Short Ram or CAI ?

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Old 03-12-2004, 12:59 PM
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Short Ram or CAI ?

I want to buy a intake system for my 2000 TL, and I am thinking of getting a short ram or a cold air nitake for my car. I know that the performance will not increase that much, therefore I mostly care about the sounding of the intake, can any one suggest me which one sounds better ?
Old 03-12-2004, 01:08 PM
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Do a search for better results.........


But hands down go CAI
Old 03-12-2004, 02:43 PM
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If its sound you want...a short ram is best. Funny how FidizzyTypeS told you to do a search, yet gave you the opposite answer.
Old 03-12-2004, 02:59 PM
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cai for more power, icebox for the best performance, low noise and ease of cleaning
Old 03-12-2004, 05:41 PM
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Originally posted by edgalang
If its sound you want...a short ram is best. Funny how FidizzyTypeS told you to do a search, yet gave you the opposite answer.

umm genius.........how did i give the opposite answer.......the cai has much better sound than a short ram.........i've heard both and the cai sounds way better..........so go roll your eyes somewhere else.
Old 03-12-2004, 06:30 PM
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Originally posted by FidizzyTypeS
umm genius.........how did i give the opposite answer.......the cai has much better sound than a short ram.........i've heard both and the cai sounds way better..........so go roll your eyes somewhere else.
If cutiemike is looking for the "loudest" not "nicest" sound..edgalang is correct.
Old 03-12-2004, 07:15 PM
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Originally posted by FidizzyTypeS
so go roll your eyes somewhere else.

LOL:argue:
Old 03-12-2004, 08:33 PM
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Originally posted by `ill*tl
If cutiemike is looking for the "loudest" not "nicest" sound..edgalang is correct.

not to contradict...but i beg to differ...the only reason it sounds louder because the cone is closer to the cabin........other than that i think a short ram is not worth the money.
Old 03-12-2004, 11:34 PM
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Only advantage CAI has over SRI in term of performance is off the line. Since CAI is sucking in cold air and SRI is sucking in engine temp air. Once the car is moving both shows the same amount of gains, so unless you're dragging your TL, it doesn't really matter. You don't have to worry about hydrolocking or cleaning the filter that much with SRI. Oh and the AEM bypass is a POS crap, don't even bother.
Old 03-12-2004, 11:56 PM
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Originally posted by FidizzyTypeS
not to contradict...but i beg to differ...the only reason it sounds louder because the cone is closer to the cabin........other than that i think a short ram is not worth the money.
It's just not because the cone is closer to the cabin.

The main reason a SRI is louder because the tube is shorter and has less bends. Think of how the resonator box works to cancel out sounds (yes it has a lot of bends). Also due to the fact that the SRI is shoter and has less bends, the SRI produces power more readly. However, like I said before the temp does matter for the engine. Basically a drop in 10 degree F = a gain of 1 HP. So basically the CAI has an advantage of about 2 HP off the line against a SRI.

I also like to point out that the Comptech Icebox is basically a SRI inside a heat resistance box and a tube extending down. That's why the Icebox has the best gain, they are giving you the best of the two worlds. However, the box is so thick that most of the sounds are muffled out. That's why it sounds so stock.
Old 03-13-2004, 12:03 AM
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Oh and why do you guys think the CAI has a nicer sound then the SRI? I have a V.1 AEM two piece CAI, so basically I can have a SRI or CAI whenever I want. They both sound the same except the SRI is noticably louder. So where do you guys come up with a "nicer sound"? What the hell is a nice sound? It's not like we're comparing a crap ass coke can exhuast system to a real perfomance exhaust system. I guess it's all subjective crap.
Old 03-13-2004, 01:19 AM
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i totally agree with everything hzm82 has said.
Old 03-13-2004, 01:35 AM
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To everybody, please steop aruguing over this, I am just making a really nice conversation here, I know they both has their advantages and disadvantage, and I really want to get a Cold Air Intake, but I really dun have the budget for it right now, that is why I am choosing the Short Ram, But from what I seen on this board, SRI maybe don't suck at all, so I will get my short ram first, does any one have a sound file that they can let me hear the SRI ?
Old 03-13-2004, 02:16 AM
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3 things.....


