Oh boy... this post is going to bring the Alta haters out of the woodwork. I know people dislike the Alta and some who absolutely love it. I've read enough posts about people who don't care for the DDM intake you're running either and then there's people who do.

People have their opinions. Whatever. Move on.

 

For the record, I love my Alta intake. I hate seeing the "Alta sucks" posts that pop up on here all the time. It would be one thing if we were talking about a turbo upgrade or even suspension parts but IT'S JUST AN INTAKE!!!!! The difference between two intakes can only be seen on a dyno!(and no the butt dyno doesn't apply here) Plus let's not forget that the air going through is going to get compressed and then pushed through an intercooler anyway. By that time it doesn't really matter as long as flow isn't restricted. Bottom line...if it looks good and makes the right noises then it is a good intake as far as most people are concerned.

Sorry for the rant. I popped in here to get the answer to the strut bar question. I have been wondering the same thing.



Edit...Wow just noticed how old this thread is. I completely forgot I started it!

 

The main "defect" some people see is there have been reports of people with `10 and older r56 have noticed that the the intake puts the inlet pipe at such an angle that over time the intake can rip. I'm still waiting to see if anyone `11 and up has had this problem as they changed to a harder abs type plastic on those intakes. And the funny thing is. there is already an Alta hate thread on the front page and he pumped a year and a half old thread about Alta hate.

 

Mine has about 40k on it and I have had no issues whatsoever.

 

Boubie,

The ALTA intake will fit with just about every strut brace on the market. It has a cutout for extra clearance.

That isn't a common issue, over the years I've seen it happen maybe two or three times. I would think that it'd come from mis alignment of the intake on the inlet hose, but since it's so rare, it could be a fluke.

 

I will say that when I installed mine. I did have to maneuver the 90 degree elbow a fair deal to get it to hook up to the bracket. And it is not flush on my mounting bracked. Almost like the 90 degree elbow was too long by an inch and I had to compress all the perforations in my inlet pipe. I can send pictures if you would like. I got it to work but was underwhelmed that there was a slight fitment issue. But I'm not worried about it blowing out as it is a hard plastic. I just feel as consumer I shouldn't have to modify a product that is supposed to fit perfectly.

 

Interesting read for a resurrected thread. I am new here, I did a little searching after seeing the CAI on Alta's website.

In regards to the "Foam", are there any issues with the foam degrading over time? Breaking into pieces, and perhaps getting sucked into the engine?

I think I read everyting on Alta's website concerning this filter/intake, but couldn't find anything referring to replacing the foam filter after "X' amount of time.

 

Sorry about that, that's not normal, I'll send you a PM. If anyone is having issues, send me a PM!

The life of the foam filters will vary, but they will last a long time as long as they're cleaned with a foam filter cleaner. Normally they can go about 7-10,000 miles between cleaning.

 

I would have bought the ALTA intake but i didnt like how they didnt include the inlet tube with the 230$ price. I know K&N isnt necessarily the best intake but I got the filter, inlet tube and a housing to keep some of the heat off the filter for the same price that ALTA was for just the filter and mounting braket. if i wanted the whole system i would be paying around 500$ where as it cost about 220 for the K&N and lets be real none of these intakes are going to give a noticeable HP gain and i get plenty of sound from the K&N system so it just seems like the better deal.