i hate mac cai!

floppy · 02-26-2006, 03:48 PM

as some of you may know my car had a mac cai installed on it before i bought the car (the one that bends into the fender). this weekend i was having some problems with it so i decided to modify it so that it didnt have that huge bend right before the mafs. i took it off, opened up my dremel and cut the pipe about an inch from the mafs. then this morning i drove down to pep boys and picked up a huge conical filter and stuck it on the end. omg, the difference was amazing. my car was a lot louder and rode smoother, it felt like it had much more power than it used to. i've been driving it around all day and i love the way it feels now. pics are attached. the second pic is the dirty filter that i took off of the car after i cleaned it.

Icefreezen · 02-26-2006, 04:38 PM

I should really do this.........where's you go to get the conical filter and what size was the opening?

floppy · 02-26-2006, 05:29 PM

got the conical filter at pep boys, it fit 3" 3 1/2" and 4" pipes. there were rubber pieces inside that adapted the filter to whatever size pipe you have. the mac cai is a 3 1/2" pipe but its a little wider right up by the mafs so i used the 4" rubber piece and tightened it down really good. if you use the really long filter like i did you will have to do it this way, if you choose a shorter filter you could put it a little farther from the mafs and the use 3 1/2" piece. trust me, it made a huge difference in sound and performance. i think the filter cost around $30.

Icefreezen · 02-26-2006, 05:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by floppy

got the conical filter at pep boys, it fit 3" 3 1/2" and 4" pipes. there were rubber pieces inside that adapted the filter to whatever size pipe you have. the mac cai is a 3 1/2" pipe but its a little wider right up by the mafs so i used the 4" rubber piece and tightened it down really good. if you use the really long filter like i did you will have to do it this way, if you choose a shorter filter you could put it a little farther from the mafs and the use 3 1/2" piece. trust me, it made a huge difference in sound and performance. i think the filter cost around $30.

I believe you putting that filter in the fender well is a b**** sometimes too so I think i'll be doing this over spring break.

stock03GT(fornow) · 02-26-2006, 06:13 PM

Is it mac you don't like or just the fenderwell product in general .. I was gonna buy their straight shot CAI.

Icefreezen · 02-26-2006, 06:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stock03GT(fornow)

Is it mac you don't like or just the fenderwell product in general .. I was gonna buy their straight shot CAI.

Its the bend before the MAF that is the problem..........yes the fenderwell part of it

*4.6 Love* · 02-26-2006, 11:01 PM

Interesting...

r3dn3ck · 02-27-2006, 01:39 PM

I'm really surprised that mac hasn't revised the design.

Guys this is a KNOWN ISSUE. the sharp bend before the MAF element causes the air stream to get all squirly and turbulent. Turbulent air is not dense nor consistent and causes problems with accurate metering. Straighten the path of the air to the MAF and you'll be much happier.

props to flops for fixing his own shizzle. That's true rodder stylee right there.

Samsstang · 02-27-2006, 02:01 PM

Looks like a really clean job! Nice :shifty:

Icefreezen · 02-27-2006, 03:31 PM

Hey floppy do you have the item number for that filter looks like it fits in there nice and snug

floppy · 02-27-2006, 03:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Icefreezen

Hey floppy do you have the item number for that filter looks like it fits in there nice and snug

heh, yeah it barely fits. hold on, ill go get the item number if i still have the package..

edit: the brand name is spectre and the only number i see on the package is 9732. i did a search on google for ya and found this - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...nce&n=15684181
im sure you could find it cheaper elsewhere, this was just the first site i found. they come in other colors besides red but i figure youd probably want red with a red car. good luck with it.

Icefreezen · 02-27-2006, 03:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by floppy

heh, yeah it barely fits. hold on, ill go get the item number if i still have the package..

edit: the brand name is spectre and the only number i see on the package is 9732. i did a search on google for ya and found this - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...nce&n=15684181
im sure you could find it cheaper elsewhere, this was just the first site i found. they come in other colors besides red but i figure youd probably want red with a red car. good luck with it.

Good deal.....this will give me something to do in 2 weeks.

NoKturnaL · 02-27-2006, 06:57 PM

You should also get rid of that Chome intake pipe.
It gets superhot in the summer.

go for a JLT RAI kit

floppy · 02-28-2006, 06:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NoKturnaL

You should also get rid of that Chome intake pipe.
It gets superhot in the summer.

go for a JLT RAI kit

nah, thats not true. i can drive around for an hour, open the hood and put my hand on the chrome intake pipe. it's not hot, a little warm yeah but not hot. that whole thing about it heating up the incoming air is bs.

jeredan2003 · 02-28-2006, 06:36 AM

Yea thats just like when I swapped from a MAC CAI to a K&N FIPK. I gained MUCH more power and it runs smoother. The bend before the MAF screws up the A/F ratio. There are just more and more people having the same problems. DO NOT BUY A CAI. They really need to stop selling CAI's with the bend in them. I wont buy another MAC product. Theyres just something that scares me about a company that cannot even develop a decent CAI. Why would I buy MAC stuff again?

r3dn3ck · 02-28-2006, 04:54 PM

Don't get all bent jeredan... it's floppy's pipe. hahaha

Really I agree with you. MAC has never shown me that they engineer any of their products to function, only to sorta' fit. I have to wonder who's their target audience... ricers that's who. Guys with GT badges on a 6er and such. You should consider all the parts that a maker puts out when you buy from them. Tells you a lot about their engineering, testing, and marketing practices. MAC seems to be in it for the money and has lost sight of the sport. That's cool, they're a business, they're allowed. And we're allowed not to buy their sh!t if'n we dun wanna.

