Hello fellow civic owners,

I am 30 years old and live in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. I currently own a 2003 honda civic LX. I haven't really done anything crazy because well I am very very new at this kind of stuff and my wife and I are expecting soon so I can't just spend crazy money on something I don't need at this point. However, this is not to say I won't do anything to my car in the future. I have recently just tinted my windows and changed my shift knob.

I am looking for honest advice from everyone and anyone out there on certain questions that I may have.

I guess I can start off by asking what people's thoughts are on getting a cold air intake put in. As fellow civic owners knowing that my car isn't that powerfull. Would it be worth it? if so how much do they usually go for? is there a difference between one that is $280 or one that is $50? I can't seem to figure this out oh and which brand is good? sorry for all the questions. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

they do add a little hp to your car, not much, and i got one (actually a short ram) because of the sound. you can honestly make one for really cheap, but it won't have that good of a sound to it. if you want the best, i'd say either AEM or iceman.

as far as difference between short ram and cold air intakes, it all has to do with rpm. you can notice the short rams at lower rpm, but not as much at higher rpm. cold air is the exact opposite, you can notice it at higher rpm, not lower.

just do some shopping (i bought mine from andysautosport.com), find one that you like, and look up on different forums about what people think about them. i use this site and honda-tech.com for my research on items.

hey!

getting a cold air intake i think is a good idea...it sounds really cool, just as cool as a short ram. i find that the cold air intake has a more smooth feel to it. i have a cold air intake on my '96.

the only thing about the cold is its not safe on rainy days/winter time because water can get up into you engine. i usually use cold air in the summer and short ram in the winter.

as for what brand you should get...get a cheap one and then change the air filter...

you should check Pickering flea market... theres a guy at the back - pure performance auto i believe

Thanks Ekhatch and typercivic for your responses.

You know I am getting mixed reviews from people some say it's pointless and some say I should definitely do it. They're also saying I won't see much of a difference only the sound. I heard AEM is pretty good. Pardon me what is short ram mean? sorry I am really new at this kind of stuff. Now I have no idea what to do. well let me ask which one would be better short ram or the cold air intake?

Oh wow that is actually a really good thing you brought up about the weather. This is not something I would have to take off in the winter I am assuming but I would need a better filter right? If you live in Canada you know what the weather is like here...can you say brrr!!!!!.

Cold air is always better when it deals with the engine. Short ram means just that, it's short (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) . Just pull up a picture of the short ram and a cold air intake...cold air is much longer.

yeah, Intake is a quick and basic upgrade. If you want more, you continue with header and cat-back exhaust. That should bump you up in HP category a bit.

Okay pretty much first of all the only difference between a short-ram and a cold-air is the length/amount of piping you have. i believe you should buy a cold-air intake and if you want it to be a short-ram you just install the first half of the pipe and fit the air filter on the end of that. i got a bombz for $50 and it worked out great, i can't really tell a difference from my friends who bought the more expensive ones. if it is raining though it might crap out on you for a good 30 mins or so. it happened to me more than once and i shortened it and it has no longer been a problem. hope this helps!

Cold air intakes are usually better for a hp boost so I always suggest spending the extra cash and go that way. If you live in a rainy area though its inadvisable to have a cold air intake. Since water doesn't compress like air does, if its wet out there's a good chance you could do some serious damage to your engine. I'm under the impression that most cold air intakes come with a water shield however. But like the others mentioned its probably not good if you live some place where it rains all the time. I'd think if you have a fairly light rainy season however that the water shield would probably work out okay.

- Nine

A cold air intake is a good first modification if you want a little more hp and a nice sound. I recommend either Pipercross or Aem.

I got a short on my 99 Civic I only got noise and more fuel consumption. I got no improve on performance, I switched back to stock.

This post has been edited by solanog: Oct 24 2007, 11:04 AM

ITS NO DIFFRENCE BETWEEN ONE THAT COST 280.00 AND ONE THAT COST 50.00 ITS ALL MADE OF ALMOST THE SAME PIPING SAVE THE EXTRA MONEY AND GET AN MUFFLER TO

While on this topic does anyone know approximately how much horsepower a cold air intake would add to my '97 civic coupe?

Maybe around 0 hps.