Hey guys, thanks for stopping by. Today's Tech article is gonna be a how-to guide, on how to make your own 3" Intake pipe for Speed Density/MAF-Less setups. This setup could easily be used with a GM MAF setup in suck-through, or a 1G MAF, you'd just have to cut a little further back, but specifically for this article, it's just gonna be for us Speed Density guys. As a bonus, the last part of the article is gonna be a how to on how to convert it to a true cold-air intake and put the filter in the stock SMIC location for an extra $10(cost of an extra 3" straight coupler and clamps).
Making Your Own 3" MAFless/Speed Density Intake Pipe
Parts To Buy
Tools Needed
Alright, so now we've got our products, and our tools, now we get to actually fit the intake. Open the box up and inspect it, make sure you've got everything that you need. MEASURE THE INTAKE PIPE TO VERIFY IT'S 3" and that you weren't sent the wrong one.
Here's how the pipe is gonna look fresh out of the box and no modifications.
Notice the bends, and notice the single nipple. That's for your PCV or Catch-can setup. There is no BOV recirculation option, understand this is for SD only.
Next up, let's go ahead and remove the current intake and MAF setup you have currently, leaving a nice space in the engine bay to test fit this pipe.
There we go. Lot's of room. I already had a 3.25 to 3" coupler for my Dejon 2G MAF intake, so I left that on the turbo.
Next up, let's fit the pipe so we can get an idea of where to cut. THE PART OF THE PIPE WITH THE NIPPLE GOES TOWARDS THE TURBO/CLOSEST TO THE TURBO! DO NOT CUT THIS PART OFF OR PUT IT ON BACKWARDS!!
See why you need a saw or some sort of cutting device? I mean you could just cut a hole in the hood and run the filter out of the hood Roadkill style...but please don't do that. I'm cheap...but not that cheap.
Anyway, after some eyeballing and knowing that I'm going to turn this into a cold-air intake, I decided to grab my handy Electrical Tape, and tape off where I wanted to cut. This left me with a nice straight line, and I could visually inspect and see if it was too far, or too inwards without actually cutting yet. Take your time and get it perfect. Cut the pipe too long and you'll not be able to convert it to a CAI, or the filter will hit the popup lights or fenderwell. Too short and it might as well be a hot air intake.
For my setup, this was the perfect point. Now it's time to cut it. I'm not going to include a video on me cutting a pipe, because you should honestly know how to do that at this point. If you don't, please stop and take the pipe to someone else and have them cut it for you.
But, after it's cut you'll be left with a 90* elbow that looks like this.
I'd recommend keeping it. But if you don't wanna do any more cutting, just throw her away. You're almost done.
At this point, throw the filter on the intake pipe, and you should be left with this.
Just look at that beauty. At the time of writing this article, this beautiful intake pipe only cost me $40 shipped to my door. Or $48.50 if I include the extra coupler we'll need/use later.
Now, toss it on your turbo, and tighten it all up. Sit back and admire your work because at this point you're done.
At this point, you have a functional, clean, awesome intake pipe for something that took you like 15 minutes and one cut to do. Pat yourself on the back, and run your line from your catch-can, to the PCV port on the intake. Start the car, adjust the tune as necessary, and boost on. But if you want that tiny bit of extra help to keep the air charge cool...let's take it a step further.
Turning your new Intake in a Cold-Air Intake
Parts Needed
Tools Needed
Alright, so you're still with me. Let's get this bad boy sealed a little better from that hot engine bay and grab some fresh air. I know you just got the intake installed, but take the filter off for me, and the intake pipe off as well. Remember that 90* elbow you were left with and didn't throw away because you're a chad? Grab it, and look at the location where your filter sits above. It'll look like this.
See that hole? It's too small to fit a 3" intake pipe through. Don't believe me? Try it yourself, smarty pants. Go ahead.