1 - HZM.......for me the sound comes down to personal preference.......i'm sorry if i made it seem like i'm playing down the short ram.........i just prefer the sound of the cai....over the sri but to each there own......



2 - Thank you for explaining the diff because in all honesty i didn't think the bends had anything to do with the sounds i just thought it was because of the cone

3- No ones arguing this is just a discussion.
Old 03-13-2004, 02:21 AM
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If money is an issue, just remove your resonator and drop in a K&N filter..or Comptech Drop-in Filter.

In either case..SRI or CAI...you get the same gains from them. Its just on the CAI, you might see better low-end power gains..while both give the same high-end power gains.
Old 03-13-2004, 03:12 AM
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if temp didnt have any thing to do with performance why would turbo cars have intercoolers?????? the cai will have better gains than a sri. you cant dyno the full potential of a cai if its not moving to cool the air! cai's are better hp gainers than sri's.
Old 03-13-2004, 11:23 AM
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Originally posted by fsttyms1
if temp didnt have any thing to do with performance why would turbo cars have intercoolers?????? the cai will have better gains than a sri. you cant dyno the full potential of a cai if its not moving to cool the air! cai's are better hp gainers than sri's.
Yeah? Who said temp didn't matter?
Old 03-13-2004, 11:45 AM
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Originally posted by fsttyms1
the cai will have better gains than a sri. you cant dyno the full potential of a cai if its not moving to cool the air! cai's are better hp gainers than sri's.
Why does a dyno show CAI being better then SRI? Because there is no air flow when doing a dyno. You cannot dyno a car when it's moving and has air flow. CAI shines when there is an ambient air in the engine bay is stationary, so yeah it would show more even gains. But at high end where the hp gains are the greatest, both are the same. But the SRI shorter velocity stack produces more power readly since the air flow is more direct. Like I said Icebox is a SRI w/ a heat resist box and we all known it has the best gains.

CAI = a Dragger's bestfriend.
SRI = better at-speed performane (it produces HP faster since air flow is more direct, but doesn't mean it will produces more HP then a CAI)
IceBox = the best of both worlds. (minus the sound of the SRI)
Old 03-13-2004, 04:10 PM
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Originally posted by FidizzyTypeS
umm genius.........how did i give the opposite answer.......the cai has much better sound than a short ram.........i've heard both and the cai sounds way better..........so go roll your eyes somewhere else.
yea i have to agree fidizzy on this one, cai is much more aggresive sounding especially in vtech
Old 03-13-2004, 04:15 PM
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Originally posted by linner
yea i have to agree fidizzy on this one, cai is much more aggresive sounding especially in vtech

psssst its vtec
Old 03-13-2004, 08:23 PM
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Originally posted by FidizzyTypeS
psssst its vtec
LOL
Old 03-14-2004, 11:04 AM
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Short rams pull in hot air even if you are on the freeway. I did a test where I put a remote temp. sensor next to the battery and drove all over the place on a 90 degree day. Idle air temp. at redlights...140.....at 35mph....130....and at 80mph.....120! I never realized it stayed so hot under the hood at speed. Also, every ten degree drop in air temp gives you 1 PERCENT more power, not 1 HP. I think most engines are rated from the factory at 80 degrees as a baseline starting point. So cooler than that you are adding HP, warmer than that you are losing rated power. It's hard to beat cool, dry, sea level air!
Old 03-15-2004, 12:42 PM
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Originally posted by FidizzyTypeS
psssst its vtec
LOl, i just read what i wrote, forgot i was comparing sounds from my stillen shrt ram 01 max to a srt ram in a cls...oops
Old 03-17-2004, 01:45 AM
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Heres the summary...CAI is more expensive...more expensive = better

u want better, u get more expensive...therefore, through the transitive property it can be deduced that the CAI is better
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