CAI indepth.....

[ticopowell]

Haha well I am not the oldest or the youngest here(25), but I do think its great that we can all have fun joking about ourselves while learning stuff .
I just wanted to add a clarification to what I posted before, I am not interested in aftermarket MAF's, mine works fine and im never gonna have a monster machine that needs that much airflow. I was just pointing out that the diameter around the actual sensor stays the same on the CAI's that I have dealt with, therefor the fact that the rest of the pipes change wont have a huge effect on the reading.

also another thought... just because you arent getting a lean code doesnt mean that you arent running slightly lean... or the same with a rich code just my thoughts

[Longshot270]

Originally Posted by ticopowell

Haha well I am not the oldest or the youngest here(25), but I do think its great that we can all have fun joking about ourselves while learning stuff .
I just wanted to add a clarification to what I posted before, I am not interested in aftermarket MAF's, mine works fine and im never gonna have a monster machine that needs that much airflow. I was just pointing out that the diameter around the actual sensor stays the same on the CAI's that I have dealt with, therefor the fact that the rest of the pipes change wont have a huge effect on the reading.

Are you sure they weren't larger or a different shape around the sensor? If not then you aren't gaining anything running them besides the looks. You must consider your point of peak restriction as that will slow down air movement and change the absolute pressure from there to the cylinders.

[ticopowell]

It was the same diameter right next to the MAF, but it did remove other restrictions like in the fender, and it was a smoother path between the filter and the throttle body. Here is a good example of what I am saying about the CAI's I have dealt with. both were exactly this same idea.
the only think that I can think of that would affect airflow is that the air maybe be relatively faster or slower in that part of the tube versus what the stock tube would read. since this can affect that area without the MAF reading it (because like someone said the MAF covers only about 14% of the circle of air in question), that is why any adjustments would need to be made.

[Longshot270]

Originally Posted by ticopowell

It was the same diameter right next to the MAF, but it did remove other restrictions like in the fender, and it was a smoother path between the filter and the throttle body. Here is a good example of what I am saying about the CAI's I have dealt with. both were exactly this same idea.
the only think that I can think of that would affect airflow is that the air maybe be relatively faster or slower in that part of the tube versus what the stock tube would read. since this can affect that area without the MAF reading it (because like someone said the MAF covers only about 14% of the circle of air in question), that is why any adjustments would need to be made.

Well if the inside diameter of the housing is the exact same as the stock housing then you should be fine. The pipe after it doesn't matter and the open filter before it only affects performance through air temps. The issue is not that the MAF only covers 14% of the cross section, the issue is the air speed through the cross section. You are not measuring the actual mass of air, you are measuring a part of the cross section to determine the rate at which air enters. From there you can calculate the overall rate and then the mass of air passing through. You dont measure flow rates of a river by channelling it into a big cup. You find an area that has uniform flow, measure the rate there and the rate at which water is moving through the area. Increasing pipe diameter with the same air consumption rates causes the airspeed to lower and tell the computer to fuel less.

We are dealing with vacuum rather than pressure so the concepts are much simpler.

[hampsterzone]

I'm glad that I got the down low on everything from just about everyone. Makes since and I have learned a lot. I love being the first domino, Haha.