Snorkel vs. Cold Air Intake
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Ripp has dyno test showing a drop in hp with a snorkel. You can find stories on here of people sucking in water with CAI in basically normal city driving, through puddles etc. hard to understand, but prob has more to do with oversized tires throwing water up into the engine bay, and wheel well splash guards not keeping it out. I have been using a KN drop in, in the factory box. Of course lots of people will tell you the KN is crap and will kill your engine, but I have used them in almost every auto I have had, including a civic that was traded in with 199,000 miles on it's vtec.
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There's a lot of talk about the JK intake being vulnerable to water ingestion but with some common sense you can typically avoid that downfall. I've been through 40" of standing water without sucking it into my factory air box. Sure, a snorkel would have been better, but I didn't have one and don't intend on buying one. The CAI's are more for looks since (as pointed out) they all pull air in from the engine bay- albeit typically isolated. Go look on the track how to do a proper cold air intake- remove a headlight and run ductwork straight to the throttle body. That's obviously not a practical solution for our application, but it is a true cold air intake.
I did this on my JKU
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I was thinking about purchasing a K&N CAI, but then I came across a snorkel, and I was wondering which one is better to have installed on your JK? Is it possible to have both? Would it add on to your performance gains? If anyone could help me make a decision that would be helpful. By the way I live in the city, and don't plain on doing any driving through pools of water any time soon.
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There aren't any noticeable performance gains in either. CAI, will provide a slightly different sound, but nothing you will notice. Unless you remap your FI to mingle along with it. As for the Snorkel, the benefit is not only preventing water intake, but also getting your intake high, out of dust plumes when driving dusty trails, roads, etc. I'm always amazed at how many ignore this benefit and believe if you are t doing deep water, there is no other use.......
In short, if you are getting the CAI, and plan on other mods to the motor, then you will help it achieve a little more power, but don't expect a huge difference. If you aren't doing anything else to the motor, a snorkel adds a cool look, and function over a CAI.
In short, if you are getting the CAI, and plan on other mods to the motor, then you will help it achieve a little more power, but don't expect a huge difference. If you aren't doing anything else to the motor, a snorkel adds a cool look, and function over a CAI.
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There aren't any noticeable performance gains in either. CAI, will provide a slightly different sound, but nothing you will notice. Unless you remap your FI to mingle along with it. As for the Snorkel, the benefit is not only preventing water intake, but also getting your intake high, out of dust plumes when driving dusty trails, roads, etc. I'm always amazed at how many ignore this benefit and believe if you are t doing deep water, there is no other use.......
In short, if you are getting the CAI, and plan on other mods to the motor, then you will help it achieve a little more power, but don't expect a huge difference. If you aren't doing anything else to the motor, a snorkel adds a cool look, and function over a CAI.
In short, if you are getting the CAI, and plan on other mods to the motor, then you will help it achieve a little more power, but don't expect a huge difference. If you aren't doing anything else to the motor, a snorkel adds a cool look, and function over a CAI.
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Every time you change direction you will reduce the amount of air that can travel thru a tube and the sharper the turn the more you loose.
A drop in k&n will pay for itself over time if you are just looking to spend money on a mod but don't expect to get anything from a cai. A snorkle can save you from hydrolocking the motor and can keep your filters cleaner longer by using a pre filter and having the intake higher where the air is typically cleaner when off roading. Personally I have seen 4 JK's hydrolock from splashing thru puddles.
A drop in k&n will pay for itself over time if you are just looking to spend money on a mod but don't expect to get anything from a cai. A snorkle can save you from hydrolocking the motor and can keep your filters cleaner longer by using a pre filter and having the intake higher where the air is typically cleaner when off roading. Personally I have seen 4 JK's hydrolock from splashing thru puddles.
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From what I remember, yes they tested it on a SC jk and then disconnected it to show the gain/loss of like 30 hp. I doubt there is a 30 hp loss on a naturally aspirated engine, you might notice that, and I have not heard anyone complain about a noticeable hp loss after getting a snorkel. This thread got me thinking this afternoon, I pulled and tapped out and brushed off my KN drop in and re-oiled it.
Last edited by ConroeJK; 04-05-2014 at 02:45 PM.