See? In your FACE. This is MY HOU--ahem. Anyway. Now that the hole is too small, let's change that shall we? Honestly at this point you should invest in a hole-saw that's about 3.5" or even 4". You want plenty of space on all sides around. Or you can do like I did, and just use a cutoff wheel and cut a hole until the pipe fits. The holesaw will make it look a lot more professional and there will be little to no worry of nicking lines or wiring. But either way, go ahead and make that elbow fit. Now that you've got the hole, reinstall the intake pipe by itself, no filter or anything.
From here, sit your 90* elbow in your hole you just made, and slip the coupler and clamps over to make them both one unit. You'll have something that looks like this.
See there? Now take your filter and put it up in the wheel well, and tighten that clamp down. Make sure all the clamps are tight actually, because trust me you don't want this slipping off in the middle of a drive and running over your fresh filter and elbow, ruining both. (ask me how I know. Actually no, don't, just trust me on this.)
At this point, you are 100% done. You've spent maybe $50-$75(accounting for inflation), and you have a legit sealed CAI for your SD setup that looks and functions great.
At this point, you're done. You can easily take some ABS plastic and seal this little hole/part off to make it even more insulated from the engine bay, or even run a cheap corrugated drain pipe/snorkel from Home Depot from the bumper directly to the filter for even more cold air/fresh air action. The best part, is it's still pretty far away from the road so you'd have to be submerging the engine in water to worry about sucking water into the engine. And it's a really good spot, not a lot of dirt or debris are flung in that spot.
Hopefully you guys enjoyed this, and it's a good how-to. If there are any questions reach out to me via PM and I'll try to answer them and then update this article so future guys know too. This is one of my favorite mods for a SD car, as it works, looks great, and best of all is CHEAP!
Have a good one guys, and boost on.
Making Your Own 3" MAFless/Speed Density Intake Pipe
Parts To Buy
- 98-02 Honda Accord 2.3L "short ram" intake pipe. This is important, and crucial. The ones for a Civic or any other smaller engine are all 2.5" or smaller, and have the wrong bends, but they look SUPER similar. Make sure the ad specifies 3" intake diameter. Picture below included of your typical eBay FS ad with it so you have a visual/know what you need.
- Coupler to match your turbo setup. If it's going on a 14B/16G/TD05H housing turbo, you'll need a 3" to 2.25" coupler. If it's for an FP Turbo with the 84mm downfiring cover, you'll need a 3.25" to 3" coupler. The kit comes stock with a 3" to 2.5" coupler to fit a honda TB. You can try to tighten it down onto the TD05H cover, I have in the past successfully, but if you want it flush and perfect, just buy a coupler that matches the turbo inlet size.
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Tools Needed
- Hand tools(screwdriver/ratchet for tightening/loosening clamps)
- Eye protection (ear protection recommended but optional)
- Cut-off Wheel, Angle Grinder w/ cutting wheel, hand saw, something that'll cut metal.
- Some kind of tape or marker
Alright, so now we've got our products, and our tools, now we get to actually fit the intake. Open the box up and inspect it, make sure you've got everything that you need. MEASURE THE INTAKE PIPE TO VERIFY IT'S 3" and that you weren't sent the wrong one.
Here's how the pipe is gonna look fresh out of the box and no modifications.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
Notice the bends, and notice the single nipple. That's for your PCV or Catch-can setup. There is no BOV recirculation option, understand this is for SD only.
Next up, let's go ahead and remove the current intake and MAF setup you have currently, leaving a nice space in the engine bay to test fit this pipe.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
There we go. Lot's of room. I already had a 3.25 to 3" coupler for my Dejon 2G MAF intake, so I left that on the turbo.
Next up, let's fit the pipe so we can get an idea of where to cut. THE PART OF THE PIPE WITH THE NIPPLE GOES TOWARDS THE TURBO/CLOSEST TO THE TURBO! DO NOT CUT THIS PART OFF OR PUT IT ON BACKWARDS!!
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
See why you need a saw or some sort of cutting device? I mean you could just cut a hole in the hood and run the filter out of the hood Roadkill style...but please don't do that. I'm cheap...but not that cheap.
