Hey guys (and girls) I've been searching around the fourm and found that most people say to get the Pop-Charger/Z-Tube combo rather than a Cold air Intake, but other than the financial reasons, I can't really find out why. I've been thinking about getting one of the two for my car, but I would like to know why people choose one over the other and what the differences in sound are. I've read that the Pop-charger/z-tube sound sometimes doesn't kick in till around 4000rpms will the CAI make a mean/deep sound at a lower rpm or in Idle?? And what brand Cold Air Intakes make the best for Infiniti? I've been looking at AEM, K&N, and Injen. I apologize if you guys have answered these questions in other threads, but I've been searching and must not have read all the right threads.

thanks a bunch

Steve

 

2006+ OEM "rev-up" intake with velocity stack + K&N drop in filter + Z-tube

the oem intake is pretty much a CAI itself and becomes pressurized when moving at higher speeds + a larger velocity stack + less restrictive intake tube (ztube) and a better air filter and you have pretty much the best and proven intake out there.

 

what is a velocity stack?? I've never heard of that.

and thank you for your help

 

https://g35driver.com/forums/intake-...cial-note.html

very good info and pics in thread

 

ok, I just went and looked and I'm assuming i have the larger velocity stack since mine looked like the bigger of the two in the pic from the thread you posted. So basically Z-Tube + K&N drop in is my best bet? how will the sound of this compare to the sound of a CAI?

 

The sound will be a lot quieter than a pop or CAI, especially at higher RPM's. I bought a pop just to try it out, and while the sound is good I noticed a definite drop in low end grunt and throttle response. So, after 3 weeks and 800 miles the pop is coming off and the revup box back on.

Surprisingly, the gas mileage was nearly identical, even with the heat soak the pop was inducing.

 

i don't want something that is extremely obnoxious, but I also don't want something that won't make a difference or is quieter.

 

Any of your listed options will be louder than stock. Have you taken a good look at your stock intake tube? The thing is massive and has all kinds of diffusers and baffles to keep the sound down. A swap out to a z-tube and you will hear more growl from your engine. I ran the z-tube + K&N combo for a long time and don't have anything negative to say about it. I still believe it to be one of the best ways to go. However, I recently swapped it out with a pop charger and boy I am glad I did! I didn't notice any drop in low end or throttle response as previously mentioned. I do have a plenum spacer and reset my ECU after the install so maybe that made up the difference? All I know is the sound it produces constantly puts a smile on my face. From the high pitched whistle to the great growl in the upper RPMs. The sound alone was worth the purchase to me. That, and I like the look of it better than the stock airbox. Just my 2 cents.

 

ok, sweet. thanks a lot dude. How would a cold air intake sound compare to the JWT pop-charger/z-tube?

 

I have the MD 5/16" spacer, z tube, and HR y pipe and always do the ECU reset after any type of performance oriented mod. However I live in Texas and this week we have set all time record highs at 104, 105, 107, and 105 on 4 different days. I'm convinced in this climate the JWT was pulling in too much super-heated air causing the power loss. I put my revup box back on this morning, reset the ECU, and voila, power and responsiveness were back immediately. Took the car to a meet this afternoon and ended up driving over 100 miles today. Performance remained strong even in 103 degree temps.

I guess I need the enclosed filter assembly to keep the intake as cool as possible.

Anybody have an opinion on the performance of the Stillen airbox compared to the revup box? I do miss the sound of the JWT........

 

I would definitely say it gets warmer in TX but I also have a Copper ISO Thermal spacer so I don't know if that would help or hurt your situation. I also have a polished z-tube instead of a standard one. But I would think that a metal z-tube would be more prone to heat soak than a plastic one. All I know is I really like the JWT. Heat soak or not

The JWT is still considered a cold air intake but a short ram version. A traditional CAI has a longer intake tube.
Here is a pic of an AEM CAI



It draws air from the front vents in the bumper but can also suck up water if you hit a puddle during a rain etc which would bog down your engine or kill it completely depending on the amount of water. I personally have never had one on the car so I can't tell you what the difference in sound would be. I went with a short ram design for looks. CAI of any size really don't give you any power boost on the G. They are more for looks and sound. Hence the reason I ended up going with the JWT.

 

Thanks for all the input guys! It's helped a lot. I live in lower AL and we get random rain storms almost everyday during summer,so yeah i guess a CAI wouldn't be a good idea. Is there any sound difference between the different kinds of Z-Tubes? (polished/chrome,regular). And also if I need warranty work done will it mess with my warranty? I have around 31,xxx miles on an '06 coupe. I was also lookin into the 5/16" plenum spacer and MREV 2, would those void my warranty?

 

I don't think there would be any difference in sound from 1 ztube to another. I have heard plastic and metal and they sound the same to me.

As for the warranty question, a dealer would have to prove your mod was the reason for the failure of what broke. Therefore, technically a plenum spacer couldn't be blamed for a faulty window motor. However, I've heard a lot of horror stories on here from people that seem to get hosed at the dealer when requesting warranty work that has been denied for one reason or another. You can always go to Infiniti customer service to mediate any dispute, so there are options.

 

Is there any splash guards or anything you can get for a CAI to protect your engine?

 

ya they have bypass valves or whatever they are called