT on our trucks is the air tube, not the air filter.
Now, from that test data, it's gotten me to wondering if all the performance gains from using CAI's is simply from having a smoother flowing air tube vs. the usually restricted and convoluted OEM air tubes, and not the air filters at all. It'd be interesting to see if the data gained by Black Bear follows across other car lines/models.
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