Celica Forums General Discussion Engine and Performance could an cold air intake...

Could an CAI damage the overall life of the engine in the long run, whats some of the advantages/disadvantages of using one (beside hydrolock). Just wanted some opinions before i installed one,

As long as you don't drive extremly rough, it isn't going to make the slightest difference in your engine. The intake temp is just going to be a few degress cooler..
CAI= More power than SRI, but possibilty of hydrolock
SRI= Barely any power gain, nearly impossible to hydrolock.

werd! what he said^^^^^^^

what exactly is hydrolock

~Alex

Yea...I've been wondering the same thing. Just to afraid to ask...heh.

It's when water(hydro) clogs your filter so you can't get air into the car and it stalls. this can happen if your filter is covered too much by damp water or submerged in water.. if the later happens it can actually suck water into the engine like a straw and that will destroy it if you don't get all the water out.. water does not compress like air does.. so when the cylander trys to compress the water in the compression stage of the engine it will basically tear it apart breaking very important internals like the pistons rods engine block oil pan etc..

your right about the straw part but geting it wet wont clog the filter, if you have ever driven in the rain i gaurantee you your filter was soaked afterwords. its only if you go through deep enough water to completely submerge the filter when it sucks it in

yeah, hyrdo lock = water getting sucked into your engine. The engine causes heat. Heat + Water = steam and pressure. Your engine cant compress water so it dies.

You could suck a squirrel or something through your CAI, that might shorten the life of your engine

ohh baby I know all about hydrolocking! I did it myself with my cai and killed my motor. Thankfully I pay insurance for a reason and they paid for a new motor.

I had my filter submerged completely under water in my case.

In reality, not including the possibility of hydrolock, your motor will run better and last longer with an aftermarket intake, since it flows more air, and actually makes the engine's work easier. same goes for aftermarket exhausts and header. any bolt-on breathing mods will increase engine longevity, since the engine doesn't have to work as hard to make the same amount of power.

Couple of good links on this subject:

http://www.mkiv.com/techarticles/filters_test/2/index.html

http://www.knpowersports.com/facts.htm#RESULTS