Hello Everyone!!!

I am looking to buy an air intake from my 2003 MCS. Can anyone tell me whats the best intake in the market? I am looking for an intake that provides the best performance along with the highest gain in HP. Any suggestions?? Because i am a person that loves to race my MCS and I love it when my MCS gets respect on the road it deserves. If you get what I am saying.


2003 MCS Yellow/Yellow w/ Sunroof, Sport Package, Harmon Kardon system, 17" wheels, Falken ZIEX 512 Tires, Ferodo racing brakes, StopTech stainless steel brakes lines.

 

Well the intake kit that will give you the most power and SC whine is the Alta. It's been proven multiple times to give 9+ HP. The other (cheaper) option is to not use an intake at all. Go over the to the Operation hot air intake thread and read all about it. Basically, you put a K&N cylinder filter directly on the throttle body. The general concensus is that it gives noticeably more power (probably +15 over stock).

 

I have not seen the test that shows Alta gives more power than the Typhoon. Could you provide a link to that? :smile:

 

Here's a link but it doesn't have the K&N Typhoon on it. I'd suspect the Typhoon to be comparable to the Alta:

http://www.webbmotorsports.com/intake-mcs.php

 

The paper/cotton filters will allow more air initially but will "clog" up fairly quickly. Foam on the other hand filters thru the entire depth of the filter and will allow more air for a longer amount of time. K&N filters have been shown to allow a lot of material thru the filter when new.

Go with the Alta. Best for the long run.

 

They all seem yield roughly the same results, so it comes down to personal preference. Pick one you like and go with it. And enjoy!

 

Alta intake sounds and looks good (Especially if you opt for the colored silicone tube between the intake and throttle body) Plus, the foam filter it comes with provides very good airflow.

 

Scottinbend, Would be interested to know where you saw it that K&N allowed more "material" through when new. I have been using K&N for yrs and never had a problem. They meet or exceed factory specs. Have heard this rumer for yrs., but, have never seen any proof that they do not filter as good as factory filters. Currently I have a typhoon on my '04 mcs and love it. AT 169.99 it was a good buy from lildevilmotorsports.

 

I can also attest to the quality of K&N. I have one in my MINI as well as my other car (Honda Insight) and have noticed no dust/dirt on the post-filter side of the airbox. I'm planning on trying the HAI mod some time in the near future.

 

I had a K&N Typhoon on my 04 JCW and noticed that it ran great when I first took it out but after a short time it felt like it lost power. I have a buddy who I go cruising with who has a Mini S with a 15 % pully and before the K&N I could always have a car length or so depending on who got the jump whenever we would get on it goofing on the back roads. But when I put on the Typhoon my buddy was right on my bumper. I called Randy Webb at WebbmotorSports and talk to him about this. He told me that he had dyno tested the K&N Typhoon and because the Typhoon is made of metal when the engine heats up it transfers heat to the throttle body and actually decreaces the H.P. of the engine , and that is why he does not sale them. I called K&N and they did refund my money. I then installed the Alta cold air intake, I still go cruising with my friend.:smile: but now when I get on it he not on my bumper anymore. ALTA is the best forget the rest

 

With out question... ALTA

 

Thanks guys:smile: Alta it is. I just finished putting it on order. I'll keep all of you informed of the performance

 

I have an Alta that I installed along with the silicone intake hose. The install was relatively simple. The intake is noisy and howls like a banshee under acceleration but I suspect that they all do. Performance increase as measured by the "butt dyno" is apparent but not overwhelming. I purchased the intake hose at the same time as the filter even though I knew that the only velocity it would improve would be the speed at which money left my wallet. The Big Picture intent has always been to swap out to a larger TB at a later date.

As an added note, my dealer [Crevier] has serviced the car with no comments about the mods.

Since my install I have learned that K & N is the only intake system that carries a California Air Resource Board certification number. Thus K & N is the only unit that is smog certified. Does this mean that every two years when I need to get my car re-smog certified I will need to swap back to my stock air intake for the test procedure? Please advise.

K. F. Duke

 

An unsubstantiated street rumor has it that Alta has applied for CARB certification. :smile: I kept my OEM leftovers just in case CARB takes a few years to approve the Alta.

 

The reality is, no air intake is going to give your MINI respect (if you know what I mean ). Don't believe the HP claims of 9-10+HP. Those claims just haven't held up in dyno tests by other people. They just don't make enough power to really make your MINI any faster. Like AMPR said, they all make roughly the same power. I doubt any of them makes more than 4-5HP and that's a best case scenario. So pick one on looks, sound or skip it altogether.

 

Not to hijack the thread, but to add to the CARB issue. Dinan is working on CARB approval for their very nice looking intake. Being a company from the Republik of Kalifornia, one would think they would do this soon.

Dave
'03 DS/B MCS, waiting for Dinan to get their stuff CARB'ed

 

Don't quote me, but from what I understand CARB approval can be obtained by simply completing & submitting the required paperwork and paying the usual $ fees to the "Republik" aka the greedy people of California.

 

nope, CARB in CA requires that you pay a big fat fee, submit a complete description of the product; function, installation, how it preserves factory smog equipment operation, etc. THEN, if they approve what you've submitted you have to take a vehicle to a CARB approved place to have it inspected and smogged. (This is about 6 mos after you've submitted your original paperwork) THEN, they you're approved if all checks out...

-DanB

(p.s. our intake systems have been submitted for CARB approval... they're coming!!! With Carbon Fiber everywhere!!!)

 

Dan,

Thanks for the explanation. I knew it required something like that. Anyhow, I'm familiar with your products and am looking forward to picking up an BFP CAI and front strut strut brace for my MINI.

Please PM or e-mail me when they're available (I might even dyno it if I can find some time to do it).

Thanks again,
AMPR

 

Will do AMPR! A dyno would be great (we did our own dyno, but an independent one is always appreciated). I'll put you on the list of interested parties!

Regards,

-Dan

 

I have the K&N/Minimania... Its great... good sound. Also its CARB approved. Are you in California? You may want to look into a intake that meets CARB specs, if you are in California that is

 

This was only compared to the K&N filter after a period of time has passed. It is a proven fact the cotton/paper filters do not perform well when they begin to get dirty. Foam filters will continue to allow the same amount of air thru the filter far longer than the paper/cotton ones will simply from the fact that foam is thicker and has more surface area to act as the filter.

 

ScottinBend, they all perform the same clean and they all perform the same dirty.

 

Not even close AMPR. Please do some research before claiming otherwise.

http://www.smartsynthetics.com/artic...air_filter.htm

http://vmaxoutlaw.com/tech/air_filters.htm

http://users.erinet.com/27734/Repair...fo/Exhaust.htm

http://off-roadweb.com/tech/0306or_intake/

A quick search turned up these independent results.

You might try researching it yourself someday.

 

ScottinBend,

I believe you're the one claiming foam performs better dirty. Show us the numbers. We'll be here patiently waiting.

AMPR