[gr8dude5]

I got my MazdaSpeed CAI yesterday and I spent the whole day today installing it. It took me a while thou because it started rainning hard every 20min, and then the burning sun would come out and then it would start raining hard again. So after installing it and driving with it here are my first impressions:

1. Before the CAI, whenever I started the car, it would start just fine, nothing out of the ordinary, but now that I got the CAI I feel it starts kinda weak, like if the car wants to stall right away. It almost feel like the car has low battery and it's struggling a little bit to start.

2. Call me crazy, but I somehow feel that the sound of the cai is not as loud as I think it should be. I think that the sound of the stock airbox modded was deeper than the one from the CAI. Or maybe I was just too tired and was losing my hearing little by little :zzz:

3. I do feel a little bit more of response at low rpms, imo the rpms raise a little bit faster than before too.

4. I found out that whenever I stopped the car, let's say I stop at a light, the revs at idle would go up and down, from 750 to less than 500, the car felt a little bit like wanting to stall.

5. The first time I drove the car with the CAI I started hearing some noise coming from the hood, it sounded like when u shake a metallic bunk bed. It was an odd squeaking noise. The second time I drove it I heard a couple of time and then dissapeared.

6. The CAI sits really but really close the the chassis, tomorrow I'll be getting some rubber to put it in between just for protection.

Well it's the first time I install a CAI and I thought the sound was going to be a lot stronger, maybe I set up my hopes too high. My friend installed a SRI on his civic and I know for sure it sound way deeper than my CAI. I'm not an expert, but why did it sound so much powerful?? was it because it was a SRI and it was positioned in top of the engine, and the CAI is located way down by the wheel??

Sorry for the long thread, it's just that I wanted to make sure I didnt do anything wrong and if anybody experienced any of this with their CAIs. I'll take it for a real drive tomorrow, more than 5 miles like I just did tonight and see if everything is still the same or different than before. Any help and advice would be really appreciated.

I didnt know if post this in the 2.3l section or in the newbie section, so moderator feel free to move it to where this thread really should be.

 

[mk706]

i'd double check your install. something doesn't sound right, like the fluttering rpms & metallic sound under the hood. make sure all the vacuum hoses are where they should be & that the filter is connected.

 

[gr8dude5]

i'd double check your install. something doesn't sound right, like the fluttering rpms & metallic sound under the hood. make sure all the vacuum hoses are where they should be & that the filter is connected.
[/b]

I double checked today and everything seems fine. I took for a drive today and the squeaking noise seems to be gone, but I did notice that the pipe is sitting really close to the chassis, and that it has been rubbing a little bit with the chassis. Maybe thta was the squeaking noise. Well seems to be gone now, but still I just got a little piecce of rubber that I'll be putting in between the 2 of them.

Also, I disconnected the sound system from the battery and now the car starts just right, it doenst feel weak like yesterday, which I think it's wierd because does that mean that I gotta choose now between the CAI or the audio system?? :goon:

Also, the rpms have been normal now, I did notice they were a little shaky when I was slowing down at a light, but when I finally stopped the rpms remained in 750.

I got a question thou, at the green solenoid there were 2 hoses, well I took 2 screws and fit them in, and sealed them then with some black tape. I think I read somewhere that was the way to go, but I'm wondering if that would have anything to do with the shaky rpms??

 

[twowheelin]

Probably... Sounds like you still have an air leak somewhere. A leak will kill you low RPM torque too, so get this fixed and you'll like your CAI much better!!

The main vacuum hose to plug is the one that use to hook to the stock airbox just to the left of the tuba. (has a 90 degree bend.) If you plug this one, the other ones dont matter.

For the green plug that hooks to the VAD solenoid, remove the solenoid from your old airbox and secure it somewhere where you can keep it plugged in. If you plugged the vacuum hose as mentioned above, the hoses on the solenoid are useless and meaningless.

There is a PCV hose (about 3/8") that comes from the back of the valve cover. Make sure this is hooked up and not leaking!! You may need to remove a coupling and change is out with a different coupling to ensure all the hose connects up tightly to the CAI pipe. (or accordian hose) You can get some fuel line type hose from AZ or wherever if needed.

 

[catiro]

Before you installed the intake did you disconnect the battery?

 

[gr8dude5]

Probably... Sounds like you still have an air leak somewhere. A leak will kill you low RPM torque too, so get this fixed and you'll like your CAI much better!!

The main vacuum hose to plug is the one that use to hook to the stock airbox just to the left of the tuba. (has a 90 degree bend.) If you plug this one, the other ones dont matter.

For the green plug that hooks to the VAD solenoid, remove the solenoid from your old airbox and secure it somewhere where you can keep it plugged in. If you plugged the vacuum hose as mentioned above, the hoses on the solenoid are useless and meaningless.

