Celica Forums General Discussion Exterior AEM Bypass Valve

I have been looking at buying the 2nd Gen AEM CAI because of the low end gains. But a couple of my friends told me to stay away from the CAI and stick with short ram because of the chance of hydrolocking my engine. I live in Georgia where there's not much rain and if there is..it's not flood level. But the thought of messing up my engine still concerns me. So I was looking at the bypass valve. I read up on it and I have heard various things from different sources. One of the things that I heard is that the bypass valve doesnt work on Celica's because of some odd reason which I forgot. Is this true? And if it isnt do you think getting the bypass valve is really worth it or should I just stick with getting the CAI alone without the bypass valve? Thanks for any input.

the bypass valve, is useless and it kills some of the hp that the Intake gives out. all in all, this has been discussed many times before, dont worry about it, unless you stick the tube in a puddle of water and submerge the entire Intake, you will not suck water into the engine!!

the bypass valve, is useless and it kills some of the hp that the Intake gives out. all in all, this has been discussed many times before, dont worry about it, unless you stick the tube in a puddle of water and submerge the entire Intake, you will not suck water into the engine!!!

If you're concerned about hydrolocking just get a garage sale sign and cut it to block the slits in the wheelwell. Then get an Injen heat sheild to protect the front

^^^exactly..don't waste ur money on bypass..it don't work.

has anyone had any hydro locking problems with the aem cai? will the ingen heat/splash shield fit on the aem?

yep it will fit...Quote from ecelica store:
"Features polished aluminum construction and etched Injen logo. Fits most aftermarket air filters with 2.5, 2.75, and 3 inch outlet flange such as INJEN, AEM, AC, K&N...etc. Does not fit "mushroom" or "blow-off" type air filters, or air filters with integrated heat shields."

Do me a favor and explain to me how it kills hp. The bypass valve doesn't "bypass" until the air filter is restricted to a certian point. Until then, the bypass is inactive and non restrictive. As far as it not working, I watched Horsepower TV do a segment on the CAI's (on a mustang). Trust me, it works and it can save your motor.

they dont work and even if they did you dont need one. Unless you filter is COMPLETLY submerged it wont suck up water. If you really that concerned get a Short ram but you will be fine with a CAI

just listen to everyone the chances are very low for it to happen and even if you were to go a underwater, your electrical system will blow up first before your engine gets messed up

i dunno exactly how it looses power butmy theory into it is because you are cutting the piping thus "messing with the design for it as far how the air travels in the pipe, also the damn thing is made out of foam which has spores thus more air goes out thru it. as far as effectivesness it only absorbs droplets of water so if your Intake get submerege in water no bypass valve will help you(i guess this is true for all car Intake)i also notice that our cars has the shortest Intake piping(compared to other cars)so the space the water can travel in is really short so if you pupt in the bypass valve it will get soaked right away and still hydrolock. so overall i dont think it will ever work for OUR cars(maybe other cars it will work but definetly not the celi)

what are the difference in the gains from a short ram to a cai. has any one had the problem with the cai hydro locking

Ok, some local club guys in daytona and i got into an arguement about this -

I have the Injen CAI, and living in florida there is ALOT of rain. I was really concerend about the hydrolocking issue as well, so i thought i would put the bypass valve on also. When i actually got to that point i realized that the only good place to put the valve was so far down the pipe that it was basicaly at the same level as the filter.

The sign idea is good, but you can avoid doing that all together. just be very careful when you cut the holes for the pipes to pass though in the wheel well. if you do it right you can get the holes so that they pretty much make a seal around the cai piping. i have had mine in for well over a year now and no problems what so ever. don't bother with the short ram, the gains you get out of it aren't worth the money. deffiantely go with a full cai.

i got an injen watershield. it stops water from being spray'd on the filter (which wont hydro lock your car) and keeps it pritty clean

hmmmm... don't have a dyno in front of me but a full cai supposedly gives 5-10 hp, and the short ram give like 2-5 hp... you do the math.

^^^
I'll be doing that soon as well...

looks good man---have any more pics of it --how long have you had it

The air flowing inside the Cold Air Intake has a lower pressure than the air outside of the CAI. Therefore, air would not flow out, but in. Plus the air won't flow in either direction from that point because the air filter has a lower air restriction. Once the air filter restricts to the point that it has a higher air restriction than the bypass, the bypass will then start drawing air into the CAI. That bypass acts just the same as the pipe until the air filter gets too clogged to efficiently draw air. IMO it's a bad idea to run without one... especially since our CAI's are rather short. But hey, everyone has their own preferences.

there are stories of people who have the bypass valve and still hydrolock. i had my Intake for almost 2 years and has gone thru heavy rain with no problems so i guess like what you said its a matter of preference

I once heard that the AEM Bypass was having problems with bits of the foam coming off and being sucked up the Intake... i do have a friend with a bypass (not on a celica) hasn't had any problems at all with it... and we get a lot of rain, and he works construction so he has to drive in areas with out drainage.. ie big puddles...

bypass vales dont work well

you wont get clost to 10hp from a cai

i dont have anymore pic's. ive had it for about 5months i think

alright thanks for the info guys, I think i'll just stick to the CAI Intake by itself.