its about noon right now and i am about to go outside and install the injen intake i got..... wish me luck!

hope it doesnt take me that long to do it by myself

 

ok, i need help, im having a problem taking the front bumper off. scared to mess it up.

 

Is there a question in there somewhere? It is pretty easy to do - just a million of those pesky plastic clip retainers.

 

Can you show pics when your done? Self-install....SWEET!

 

I hope you got it off alright, I had a hard time getting my bumper off too... there's a couple of clip that you have to press on with a flat head.

 

yea, but dont hit it 2 hard!!!keep us posted!!!

 

I didnt need to remove the front bumper when I was installing my intake....I just pulled it out from the headlight and then felt for that one screw that needed to come out. Granted taking the bumper off is much easier, if you are not comfortable doing that it can be done by just taking out the splash guards and then a tedious search for that lone screw.....install time should be an hour. Good luck

 

finally got the bumper off. i had problems with 2 little clips on the top. it sucked, its like the clips were laughing at me. so easy to see, but it was hard to angle the bumper out of it. the clips i am referring to are the ones on the very top of the bumper, in the middle, right next to the plastic push clips.

that was a pain. i also took awhile because i did not want to mess up the bumper. kinda scary popping the bumper off. felt like i was gona tear it or something.

there was also a good amount of time spent on a screw that holds the bottom of the resonator to the frame. it was a pain to get the wrench in an angle and you cant even see it. can't reach it from the bottom, i had to go right next to the front part of engine and reach my arm under the resonator to get to it. and there isnt much room for a wrench there.

after that, i had a problem getting the whole assembly out. i had to angle it a certain way and pull really hard, actually bending the intake pipe and just pulling on it as hard as i could and it just finally popped out.

i spent a lot of time carefully doing the install because i did not want to mess anything up. i am happy to say that there wasnt a single scratch to the bumper or fenders or anything and the intake is on there tight as can be.

i spent a total of 4 hours on it. coulda done it faster, but didnt want to mess anything up at all. the bumper is back on perfectly, no extra screws, and the intake sounds good.

2 hours was getting the bumper off and placing all the screws and other parts that i took off in a certain order so that i wouldnt miss anything. i also got that page of the service manual and marked off each screw as i went along to make sure i wasnt pulling on the bumper and there was a screw i didnt see. id end up ripping that part then.

you guys can flame me for taking such a long time on it, but hey, i took my time. and i enjoyed working on it. i don't have much of a chance to work on my car because im always busy and tired from work.

the whole intake assembly is like 10 pounds, if not more. and the injen intake is a lot lighter.

car sounds good, outside looks exactly like it did yesterday, but i have a few scratches on my hand from the tight spaces i had to reach around.

once the old stuff was out of the car, it was a breeze installing the injen intake. took about 15 min. this includes me cleaning the filter and oiling it. it looked kinda dusty on the inside.

advice for those who will be doing this install.... at the end when you are putting the intake on, don't tighten things piece by piece. install it loosely and then once its all there, make sure the intake sits properly and then tighten it all up. this allows for loose play to ensure proper fitment.

and remember, taking your time and being careful is a lot better then spending time repainting or remolding part of your front bumper. cheaper too.

for those of you who did the intake without removing the front bumper, i do not know how you did it. i probably could have tried it that way, but i would not have been able to make sure things were as tight as can be and have the install be as solid as it is now. id be worried. id rather spend the extra time and not have to worry about it later.

now, for those of you that are going to say.....


i didnt have a chance to take step by step pics of the install, and you guys have seen what the pipe looks like from the engine bay anyways....

if anyone is going to do this install, and you got any questions, id be more then happy to talk to you about it. hopefully i can make it easier for you guys then it was for me trying to figure it out without a step by step kinda thing.

 

here are some pics from when I did mine, I don't know if this will help anyone.

 

i ended up just taking the drivers side of the bumper off and letting it hang off. I figured the less i had to put back together the better, lol

 

Ayethetiense can you comment on the performance improvement (if there was any), and also if at all possible, provide a sound clip?

I have heard that the Injen is really noisy and would also like to get some idea if this noise is intrusive into the drivers compartment?

Any information you can provide on the changes, will help those of us still sitting on the proverbial fence!

 

i was thinking about that as well, but i didn't want to take the chance of maybe warping the bumper or paint. i also was afraid that when i got half way through installing the intake, that i may run into a problem with hitting the bumper while trying to angle the stock intake out. just figured that if half of it is already out, might as well take the rest of it off and just not have to worry about it. see, this is where the 4 hours add up to. never took so long to install an intake in my life.

performance improvement eh?..... the highly accurate butt dyno tells me nothing. in theory, about 5 hp or less would be added, a car going from 270 to 275 max, you wont really feel anything.

the reasons i got the intake are because 1. i got it for about half the price, 2. theres a theory that because the air is colder and more free-flowing, it may actually save you gas, 3. sound purposes. it has a nice growl now when i tap the gas or when i floor it.

it's not too noisy, my last car had intake, headers and exhaust on it though, so that is what im used to. if you roll the window down and the radio off and drive on the street with no other cars, you will hear a whistle sound at around 2100 - 2400 rpm. when you drive it like a regular commuter car, at slow speeds, intake is not noticeable from the inside, but when you punch it even mildly, you get a smile on your face...

rolling the windows up will eleminate that 'whistling' sound. once you rev it past 4k, it has a nice growl to it. not deep since its just the intake, but deffinitely a lot more noticeable then stock.

this is a good install for those of you 6mt drivers who are complaining about not being able to hear the engine for shifting purposes.

not too loud, but loud enough when you floor it. you control the volume. its not just quiet all the time anymore.

 

ok, here it is.... 100 mile drive update

its been a lil over 100 miles since i installed the intake.

whistle sound between 2100 and 2400 is really not that bad. seems to be diminishing. absolutely cant hear it with the windows up, even if the radio is off.

heres the best part, i actually feel a difference. on the freeway is the most apparent.....

thats right boys and girls.... the pedal feels more responsive and sensative. it takes just a little movement of the gas pedal and it feels like i pressed it more then i would normally have to to get the same sensation.

the growl at open throttle is awesome and it seems like i am averaging about 3 more miles per gallon. i will update again at the end of my full tank to get a more accurate reading.

 

I put mine on last week and did so by removing the left front tire and bending back the inner fender . It took two hours to complete. I have to agree that I prefer the intake sound since I can finally hear the engine. Throttle response is better and vetc is more noticable.