No name intake

[crazycanuck]

Like any other questions I ask, I did a complete search with little results. So please no flame war here :p

I went to pacific mall today, and tried to look for cheap prices on intakes. The Fujita goes for $265 which I'm not going to pay. Since SSG was selling it to me for $250.

Any hoo, the dude pulled out a no name intake and it was $105. He told me other than the brand logo on the pipe itself, performance compared to the name brand intakes were the same. He suggested I buy the no name intake and a nice filter to yield best results for the buck ($145 total).

My question is, what do you guys think of no name intakes? Has anybody got any installed?

For those of you who have seen me around the forum, yes I am on a binge mod buying craze.

[Kevin@nextmod]

Heres a cheaper intake
http://www.torontomazda3.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=18220

[crazycanuck]

haha, that's cool. I got the balls to install an intake, but don't know if I wanna spend the effort on this though. I guess I'd have to see the performance results, or even test drive Skarbro's car.

[eqlso]

Do you mean no name as in its a brand name you never heard of? Or do you mean no name as in it actually had no name on it, so basically its a metal tube?

[crazycanuck]

pretty much a metal tube

[Cardinal Fang]

When you said Pacific Mall I stopped right there.

[Skarbro]

I guess I'd have to see the performance results, or even test drive Skarbro's car.
:chuckle With a name like 'crazycanuck', I doubt that will happen. LOL

[Cardinal Fang]

Someone has to come up with a logo for Skarboro's Intake so that he can stick it on. Would be a great conversation piece.

[Wild Weasel]

How do you even know what the mystery metal tube is made of? Could be covered in rust in 6 months.

[stevenlung]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/04-06-Mazda3-Mazda-3-GT-Base-2-0L-2-3L-Cold-Air-Intake_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ38634QQihZ008QQi temZ180172688936QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/JDM-04-05-06-07-Mazda-3-2-3L-2-0-Cold-Air-Intake-Mazda3_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ38634QQihZ019QQi temZ290173933134QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/04-05-06-07-Mazda-3-i-S-Model-2-0-2-3-Cold-Air-Intake_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ38634QQihZ008QQi temZ180173418014QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW

search for Mazda 3 cold air intake on Ebay, you'll see tons of it, from what I remember, one guy actually bought his Fujita F5 CAI for $127 in the states (brand new), it's in a CarDomain shop or something, also there's GB over M3F

http://www.mazda3forums.com/index.php?topic=90609.0

since our dollar is much higher than before, it just doesn't make any sense to buy those stuffs locally, just remember USPS (go for FedEx if no other choice) is your friend and stay away from UPS

[stevenlung]

I found it, but the CarDomain link doesn't work anymore, it worked before

http://www.mazda3forums.com/index.php?topic=91884.0

[crazycanuck]

Tried to hop on the group buy but was too late. And the quality of the metal was my biggest concern.

[mogul_pro]

I got my Injen intake off ebay for 205$ SHIPPED... brand new in box. So if its going to cost you 250$ for a no name one and a filter... spend 25% more and get this one. I installed it myself (properly) in under 1.5 hours. It sounds pretty great, better throtle responce, slightly quicker acceleration. What more can you ask for when your paying 200$ for an upgrade...
I haevn't used any other intake besides this one on my mazda but I wouldn't want to because I am very happy with the Injen!

[crazycanuck]

no, the no name is $105 + filter = $145 abouts.

For those of you who have brand name intakes, isn't the pipe just aluminum?

[stevenlung]

no, the no name is $105 + filter = $145 abouts.

For those of you who have brand name intakes, isn't the pipe just aluminum?

Yes

read this for your own reference
http://www.aempower.com/ViewCategory.aspx?CategoryID=19

[crazycanuck]

So in short, what Skarbro did was just take a pipe and install a filter. Which is essentially what a CAI is. And therefore if I buy a cheap pipe and a decent filter, in theory I should yield the same results.



Yes

read this for your own reference
http://www.aempower.com/ViewCategory.aspx?CategoryID=19

[KenYork]

no.. the results are not nessarily the same. it depends on the bends and where pipe opening is. The width of the pipe is also a concern.

I had a similar setup as Skarbro, and the torque was not nearly as much as the Injen i have in now.

[mogul_pro]

Provisded you have the right type of pipe... have a professional pipe bender to bend the pipe to the spot other 'namebrand' intakes end up (outside the engine bay) without crimping the pipe (thats where the pipe bender comes in play).. and then attach an air filter to it, and ALSO have a spot in the pipe for the factory O2 sencor to be installed (this is a big one or else you will haev a check engine light adn your car wont be able to measure the air comming into your motor)....

So if you want to go through ALL that to save 50$... then yes you wont notice THAT much differance....

Your method: $145 and hours of your time in fabrication and instalation.
Injen Intake: $205 (I paid that off ebay shipping included).. and a 1.5 hour install taking my sweat time.

So you jsut haev to ask yourself if all that extra effort is worth it? Can you fabtricate something like this properly? If YES to both, go for it and you will save a few extra bucks... if no.. just get a "brand name" one.

PS- I HIGHLY doubt you have access to a pipe bender and even if so, can you really bend it to the perfect spots? If you can... I will have to get you to make me a few things! lol

[crazycanuck]

I bought the pipe and filter for $145. So here's the deal, I agree with everything you guys are saying, but the pipe I bought is a knockoff of name brand pipes. It's the exact shape, material and polish just without the logo on it. I bought an AEM filter. Installing it tonight, let you guys know how it goes.

[crazycanuck]

Installation 1st attempt failed - Mainly due to time constraint and lighting. I'm going to try again on Sunday, but I stopped at the part where I had to take off the resonator bolts. I found one of the bolts, but not the other 2. On top of that, I lost a screw the bolds down the MAF sensor. I have one screw bolting it down and another temp screw...... Would it cause any problems? I'm just scared the MAF sensor will come lose...

Pictures coming soon tonight.

[b]

It probably won't come loose with 1 screw for a few days. If I can remember it was just a basic screw wasn't it? I am trying to remember when I took my cai out. I would think you could get one at any home hardware.

[crazycanuck]

works great, sounds great, fits great.

[eqlso]

Pretty sure the MAF sensor screw is a generic one.

Where does it place the filter? Pics? :D

[crazycanuck]

Actually my mechanic got pretty angry at me for losing that screw. He said it's titanium and replaced it with one of his. Not sure if he was totally right about it, or just angry at me for driving around with screws missing.

Pics will come soon, once I get batteries for my camera.


Pretty sure the MAF sensor screw is a generic one.

Where does it place the filter? Pics? :D

[crazycanuck]

drove yesterday entirely in the rain, ran over some puddles for fun too. No problems what so ever. Albeit, the filter is located somewhat higher and I also have the sock on. Seriously, it's true when they say you literally gotta drive into a lake to hydrolock.