intake and chip questions

[▼)Ñ╩fZΣµ& 10+ year member]

i have a 96 5.0 8cyl exploder and was looking to do a few small things to get a bit out of it,

already doing exhaust stuff

but was wondering what "cold air intake" really is?

instead of buying a exp k&n setup i was going to just cut out the stock airbox etc and build my own with meal pipes etc, but i noticed that the stock plastic tube looks fine, and was wondering is it still the cold air intake with "power" etc if u just put a high quality air filter where the stock box would be and run the stock hose/pipe would that work better? or is the new pipes with no ridges and stuff better and what make it?

and for chips would like this be something that would work and be good to get?

http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/details/QQFordQQExplorerQQJet_ChipsQQPower_ProgrammerQQ1996QQJ2089617.html

Click to read more...

 

[eharri3 10+ year member]

An aftermarket filter, depending on design and quality, may be good for somewhere between 0 and 2 horsepower. A good well designed intake system, whether it's off the rack or home made, may be good for anywhere from 1 or 2 to maybe 12 hoursepower depending on application. Air modifications, due to the way airflow affects power, tend to give any extra grunt higher in the rev range. You won't feel it when you pull from a dead stop but you may notice your engine still has a little more to give at highway speed where it used to be done. Plenty of people do what you're suggesting. It's a matter of getting a do-it yourself kit from an autoparts store with the piping, figuring out how to route it from your throttle body to wherever you want to put the filter, then adding on your filter of choice. Try to mount the filter lower near the side of the engine away from the heat or maybe behind a head light if you can, better to keep it away from hot air which isn't ideal for an intake and to expose it to the cooler air that's rushing at the front of the truck when you drive. The lower the better but be careful about mounting it somewhere too low as you don't want too much water to splash on it when you drive through puddles.

I went with a volant system because I just like the looks of it, feels like it gives a little more grunt than my K&N did, and didn't feel I'd have the patience and attention to detail to make a DIY kit look right. Also the better kits come with heat shields of some kind which do a slightly better job of protecting the filter from heat and debris, easier than fabbing one up or just leaving it open and unprotected. My volant comes with an enclosed box with a screw-on lid.

 

[Tehgregzor 10+ year member]

eBay cold air intakes are just fine, although i'd suggest getting a better air filter, or one that comes with a K&N filter. the pipe is shiney, and fits well enough.

 

[▼)Ñ╩fZΣµ& 10+ year member]

ok ok, forget the jet chip like i said above, i dont see any evidence that it does anything really..

the diy things seem very easy to me, buy a fatt pipe, buy two fat rubber boots, clamm to throttle body and clamp to a bend fatty pipe, and then put on the air filer, make a wall out of aluminum tape or some metal, and create a ram air sort of application where air from under the car will be jetted up into the filter

and then for my exhaust since 96 explorers are fvcked up beyond belief and cant be normal, i have 4 catconverters 2 on each pipe.. so i was going to cut the two pipes right before the muffler and put a y pipe on and then straight pipe it to the other piece, and sort of straight flow it the cheap way.. basically to give it a more deep rumble than the quiet poop sound.. but doubt it give me much performance..

 

[audioatg 10+ year member]

FYI Ford Mass Air Flow sensors do not like Oiled Filters like K$N air filters. Have lost count on how many times I have sold Mass Air Sensors and an Stock air filter because of a K$N air filter was installed.

 

[▼)Ñ╩fZΣµ& 10+ year member]

what sensors are better?, would this cold air intake with possible ram air just make the car more jumpy like it is when i start it on a cold morning and it jolts around?