Hi. I plan to install an intake soon (regular I guess...not CAI). I was also conviced by friends and others here to install a y-pipe along with the intake. I heard many say that y-pipe is probably the most inexpensive mod that gives most horsepower gain...is that true? If so...what is a good y-pipe (brand, etc...)? I am not going to mod any other parts of the stock exhaust...can this be a problem for the y-pipe or will it do just fine? What intake (not CAI) do you guys recommend? Lastly, won't a performance y-pipe screw something up???...I mean the stock y-pipe has these little "cats" if you will and the performance one does not.

 

If your on a budget just get a pop charger. (not stillen or JWT) But make sure it's big and not like those dinky BOMZ ones. Don't get foam, stick to the K&N types. If you have $140 to spend, get a frankencar hybrid intake.

A good 2.5" mandrel bent downpipe and popcharger will get you ~20+hp to the wheels. The y-pipe is incredible, the only bolt-on that I could actually feel, and will give ~14-16whp by it self.

 

Just a Y-pipe will be fine, you dont need to mod the rest of your exhuast. And no it wont screw anything up. The precats that the aftermarket ones remove are there to help control emissons when the car is cold. Not having them is not going to hurt anything. Just make sure you let your car get warm before and emssions test and you will pass. As for what brand Y to get, most people go with budget since its only $160 (shipped i think) and performs as well as the more expensive pipes. Warpspeed also makes a good SS pipe for around $270. But many have complained that takes forever to get your pipe. Cattman makes one which is good quality but is also $350 plus the cost of gaskets. And stillen makes a pipe which is around $340 and it is overpriced for what you get. Many complain that it buzzes and it is also not made of stainless steal. Personally i would just get a budget. You cant beat the price, its made out of T-304 stainless steal, TIG welded, mandrel bent and has a nice flex section that does not buzz. Everything that the more expensive pipes have for much less.

 

You will see big gains from this combo.

For intake I would reccomend a popcharger (Stillen, JWT) so that you can get the filter and velocity stack. Look in the for sale forums here, buying a used intake and cleaning it is just as good as a new one and will save you $$$$

Make your own midpipe to get rid of the resonator that keeps it quiet
http://drwebdesign.com/mymaxima/upperintake.html

The Warpspeed mandrel bent aluminized Y-pipe is the straightest and lightest that I have seen (compared to Stillen), and also cheaper than some.

 

http://www.motorvate.ca/auto/maxima/...-pipe_dyno.htm

 

i'm looking to get a budget y-pipe with a frankencar hybrid intake... how would this combo be?



-Moe

 

Perfect....Im making the custom intake piping from that $15 upper intake site tho. Its the same deal as the frankencar IMO. I am also getting a budget y this summer....and from what ive heard i better include a larger budget on gas...considering ill be at WOT 80% of the time.

 

 

This is what I have...it's tough not to profusely when you get it.
With this set up (and stock muffler), the car is QUIET when driving
normal and is WILD with WOT...

I LOVE MY Y-PIPE/INTAKE COMBO!!!

FLO_BOY

 

I would say budget y, imo any intake works about the same, I have the Cattman intake but with a monsterflow foam filter, I must say that hopefully soon ill be getting a replacement K&N, but this setup gave me a awsome power boost, along with the OBX cat-back, but the cat-back was barely noticible for power but rounds out the system

 

alright,,,, newb question... dont flame me on this what is WOT?


-Moe

 

no worries!!! I had the same question some 2+ years ago...

WOT = Wide Open Throttle

so, it's when you really give 'er...
FLO_BOY

 

nice,, i cant wait to have enough money to get this combo.

-Moe

 

people are always raving about how good the hybrid setup sounds, but really if you're looking to get the best sound from under the hood, i think its considerably better with cold air intakes. i've had both, so this is from my own experience.

 

what kind of CAI did you have?

-Moe

 

could you explain a bit more about sound. i have a jwt pop charger and the engine sounds nice when i get own it ...you mean it could sound better ? is place racing the answer ? if so how much ?

 

the maxima engine can sound better than JWT intake ? is this true ? whats the difference in sound , im curious too ... i may rip out the jwt i have and put some ice cream in it ? someone follow up A.S.A.P. ?

 

i currently have the injen setup on my '97. the place racing style, bomz cai's will give you the same or even better sound, as well as the considerably better low end response that is characteristic of cold air intakes.
when i had the jwt/frankencar, i didn't even realize all the low end that i lost. when i got the injen on there, the difference was really noticeable. the injen isn't even considered 'pure cold air' so the place racing/bomz cai's are probably better, but i went with injen because i think it looks the nicest under the hood.
in my opinion, the cold air setup is the way to go simply because of the low end power/overall better sound. its also better since with the bomz cai you can convert it to the hybrid (midpipe/filter) setup if you ever wanted to. if i didn't like how the injen looked, i'd be running the bomz cai right now.
overall, an intake is an intake. you just gotta go with what suits your taste.

wheezy.

 

i really liked the appearance of the injen setup as well ...where can i see pictures of the place racing cai and the other one you mentioned ...heck what about pictures of the injen, got any ... how much is the place racing ?

 

not sure if its the Place Racing model, but the original style
bent from the throttle body toward the battery and cut into the
wheel fender on the driver's side. The black plastic in the wheel
wheel protects the intake end from water.

My friend's Prelude SH had a similar set up...

hope this helps,
FLO_BOY

 

is a good tuner ever done?

 

picture of injen
pictures of place racing cai

If you want to go with the place racing/bomz cold air intake, its better to just go with the bomz. its much much cheaper for the same exact intake as the place racing. If you're interested, i have a bomz cai for sale in the 4th generation classifieds along with a set of red/clear taillights. as for the injen intake, i wouldn't buy it brand new. i think its just a little too expensive for just an intake. i got mine used in perfect condition, so i got lucky.

email me or PM if you're interested in the bomz. here's the link to the for sale thread: http://forums.maxima.org/showthread....hreadid=202627

wheezy.

 

So the Injen CAI and the Place Racing CAI are the same thing, just different brands? Is this correct ? I heard that injen was not completely a CAI, but afterlooking at the site, it certainly appears to be ... with same performance increase ...

 

You need to talk to people who have dynoed their car with a cold air and with a short ram or hybrid. I beleive the Hybid has better numbers, I could be wrong but I can't do a search to prove this. The Cold air is supposed to give your engine a colder intake charge but at speed the temp inside you're engine bay is roughly the same as the temp outside. Also even if the CAI does give you better low end, think about how long you spend in the lower RPMs of your engine and with more low end you'll spin your wheels more. Before you go spending more money on a CAI get proof from someone ask some of the guys that have dynoed and find out which one really is the best.

 

the injen cai and place racing cai are two different designs.