i notice a slightly louder growl from the intake too. I have the same setup except im still going to use foam filter than came w/ the icebox.

 

Once upon a time I tried removing the large resonator behind the bumper and I plugged up the holes in the pipe. My goal was to retain the stock length of the intake system. I wanted to keep the low-end torque the same as well as the protection against inhaling water. The end result was a noisy intake system that didn't befit the refined nature of the TSX. It also did nothing for performance. After a few weeks I reinstalled the resonator.

JTso, when you say "Interior sound level is quieter with the stock intake mod at various rpm range and throttle inputs", what are comparing this to? What is the stock intake mod quieter than in this example?

I'd love to do something to boost throttle response, but I do not want extra noise. I bought a $30k near-luxury car for a reason I've seen 4 cylinder cars with just an air filter box and a simple tube with a flare on the end, and the intake noise is nonexistent. Why does the TSX need such a complicated series of chambers to achieve the same effect?

 

So, how much does an 06/07 intake tube cost?

Anyone with a CAI not using theirs?

 

Im not sure about the refined nature of a TSX is supposed to sound like? I had a 330ci with a Dinan SR CAI that had a nice growl, and most 5 and 7 series at the speed shop at the dealer had similar set ups through M. So if $40-$70K car can have a distinct growl from an intake, I think a $30 to sub $30K car can still have one and not be considered "unrefined". I suppose it's all personal choice.

 

It is personal choice of course. I don't think the TSX is supposed to make a ton of noise. It is in a class above all of that.

I'd want a muted but muscular sounding growl--something refined and classy. Without my airbox resonator, all I got was racket--booming noise that dulled the otherwise precise character of the car. If my car makes a lot of noise, it better be able to back that up. If I was making 400hp, my TSX can make all the noise it wants!

An all out wide-open intake might give me the kind of sound of I want, but that is out of the question because it is simply too loud for my taste.

Based on the plethora of experience represented by the members of this forum, I'm wondering if there is any good advice. If I think a real CAI kit (one with an exposed cone filter) is waaaay too loud, and removing the resonator from the stock airbox sounds nasty--what am I left with? What does JTso's mod sound like compared to the others (boomy?)? Taken a step further, how would one characterize the sound of the Comptech Icebox? And do those two options really offer a little crisper throttle response--that is an important thing for me.

 

I would guess that the sound of the Icebox would be very similar to JTso's mod. Both utilize a lower air snorkel (instead of the resonator piping) and a sealed air filter box.

 

The OEM intake mod is quieter than the K&N CAI, probably similar to the Icebox. According to a local member who has installed both the OEM intake mod and the Comptech Icebox, he claims there is no difference in performance when comparing the two. I believe he is selling the Icebox now. Since the resonator is out, it would still be louder than a complete stock intake setup.

The 06 intake tube is about $30 + shipping online.

 

in that case, dont mod your intake if you dont want additional noise.

CAI isnt loud at all during normal driving, but once you push the throttle harder, it will sound loud.

icebox sounds the same as JTso's intake mod which is bassy, as for perf. wise, they are the same, an immediate throttle response improvement at low RPM..

 

Johnny, do you think I would notice the difference using a larger 06 intake tube if I still have the 60mm throttle body? It seems a fairly cheap and easy mod but my logic tells me that, since the incoming air eventually has to fit through a 60mm opening, it wouldn't matter to the engine whether that restriction is the throttle body opening or the intake tube. The only difference, I suppose, would be the size of the air stack and the point at which the air velocity increases. Any thoughts?

 

^^
Yes, intake air still goes through the throttle body regardless of the intake tube size. However, there is a difference with the air "available" at the throttle body when opening the throttle plate with a less restricted setup. I don't think the larger intake tube by itself will help much. It's best used with a Icebox or modified setup without the resonator. hrj_1985 has tested the Icebox and the modified setup and reported slightly better throttle responses.

 

^^ cool. For that price I think I just might invest in a 06 tube.

 

Agreed. What sounds loud to some, may not be loud at all to others.

 

Ok, junctionfet deletes the resonator and doesn't feel that it did anything for performance, and JTso says that the larger tube won't do much until you remove the resonator. Did I get that right? I'm so confused!

Jlukja: With the larger tube, or the comptech lid, I would think that the larger volume of air would help with the throttle response (although, it doesn't seem like a huge difference does it?). But as far as making a velocity stack, if forced to guess, I'd think you'd want it as close to the engine as possible, so I kinda think that the larger tube is a good idea. Years ago, one company even sold a huge "power chamber" type intake promoting that idea. And, the Prelude Type S intake had a larger tube (that was almost chamber-like) than the normal Prelude; Honda documentation said that it flowed more air, and that was apparently with the same size filter-box and resonator. Sounds good to me.

I'm not sure what to do, but I want to try to keep the sound reasonable. So, I need to keep relatively close to stock.....

 

Can you do that?

 

Part number for the '06 intake tube?

 

17228-RBB-A00

its not only the tube that makes a little improvement, you have to shave off the ribs on bottom part of the airbox too..

my setting was : 06 intake tube, icebox lid, icebox foam filter, shaved bottom part, icebox snorkel

i also found out that comptech foam filter rev harder than K&N drop in and the icebox snorkel didnt do anything..

 

Wait, I don't get it. Which diameter on the '06 tube is slightly larger? The throttle body-end inside diameter? Or the air box-end inside diameter? Or both?

If it's a larger inside diam at the throttle body, how does it seal properly to the 04/05 throttle body?

 

Absolutely!!