There is a PCV hose (about 3/8") that comes from the back of the valve cover. Make sure this is hooked up and not leaking!! You may need to remove a coupling and change is out with a different coupling to ensure all the hose connects up tightly to the CAI pipe. (or accordian hose) You can get some fuel line type hose from AZ or wherever if needed.
[/b]

Well I hadnt have no time to check it again after I've driven about 150 miles with the CAI. I did check thou before and everything seemed all right, all in place. BTW I'm loving it better and better as miles go by . All my friends that have no knowledge whatsoever about cars and mods, they believe the sound my cai makes is a turbocharger sucking air :drive:
I plugged the main vacuum, the other hoses I just covered. Anyways i'll double check the whole installation again this weekend.

Before you installed the intake did you disconnect the battery?
[/b]

Yeah, first thing I did bro. I followed all instructions. ACTUALLY the shaky rpms are rarely now, they dont happen as usual as before, but they're still there. Could it be that the car just needed some miles to get used to the cai?? if so, as time goes by, should the car be problem free the more I drive it with the cai??

 

[zoomnbyu]

Your base memory should have been reset with the battery disconnected, but the PCM still has to relearn what it is doing based on the newfound airflow. The improvement over a few drive cycles is normal. You should be able to reconnect your audio leads and be OK. Your IACV (idle air control valve) is just over-reacting like it used to have to before coming by air so easily as it does now.

 

[catiro]

How do you like the Mazdaspeed intake for the 2.3?

 

[bumpin_blazer]

first time i turned my cara on after my initial like 2 mile drive with my CAI, it did the rev bouncelike you described. it hasn't since i figured it was the ecu getting used to the new easy flow of air. then i threw a CEL and i ordered the injen fix from cp-e lol.

 

[gr8dude5]

How do you like the Mazdaspeed intake for the 2.3?
[/b]

I like it a lot, but still in the end I thought it was going to bring a real deep sound to the engine. I love the sound, specially now that everytime I press the gas you can hear a little whistle (from the air being sucked I guess). Most ppl believe that's the turbo spooling poor noobs :nana:

first time i turned my cara on after my initial like 2 mile drive with my CAI, it did the rev bouncelike you described. it hasn't since i figured it was the ecu getting used to the new easy flow of air. then i threw a CEL and i ordered the injen fix from cp-e lol.
[/b]

But you have the injen cai, that's why I went with Mazdaspeed cuz I was worried about the cel showing up whenever it felt like. Supposedly since it's from mazda you should never get a cel with it, well I've driven almost 500 miles with it and still havent got a cel yet (knock on wood )

How do you like yours?? Do u have a 2.3, 3.0 or a Speed6??

 

[TRiPLE 6]

hey gr8 dude...

so hows the sound now compared to the airbox mod since you have driven it more?

I had the AEM intake installed for not even 24 hours beforei ripped it out because i missed the AB mod sound and the intake didnt feel like it made any HP improvement whatsoever. But i totally forgot that it takes a few days, even a week or two, for the car to adjust to the CAI... because when ive had my car recently worked on for the throttle, they obviously disconnected the battery, and my AB mod sounded incredibly quiet for the first few days and the car felt less responsive. Finally after some driving it returned to the way it was before.

So now im debating on putting my AEM intake back in... lol. I just really love the sound of the AB mod, its really deep now.

 

[catiro]

well my CAI sounds pretty much like the airbox mod. but there is definately more power.

 

[gr8dude5]

hey gr8 dude...

so hows the sound now compared to the airbox mod since you have driven it more?

I had the AEM intake installed for not even 24 hours beforei ripped it out because i missed the AB mod sound and the intake didnt feel like it made any HP improvement whatsoever. But i totally forgot that it takes a few days, even a week or two, for the car to adjust to the CAI... because when ive had my car recently worked on for the throttle, they obviously disconnected the battery, and my AB mod sounded incredibly quiet for the first few days and the car felt less responsive. Finally after some driving it returned to the way it was before.

So now im debating on putting my AEM intake back in... lol. I just really love the sound of the AB mod, its really deep now.
[/b]

Well IMO the AB mod made my 6i sound more powerful, it was a deeper sound. On the other hand with the CAI the sound is a lot different, I dont get as deep as the AB mod, but I do get the air sucking sound, which I think it's pretty cool. When you push it hard you can hear some growling coming from the engine bay, but it's not as loud as before. BUT I do feel a difference in the response of the car, at low rpms the car reacts quicker, I mean you can really tell a difference when you press the gas. IMO I wouldnt go back to the stock airbox for the sound since you already own a CAI

well my CAI sounds pretty much like the airbox mod. but there is definately more power.
[/b]

But you have a V6, I've heard that on the V6 the sound is waaaaay deeper than in the 6i. I have heard a lot of good reviews about the sound of their CAIs from many 6s members, it's totally different from the 4-cylinder.