http://new.minimania.com/web/Item/NMK9053/InvDetail.cfm

 

They're all the same .

 

Agree - it comes down to price point.

 

Don't forget aesthetics, and the all important "We back up our product 100%"



- Matt

 

Yes I've got it on my car. It seems to work well. My wife likes it because she likes the s/c noise. She says it sounds like a jet intake when you pass someone.

 

i had it ; without the back wall delete . i used a hole saw . it was okay but i like the h.a.i. better . got rid of the whole stock box top and bottom . lots of room in there for the oil c.c. . plus it seems cooler under the hood now .

 

Correct.

At that price I would expect that it come w/ a lid as an option.

 

I had that set-up long time ago but without the cowl opening, which you can cut yourself. The difference between mine was that I paid something like $120.00 for mine at the time and this is $229.00.

I now have M7 "closed box" with cowl opening CAI which by coincidence cost over $200.

 

I think there are better options considering that "today" the consensus leans towards a closed box.

For $189 minspeed.net offers an enclosed box w/ ITG foam filter until he runs out.

 

I can pick up a three month old one for $100 thats why I was asking

 

For $100 I'd be tempted to try it. If you don't like it sell it for $100.

 

I've got something very similar - it's an Ultrik, but not K&N: NME2032 "The filter element is a high flow reusable cloth filter manufactured exclusively for Mini Mania." Seems real similar to a K&N.

Back in late 2005, I decided I wanted a CAI for Tillie. This one was the least expensive at the time. I bought it during a sale and drove to Grass Valley (less than an hour from where I live) to pick it up. Saved a few bucks on shipping, and got a beautiful drive through the fall colors in the foothills as a bonus. On sale, with no shipping, I paid less than $100 for it, as I recall, but prices have gone up since then.

Installation is pretty easy. (You can find the instructions on MM's web site.) One nice touch is a U-shaped slot for the bottom screw. This makes installation a bit easier than most of the other CAIs on the market.

I did some timed runs in third gear from 2500 rpm to 6000 rpm with my stock intake, installed the Ultrik intake, and did another set of timed runs. I was pretty disappointed: hardly any change at all. Then I removed the cowl panel and cut a large hole in it, similar to the one pictured in your link, and replaced the panel. Did the timed runs again, and was quite pleased with the improvement. (And now that I've got a pulley, I'm sure it makes an even bigger difference.)

Anyway, my take on all this is that CAI or HAI or whatever - the temperature of the air coming into the engine isn't nearly as important as the quantity. To my mind, the JCW intake, with the flap that opens above a certain rpm, is MINI's admission that the original design was pretty marginal. If you can get this for $100, I think you'd be getting a great deal, especially if it's the genuine K&N and it comes with the cleaning kit and cowl panel.

If it doesn't come with the cleaning kit, you can pick one up at most auto supply stores for $10 or $15. And if it doesn't come with the cowl panel, be sure to either cut a hole in yours or buy one that's already pre-cut. That's what really made the difference on my car!

 

The guy I'm getting it from says it comes with the black grating at the base of the windscreen with larger holes to allow more air in ...

I've got like three recharge kits as they seem to be popular give aways at car shows I attend

 

I had the Alta intake on my 2005MCS, but went with the one that Randy Webb designed on my 2006MCS. I truly believe that Randy's intake is the best on the market, abet a little more expensive, but I feel well worth the money.

 

THANK YOU!

Temps are important but volume is more important.

 

Interesting. The engine requires a certain volume of air each revolution to mix with the fuel. Do you believe that there are significant restrictions to delivering the required volume of air in either the stock, or any of the after-market intakes? I ask this in light of the following observations I've made over 3 years:
1. There is little evidence of the HP gains due solely to a CAI over the stock setup, especially a stock intake with a free-flow filter. Cut out a hole at the rear of the stock intake and any difference diminishes moreso.
2. Most high-HP cars dyno-ing at 200WHP and over require bigger injectors suggesting the limiting factor is fuel, not air.
3. Very few people publish intake measurements, and most have been to do with IC temperatures rather than air volumes and pressures. Hence we have little direct evidence concerning the impact of different intake systems on other measurable elements other than HP.

My conclusion is that volume is not a problem, that intake air temperature is highly variable and most of the contributing factors are well beyond our control, and certainly not affected by the choice of intake.
I'll back it up with a challenge: there is no one with a non-meth or other injection system with lower intake temperatures than me under identical ambient temperatures, pressures and operating conditions.

 

It's very similar if nearly identical to the Helix version which I have on my car and I love it.

 

I was afraid of this…

Not trying to start a flame war.

All I'm saying is that there is a hierarchy of importance for any engine's intake and it goes:
1. volume.
2. temperature.

Sucking -12 degree air through a straw will provide less HP than 120 degree air though a 3" pipe. If the engine doesn't have the minimum volume of air it needs it won't make target power regardless of the temps.

Now in an ideal situation the intake tubing would all be the same size & then it would come down to air temps. If it's that much of a big deal build a dry ice airbox & move on.

On a side note, in my bench engineering opinion. ALL the MINI CAI are pretty much a joke. The rest of the automotive world is using tube style intakes that suck from the front of the car & we are still stuck in 1990 arguing over box temperatures. Ugh… Give me a break.

Either way, much respect to you for taking the time & effort to actually measure temps. Kudos!

 

very well put . a to b is still a straight line .