I have a 1998 I30 and live in Massachusetts. I want to put a CAI but am worried about the snow and rain and sleet and usual crappy weather. Has anyone in a cold weather climate had any problems with the CAI?

 

Since hte CAI Filter is behind the Fender Panel, people rarely have problems...unless you try and drive through a river or something.

 

Ian pretty well sums it up. I've sold well over a thousand of these and I haven't heard about an engine blowing up yet. I have heard about an engine with a stock intake detonating because it sucked in too much water, so go figure.

On the other hand, you live in New England. It is my opinion that the CAI works a little better than a regular intake under any circumstances, but that margin is largest when comparing them in hot weather conditions. The Jim Wolf POP intake that we sell or the new Cattman COMBO intake would both be reasonable solutions for your circumstances (and no worry about water).

Bottom line is, like Ian indicated, the only significant risk to a CAI is driving through deep water. How deep? By the time its deep enough to worry about the intake, it will already be a couple inches over your door sills and pouring into the interior. That said, we get deep water in the streets here in AZ during thunderstorms; I drive through it, but very carefully without a lot of splashing around.

Brian C. Catts
Cattman Performance

 

Theres always the AEM bypass valve if your still paranoid

 

I'm in MA. I had my CAI in all spring/summer/fall but took out the lower half this winter because I didn't want the filter to get destroyed by all the salt and sand. But other that, there is no real problem, you could get away with keeping it in all year.