i do co-op at a performance shop and we put on intakes all the time,but i heard from my parents friend that if i put on a air intake it will cut the life of my motor in half because there is more air coming in then going out and the computer can not work properly to control this,thus not makeing the moter work properly and cutting the life in half...any comments on this?

 

i dont kno but to eliminate that problem cant you in stall an exhaust system at the same time

 

yea if you have exhaust then you dont have to worry about it. I can see where he is coming from because if you only have an intake then you will be running lean, but i dont think that will cut your motor life in HALF

 

it might cut the life down by .005%, but more from you driving it harder, than from any strain the intake would put on it. an intake wont put any more air into you engine than the engine can handle. the only way that a non supercharged or turbocharged car can get air in, is to use the vacuum from the piston moving down. so if there is X amount of space in the cylinder, thats the most you will get in without forced induction (except in some extreme race applications) and if you dont get all of the exhaust out of the engine, then it will just suck in less air the next revolution. dont worry about them. they actually are easier on an engine than the stock ones. they give power by reducing the amount of work the piston has to do by making it easier to pull air through than the stock one. so the engine has to work less to do the same amount. the problem is from us driving harder when we hear that intake growling, and maybe even feel a couple of extra horsepower. THAT does take its toll on the engine.

 

but i was thinking,even though you add a exhust system to let out more air, the computer will still not be working right because the air amout coming in and the air amont going out is still different to what the computer is programmed to

 

the computer is made to adjust to the conditions to a point. thats why we are happy to have a computer to run our engine management, instead of a carburator. if you go to a different altitude, the air is higher or lower pressure, and with a carb, it wont run right, but with a electronic engine management, it will adjust your fuel and ignition timing along with the needs. so it will also do that when you add an intake. but contrary to popular belief, an intake adds a very miniscule amoutn of extra air to the engine. its power gains come from the reduced power it takes to pull X amount of air through it. X being the maximum amount that it can get in during the time that the intake valves are open. the actual amount of extra air is so small, that the computer will barely need to adjust.

 

so if the amount of air is small how come we get such good performance gain

 

if u read properly u wouldnt need to ask that Q. You get MORE POWER BECAUSE..........by adding an intake it is requires less effort by the engine to get the needed amount of air into the motor. When a task the engine performs is made easier you gain power from it. Same **** with pullies..........they make it easier so u gain some power out of it.

 

in addition to what pcupo said, a CAI helps by putting cold air in your car. well you may think...'how does cold air make your engine run better?' well, according to the laws of physics, colder air is denser than warmer air because the molecules arent moving about as much. now think back to how fire burns. it needs three things, feul, heat, and oxygen. The more air u can get into the cylinder, the more oxygen u will have (also how a turbo increces HP). since u have denser air, there is more oxygen. this results in better combustion, resulting in a more powerful explosion AND, accordingly, higher horsepower...and THAT is why cold air intakes are such a great investment of so little money

EDIT: hm now that i go back and read more closely thats not exactly what ur asking but i'll leave it there in case anyone WAS wondering about that

 

bro bottom line............?.more air.......colder air........easier induction of colder air = more power. Any questions>??