Recommendations on Cold Air Intake

[Shaheed]

Hi Everyone,

I have a 05 tC with a TRD exhaust. I was thinking of putting in a CAI. Reading online on as much info as i could get, I was wondering what everyone would suggest.

First thing i wanted to ask is where in the world do i order a passenger side inner wheel fender?

The dealer was asking a ridiculous price for them. I found some on ebay however they look like cheap plastic. If you could suggest some you know that work well i would appreciate it.

Secondly, as i was reading up on the CAI on different Scion tc sites, I came across many that mentioned the way the CAI is designed for some models the filter touches the inner wheel fender and could rattle ( which someone had a great suggestion on keeping it from doing that ) and also if driven in a lot of water it could get wet and mess up your engine. Since i am missing a inner wheel fender i want to get it replaced and I started looking at at the RAm air intakes.

I found this for my 05 scion tc
K&N Typhoon Intake - Videos & 640+ Reviews on K&N 69 Series Typhoon Cold Air Intake Kits & Short Ram Intakes

I was wondering is this all i would need to get, and then get it installed? The ram Air intake seems shorter. Am I correct in making that assumption?

Last but not least, I am learning a lot about cars from my tC however have 0 experience in installing anything on the car. How much do you think it should cost to get one installed? That way i have a base knowledge and dont get taken advantage of. I will be calling around to get some quotes.

Your suggestions would be very helpful. Would this improve the sound of the TRD exhaust even better than it is now?

thank you
~Shaheed

Anyone on here from Houston TX?

[CadenceScion]

I am pretty sure you can get inner fenders from TRDSparks.com, ask for Ken. Secondly, most of the CAI's on the market are good and they all work the same. I have an AEM and has given me no issues and no rattles. Injen, K&N, TRD, Weapon-R are good as well. An intake will change the sound of your exhaust slightly as well. I would not suggest running a CAI until you get the inner fender replaced, if you ingest any water into the engine, you risk it seizing, or doing serious internal damage.

[navylife59]

Sadly, Ken passed away back in May. He was the driving force that started TRDSparks online and made it such a customer oriented business. He left it in good hands so we should still expect the same level of service. On a side note, they are carrying HID kits from our very own Member; Mengsta of Mengmotorsports.com

1. The inner fender liners or "mudguards" are basically a thin molded plastic. OEM liners aren't flimsy but they are thinner than the lower tray mudguards under the front of the engine bay.
2. Yes, some CAI models did have rub and fitment issues.
3. Yes, you would not want to run with out that inner fender liner.
4. Driving thru deep water can cause the engine to stall and worse, hydro-lock the engine (water is not very compressible) causing severe engine damage. AEM offers a CAI bypass that allows air to come in the intake tract higher up when the filter is submerged. Simple rain and small puddles are not going to cause these issues if the mudguard and inner fender liner are installed.
5. Yes, SRI (short ram intakes) are just that, shorter. It is a misnomer though as it is not a traditional "ram" intake, much like a CAI is not really cold, but a few degrees above the local ambient temp. SRI pull air in from the engine bay which is hotter that the outside ambient air. Your tC, like all late model Toyota brands, come from the factory with a cold air box. The only physical difference, besides the filter media/size/type, is that the OEM air intake is at the upper part of the fender where it is highly unlikely that you would worry about damaging your engine as your car would be half way under water.
6. Install is fairly straight forward with only a Phillips and a Slotted screwdriver. Most intakes come with a good set of instructions. Most install exactly in the same manner so you can read the TRD instructions here, http://www.trdsparks.com/install/PTR03-21060inst.pdf

[Shaheed]

Thank you for your responses. Once again, greatly appreciated.
First thing i will do is get a in fender as suggested. From what navylife said, i gather i should probably not go with a SRI since it pulls the hot air from the engine bay.

On a side note,i obviously dont plan on driving it through any kind of high water other then the occasional rain we are seeing here in Texas.

Thanks again guys. Interesting stuff. Maybe installing a CIA will be my first hands on job on the tC

[CadenceScion]

Your more than welcome. Happy Modding to ya!

[Shaheed]

Well, I just got off the phone with Trdsparks and spoke to Micah about the inner fender liner. Looks like i will have to make a list of hardware i will need as well to install the fender liner. He was very helpful, and even sent me an email with the diagram for the part and all the pieces that go with it.

[mtnbk]

Shaheed, see the thread I just started on CAI systems.

I wanted to reply to this thread, but this is my first visit here and I'm afraid I did it incorrectly. It came out as a new thread.

[Shaheed]

You have a link to your thread?

Ok I have another question. I will be purchasing the Injen CAI for my car. I was wondering will the filter be hard to get to on my 05 tC when its time to replace it? I would prefer something that is easy to get to however i do not want the SRI ( since it pulls the hot air from the engine bay )

Your thoughts....expertise from experience?

[navylife59]

It will be as easy to get to as it is to install it. You will either have to lay down and reach around with the tire all teh way to the left wheel lock or jack the car up. The OEM splash guard will have to be moved out of the way to gain access.

[Shaheed]

Thank you Navy, I was just reading another thread on here I think you posted that you had an injen SRI and you had some contamination in your engine. Was that because of the SRI or the design of it? I really dont want to mess up my engine. Also i have something like what Mengsta posted in that thread link below.
Meng Motorsports - The Leader In Scion Performance Intake Exhaust Springs | Plug and Play HID Kits

I will take a pic tomorrow and post it. I thought that was stock?

[Shaheed]

Ok here is what it looks like right now under the hood. I was looking to purchase the Injen CAI. And
Ran across this
Meng Motorsports - The Leader In Scion Performance Intake Exhaust Springs | Plug and Play HID Kits
Which to me looks a lot like what i have now. I dont know much about this so i wanted to ask if this is something similar or is this stock?

Also on another website i was looking at it stated that Part Number:69-8608TFK from K&N posted above gives more HP than the Injen CAI. I know there are different opinions on these as to the HP difference and if its even worth having. Just wanted your thoughts on that as well.

So what do i have under the hood? Im guessing its the Stock. Pics attached below

[connman429]

That is, indeed, the stock air box. A couple notes to add for you:

In your original post, you stated you were missing the PASSENGER side inner fender. The air intake is on the driver's side, so you would have to be driving at high speed through several inches of water in order to have even a remote chance of sucking water up your intake from the other side of the engine.

The SRI was designed to work in conjunction with the TRD supercharger, since the inlet for the supercharger is closer to the fender. That's also why you don't see as much as a market for them as you do the CAIs.

[Shaheed]

Thank you for the information Conn,

I ordered the part for my inner wheel fender wall today. Should be in sometime next week and I will possibly be ordering the Injen CAI next week as well. Get them both installed at the same time. Dealer wants 160 to install the CAI. I will try and do it myself. I just dont want to mess anything up. I have downloaded the instructions form online.

[c500129]

I've had the Injen CAI in my 2010 tc for about a year now. I'm extremely happy with it, no issues at all. I suggest ordering the panel for it from doctorisotope.com it will look better and hold the CAI better than that little strip of rubber Injen sends. People had problems with pipes from CAI rubbing against the frame and breaking so thats why Dr Isotope started making those.