I am desperately trying to get to the bottom of this. I am looking for the best intake under all conditions. I want to know which intake will perform the best throughout the whole powerband. This is for the 3.0 5th gen max owners who want more power but want the best bang for their buck. So I would appreciate it if those who know a lot about maximas could answer this scenario.

Four 2000-2001 3.0 maximas all the same...1 with a frankencar with apexi, injen with apexi, PR with an apexi, or plain stock. Which car would be ahead of all the others at the end of a 1/4 mile...if it was 40 degrees out...now if it was 80 degrees out???



With a y-pipe which intake is going to perform the best???

 

Go the custom route. Buy a Franken-midpipe, buy a MAF adapter, buy some flexible metal tubing from Autozone or the likes, route it below the battery right where the resonator box is located (remove it or course) and attach it with the biggest filter you can find.

 

The Berk intake is the best deal going right now.
It's very similar to frankencar and you get quick shipment+ good service $99.95 shipped.

 

I can't really answer your question in regards of the 4 different setup, but I could give you my review on my current setup on my 2000 Maxima.

Intake wise, I have hybrid system installed. It consists of the Stillen Hi-Flow intake with the velocity stack attached to the Berk Technology Midpipe.

Exhaust wise, I have the Stillen Y-pipe feeding into the OEM catalytic converter which is attached to the Greddy Evo cat-back system.

With this setup, I love the power that it produces. The throttle response is very quick and strong. From idle to 4000rpm, I have plenty of power with no drops or dips in the powerband. From 4000-redline, the car picks up like a wild animal once the Varible Intake system switches over. It feels sort of like a quick boast at that rpm range. I love the mesmerizing sound that the Berk Midpipe produces during WOT. I has a soothing growl to it. The Greddy Evo cat-back enhances the entire system by allowing the exhaust to flow freely. At idle, the exhuast has a very low mellow note, and at WOT, it is not annoyingly loud at all.

At the various temperature you stated, this is what I have observed with my setup. At 40 degrees (especially during the early morning hours), the car produces massive amount of power with out a doubt. Everything that I described performance wise above are enhanced the colder the ambiant temperature. At 80 degrees and higher, I notice couple of things. First, if I were to wait long at a stoplight, the heat that is accumulating under the engine bay is being feed into the intake. At this moment, acceleration feels a bit sluggish, but once I pick up enough speed, there's a flow of clean cooler air being circulated through. This usually take about a couple of seconds for the heated air to be flushed with the cooler air. The second thing is, at 80 degrees ambiant temperature, the entire powerband of my car drops ever-so-slightly, but not enough for me to really complain about.

All-in-all I am very pleased with the performance and sound with this setup. If you have any question about my setup that I have not touch upon, please feel free to ask. I am more than happy to answer them.

steve...

 

OK, pure 1/4 mile i would put money on the frankencar/berk type midpipe popfilters. Its what i have now, and its what i've noticed the best results over 1/4 mile on this board in the couple years i've been here.

Injen and PR are the best for low end torque. the long tubes can constrict high end performance. Stuff like pop filters and midpipes seem to enhance mid-high range power because of the shorter tubing. However, something to look at is GAB, there's been some good dynos with that.
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where do you find the berk intake? i've been waiting on my franken for a month and a half and haven't heard from them at all. i heard that the berk is similar and provides similar gains. Any truth to this?

 

IMO - Weapon R dragon intake hands down.

 

First of all. Berk, Frankencar, Weapon R are all the same, except for the filters.

That being said.
My best combination has been :Berk w/ JWT Intake-filter.

Tried them all in trhe 2 years i had my max....

 

you can buy them directly off of me at the promotional discounted price. Or go to www.berktechnology.com for more info.

Regards,
Bryan
cobymoby@mindspring.com

 

Thanks for all the info...I think I want to buy a berk midpipe because my frankencar is broken and is being held together with silicone...that being said is there any way that I can just buy a berk midpipe and have my apexi fit as well as everything else fit with the midpipe?

 

The midpipe will interchange exactly the same. The midpipes alone are $34.95 shipped and will promise to ship on monday if payment is made in time. Mine are made out of polished 6061 aluminum whereas Frankencar's are mild steel. Paypal address is bmin@uci.edu