 

The stock tube expands slightly over the stock 04/05 TB. The 06 tube just slips right on. The stock clamp at the end will seal the connection. The dia. is increased at the TB end, possibly the overall dia. inside as well but hard to measure.

 

So this might especially make sense with a bored-out 04/05 TB or an 06 TB.

Cool, thanks Johnny. It's on my list with big-bore TB.

 

The '06 TB tube is required when doing an '06 TB swap

 

I've only seen the Comptech intake as a kit. Where can you buy just the lid? Although, since I have a K&N drop-in filter, I'm kind of reluctant to get the Comptech. I know, there's the weatherstripping mod, but still.... At least the kit is not TOO expensive...

Back to the intake tube... 64 mm doesn't sound much more than 60mm. Does it really make a noticeable difference?!

 

If you do the math it works out to roughly a 10% increase in air volume.

 

Directly from Comptech

 

Being an owner of the 'full kit' from Comptech, I recommend buying just the lid from them if possible, and running the K&N filter w/ weatherstripping. That's what I'm currently doing. I'm also using the air horn, but I can't imagine its really helping much, so the lid is all you really need to increase flow.

 

i GUESS BY REPLACING THE LID IT JUST CREATES MORE SPACE FOR AVAILABLE AIR....? IS THAT THE ONLY REASON WHY IT HELPS.....OR IS THERE ANOTHER REASON WHY THE COMPTECH LID IS BETTER THAN THE OEM.......

 

Do the math... ugh! Ok, let's assume a cross section. Taking the area of a circle... Um....
(60/2)^2 * PI = 2827.4
(64/2)^2 * PI = 3217
.. about 390 mm sq. more! Over 10%! Alright, that sounds pretty good to me. That should give it a bit more air, but will other restrictions make it not worthwhile? In my previous car, the larger air tube seemed to help with the throttle response, and I think it helps with the airflow a bit too, although, I'm sure it gets restricted a bit in other areas. Still, I couldn't help but feel like there was a bit of a "velocity stack" effect as the larger volume shrunk down.... Also, did the '06 retain the same size resonator and airbox? If so, maybe those flow enough.

I like the idea of keeping the resonator, and trying to get a mod that still sounds close to stock. Plus I like the idea of having a good bang-for-the-buck mod. I don't need the ultimate in HP....

Hey, I wonder if it would be worth tossing an airhorn on top of the stock intake? Too bad that there is no room for one in the stock location.... OH well.

 

Yup, the part numbers on the air box cover seem to be the same. Go figure! The part number on the clamp (where it meets the TB) is different too, of course.

So, the opening of the tube where it meets the airbox is the same size. It is larger at the other end. Presumably, it's larger throughout, though. I guess the main thing I wanted to confirm is whether or not to obsess about other areas of the intake; I think I will start with the tube and see how that goes.

 

^^ you're right in that it should help with throttle response (much like the Icebox airbox lid being larger than the OEM lid helps). However, I don't think it'll help in the top end as the throttle body ID for 04/05 models is still 60mm.

 

But people add a CAI or even the Comptech intake and measure an improvement even at the high end, even on the models with a 60mm TB.

 

^^ good point. Maybe we should convince Peter_bigblock to do it and then do a dyno.

 

Yeah, well, the problem with these cheap mods is that there's not a whole lot of incentive for someone to do dynos. Oh, if money were no object, I probably would, just on a lark.... But the temptation would be to just get that horribly expensive carbon fiber one and be done with it.

 

True, it's unlikely cheap mods will come with any dyno testing results due to the simple fact that people want to save money, or just.... cheap.

However, it's also unlikely to find dyno results for the expensive mods either. But the buyers of those mods will convince themselves and others that the mods is producing gains just because they are expensive, even without a dyno test to verify...

 

I got my '06 intake tube installed into my '05 TSX. From just a short spin, I could swear that it's faster, although, that's the butt-dyno talkin'. I don't notice any improvement in "throttle response". Although, modern cars may need a couple of trips for the ECU to figure out that you've changed something; I did not force the ECU to reset.

In addition to the tube change, I cut out the cross-bar that is in the way (in the airbox). That looks fairly restrictive. I left the other fins in place -- they don't strike me as in-the-way. I also left in the rest of the intake (resonator, etc.), due to the reasons I posted before, such as the fact that Acura didn't bother to change them for the '06 model. The intake narrows down quite a bit in this tube, so it may be that the rest of the intake is "large enough" (at least without more mods). Also, I already had the K&N filter.

So, I declare this a good bang-for-the-buck mod. It's so cheap that anything you get out of this is probably a good deal, but I suspect that it does give you at least part of what you'd get with a more expensive intake.

 

Quick question about the TB. I have a 05 TSX, and currently looking for a 06 TB + IM Swap. Since the 06 TB is 64mm compare w/ 04/05 60mm, will there be any space left when I use the RD1430 (**old one w/out MR) Injen CAI?

 

I have also took the dremel to the fog light cover. You can cut out all of the slots and get direct cold air to the intake. The shape of it acts like a ram air.

 

^^you can also use a DA grinder/sander and buff off the back side. I did not have to go back and sand each one of the vents to make it look clean.

 

So, did you secure the 3" aluminum tube to the rubber downtube with a large hose clamp? Also, did you then secure the other end of the aluminum tube to the chasis with a clamp and bracket similar to this.
If so. where did you get the bracket?

 

Yes, I secured the down tube to the rubber coupler with a large clamp. However, I didn't mount it to the chassis as it wasn't necessary due to the super lightweight aluminum tube.

 

Is it worth upgrading the TB on an 04? With one off an 05/06 or something else?