Anyway, after some eyeballing and knowing that I'm going to turn this into a cold-air intake, I decided to grab my handy Electrical Tape, and tape off where I wanted to cut. This left me with a nice straight line, and I could visually inspect and see if it was too far, or too inwards without actually cutting yet. Take your time and get it perfect. Cut the pipe too long and you'll not be able to convert it to a CAI, or the filter will hit the popup lights or fenderwell. Too short and it might as well be a hot air intake.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
For my setup, this was the perfect point. Now it's time to cut it. I'm not going to include a video on me cutting a pipe, because you should honestly know how to do that at this point. If you don't, please stop and take the pipe to someone else and have them cut it for you.
But, after it's cut you'll be left with a 90* elbow that looks like this.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
I'd recommend keeping it. But if you don't wanna do any more cutting, just throw her away. You're almost done.
At this point, throw the filter on the intake pipe, and you should be left with this.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
Just look at that beauty. At the time of writing this article, this beautiful intake pipe only cost me $40 shipped to my door. Or $48.50 if I include the extra coupler we'll need/use later.
Now, toss it on your turbo, and tighten it all up. Sit back and admire your work because at this point you're done.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
At this point, you have a functional, clean, awesome intake pipe for something that took you like 15 minutes and one cut to do. Pat yourself on the back, and run your line from your catch-can, to the PCV port on the intake. Start the car, adjust the tune as necessary, and boost on. But if you want that tiny bit of extra help to keep the air charge cool...let's take it a step further.
Turning your new Intake in a Cold-Air Intake
Parts Needed
- Your shiny new SD Intake pipe
- A 3" straight coupler w/ appropriately sized clamps
Tools Needed
- Cutting Tool of some kind(a hole-saw attachment for a drill would be ideal. I used a cut-off wheel. Your method may vary.)
- Eye protection
- Hand tools(screwdriver, ratchet, something to tighten and loosen clamps)
Alright, so you're still with me. Let's get this bad boy sealed a little better from that hot engine bay and grab some fresh air. I know you just got the intake installed, but take the filter off for me, and the intake pipe off as well. Remember that 90* elbow you were left with and didn't throw away because you're a chad? Grab it, and look at the location where your filter sits above. It'll look like this.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
See that hole? It's too small to fit a 3" intake pipe through. Don't believe me? Try it yourself, smarty pants. Go ahead.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
See? In your FACE. This is MY HOU--ahem. Anyway. Now that the hole is too small, let's change that shall we? Honestly at this point you should invest in a hole-saw that's about 3.5" or even 4". You want plenty of space on all sides around. Or you can do like I did, and just use a cutoff wheel and cut a hole until the pipe fits. The holesaw will make it look a lot more professional and there will be little to no worry of nicking lines or wiring. But either way, go ahead and make that elbow fit. Now that you've got the hole, reinstall the intake pipe by itself, no filter or anything.
From here, sit your 90* elbow in your hole you just made, and slip the coupler and clamps over to make them both one unit. You'll have something that looks like this.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
See there? Now take your filter and put it up in the wheel well, and tighten that clamp down. Make sure all the clamps are tight actually, because trust me you don't want this slipping off in the middle of a drive and running over your fresh filter and elbow, ruining both. (ask me how I know. Actually no, don't, just trust me on this.)
At this point, you are 100% done. You've spent maybe $50-$75(accounting for inflation), and you have a legit sealed CAI for your SD setup that looks and functions great.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
At this point, you're done. You can easily take some ABS plastic and seal this little hole/part off to make it even more insulated from the engine bay, or even run a cheap corrugated drain pipe/snorkel from Home Depot from the bumper directly to the filter for even more cold air/fresh air action. The best part, is it's still pretty far away from the road so you'd have to be submerging the engine in water to worry about sucking water into the engine. And it's a really good spot, not a lot of dirt or debris are flung in that spot.
Hopefully you guys enjoyed this, and it's a good how-to. If there are any questions reach out to me via PM and I'll try to answer them and then update this article so future guys know too. This is one of my favorite mods for a SD car, as it works, looks great, and best of all is CHEAP!
Have a good one guys, and boost on.
I would assume this would work on a 2g as well.
). Looking to do something similar in my old age.
