Celica Forums General Discussion Exterior just installed gen2 AEM intake on my GTS (questions/review)

let me be the first to say that when you install a cold air intake you take the damn front bumper off. yes, it looks like you can do it without taking it off. and you can...but it makes things so damn difficult. take the damn front bumper off !!! lol!

well now that i got that out of the way, i'm going to tell you how it fared. first i didn't go with tpr...just for the main fact that they don't supply a carb sticker on their intakes. i know they work great. everyone knows they work great. but i have had my hood popped open...twice...and i'm not willing to take a chance. so i went with aem gen 2. the pros: les CELs and gains from low to high end. the cons: bogging, running lean, etc.

so after taking about a million pecies of the stock air box out to clear away from the intake...something popped into mind...why don't i clean the thottle body and mafs while i'm at it. i used the "valvoline carb throttle chooke stuff"
and it seemed it worked fine until i got high from the fumes.

the intake install was relatively simple. some peices were tough to get in (like that damn ecu breather hose to connect with the fan) but all in all a monkey could do it. seeing as i am less compitant than a monkey i had a friend with me to help. i made sure the battery was diconnected as to avoid throwing a code. cutting the fender plastics was a treat as well.

but after all was said and done i turned the key and i have never heard her sound so mean. the "KESSSSHHHH" from the cai intake was louder than i expected and after pulling the throttle cable a few times it made a "Pashhh, Pashhh" sound...almost like a BOV. odd...i never expected or read about that. for a minute i got concerned.anyone care to comment feel free.

we took her out, slowly at first up san pedro to redondo by the ocean side that filled the coast with fresh cool air. it was obvious the intake was loving it. for some reason there was no bogging and i got the same throttle and power from when i had it stock. mid range was improved but the best was lift . after i found i clearing i floored it...all of a sudden she kicked like a mule @ 6300 rpm and heard this sucking sound from the trasition of cam...something like "rrrrrrrrr-PASHHHH-BWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!"...i've never felt anything like it. i've been in an rsx-s and it's v-tec never kicks like a gts. they say smoother is better, a smoother power curve relates to faster bla blah blah...at the time i didn't care. it was like rediscovering lift again.

when i got home the first thing i did was tape the wheelwell with duct tape. paranoia? yes. definately. but better safe than sorry. but after inspecting the placement of the filter (it's almost as high as the license plate) you come to wonder HOW people ever hydrolocked to begin with?? it's so damn high they would have had to drive in a puddle more than a foot high.oh well. that's my CAI review. (Thanks to Judd (nebraskagts) for giving it to me.)

great!!!

"it made a "Pashhh, Pashhh" sound...almost like a BOV. odd...i never expected or read about that. for a minute i got concerned.anyone care to comment feel free. "

I hadn't read much about that either... I was pleasantly surprised when I had mine installed. =)

i have mentioned it to other CAI owners and they don't know wtf i'm talking about...now i'm worried.

ahh yah that sound is normal... it goes away after it's warmed up.. dont you love the sound when you turn off the car

and good thing you also cleaned the mafs seeing as its already out

could have done this..
web page but duct tape works less dirt hitting the filter too

its not really like a BOV sounds its just the filter sucking in air.. rather than releasing air

yup, that's it. it's more like sucking than blowing (whoa...get your minds out of the gutter).

anyway, now that i have it on i notice my AEM is louder than my trd exhaust..lol.

yeah, i just used black duct tape...it's so much easier, plus no-one looks down there anyway. i just had to clean my fender plastics so ensure the tape clings well...i have trd brakes and it dusts like crazy.

If it sounds like a giant snake is hiding under your hood thats normal I can hear my cai a good 20 ft or more from the car at idle.

does the bogging go away after the engine is warmed up?

damn bro i was waiting for your call over the weeknd but i guess you mange the install, good job

yeah...it was a lot easier than i thought.

glad it's working out for ya great christian, now i just have to wait to get my TPR

My CAI kind of makes that sound when I shift gears sometimes.

yea my aem cai is sweet to i just fixed my engine and i tried it out yesterday and it sounds awesome i love that sound and it is normal. try presseing the gas realy fast and releasing it realy fast it makes this sweet sound to like this fast sucking sound i love it well good luck with yours

have any of you used a by-pass valve on the aem gen2?