The fenderwell idea works quite well actually, in many applications but, you have to modify the kit as delivered from MAC to make it work properly. If you put the MAF farther up the pipe after the bend it'll work just fine. Done it as a test. Not perfect but close. Down side is the pipe is now like 5 pieces instead of 3 and it's prone to leaking when it gets hot. No bwaynoh.

As for intake air temp, come out to the desert southwest and try touching your intake pipe around august. Yeah Florida gets warm... here it gets flat hot. I did the touch it in the summer trick, once. It gets quite hot and does heat the incoming air, but maybe 10 degrees by the time the motor has sucked it in so it won't matter unless your tune is already on the edge. If you're going to use a metal pipe setup then at least wrap it in good high quality heat reflective padding (aluminum tape works but much less well). problem solved and it looks racey.

I had a C&L and it was the worst heat soak offender ever. now I have a steeda kit and it's clean looking but that's about it.

jacliff_3521 · 03-03-2006, 07:52 PM

The only thing about taking your mac fenderwell cai off and doing that is there is no brace. I plan on zip tieing up mine. I have it tied up with a wire right now, just haven't got around to getting a zip tie around it yet. I'm thinking about maybe making a brace for it. Any other ideas? i haven't thought too much about it.

Icefreezen · 03-04-2006, 07:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jacliff_3521

The only thing about taking your mac fenderwell cai off and doing that is there is no brace. I plan on zip tieing up mine. I have it tied up with a wire right now, just haven't got around to getting a zip tie around it yet. I'm thinking about maybe making a brace for it. Any other ideas? i haven't thought too much about it.

I have a pretty good idea with maybe fabricating something out of the brace that leads to the fenderwell. But i'm not doing this project for another week,

floppy · 03-05-2006, 07:37 AM

mine doesnt need a brace, it sits perfectly in there how it is.

mfj · 03-05-2006, 06:40 PM

looks to me like you have taken a quality cold air intake, and turned it into a hot air ram style intake. You dont take cold air in from your engine bay. the reason it goes to your fender is because the air is cooler in there. Yes, it may sound louder, which in return, can falsely trick you into thinking you are faster, but it is not true. If i were you, i would return the mac cai to its original position. that is what i truely believe.

MattJ · 03-05-2006, 06:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mfj

looks to me like you have taken a quality cold air intake, and turned it into a hot air ram style intake. You dont take cold air in from your engine bay. the reason it goes to your fender is because the air is cooler in there. Yes, it may sound louder, which in return, can falsely trick you into thinking you are faster, but it is not true. If i were you, i would return the mac cai to its original position. that is what i truely believe.

Bends before the MAF can cause inacurate air readings causing you to lean out. I dont know about you but id rather cut a 150 dollar intake to perform better than replace a leaned out engine.

floppy · 03-05-2006, 06:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mfj

Yes, it may sound louder, which in return, can falsely trick you into thinking you are faster, but it is not true. If i were you, i would return the mac cai to its original position. that is what i truely believe.

you have no idea what you're talking about do you?

Icefreezen · 03-05-2006, 06:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mfj

looks to me like you have taken a quality cold air intake, and turned it into a hot air ram style intake. You dont take cold air in from your engine bay. the reason it goes to your fender is because the air is cooler in there. Yes, it may sound louder, which in return, can falsely trick you into thinking you are faster, but it is not true. If i were you, i would return the mac cai to its original position. that is what i truely believe.

Another newb tring to act smart.................great

02-26-2006, 04:38 PM	#2 (permalink)
Icefreezen Mustang Superman Join Date: May 2005 Location: Your mom's bed Posts: 3,908	I should really do this.........where's you go to get the conical filter and what size was the opening? __________________

02-26-2006, 05:29 PM	#3 (permalink)
floppy Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: royal palm beach, florida Posts: 1,809	got the conical filter at pep boys, it fit 3" 3 1/2" and 4" pipes. there were rubber pieces inside that adapted the filter to whatever size pipe you have. the mac cai is a 3 1/2" pipe but its a little wider right up by the mafs so i used the 4" rubber piece and tightened it down really good. if you use the really long filter like i did you will have to do it this way, if you choose a shorter filter you could put it a little farther from the mafs and the use 3 1/2" piece. trust me, it made a huge difference in sound and performance. i think the filter cost around $30. __________________ -Floppy Check out www.MustangGenerations.com

02-26-2006, 11:01 PM	#7 (permalink)
4.6 Love Super Moderator Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Mexico Posts: 6,154	Interesting... __________________ Go Cowboys! X pipe and flows

02-27-2006, 02:01 PM	#9 (permalink)
Samsstang Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Colorado Posts: 371	Looks like a really clean job! Nice :shifty: __________________ 99GT 35th Anniv Edition #4323 01 Roush Stage 2 #6586

02-27-2006, 03:31 PM	#10 (permalink)
Icefreezen Mustang Superman Join Date: May 2005 Location: Your mom's bed Posts: 3,908	Hey floppy do you have the item number for that filter looks like it fits in there nice and snug __________________

02-26-2006, 06:13 PM	#5 (permalink)
stock03GT(fornow) Junior Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 22	Is it mac you don't like or just the fenderwell product in general .. I was gonna buy their straight shot CAI.

02-27-2006, 01:39 PM	#8 (permalink)
r3dn3ck Wowbagger hates me too! Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Magrathea/California Posts: 7,015	I'm really surprised that mac hasn't revised the design. Guys this is a KNOWN ISSUE. the sharp bend before the MAF element causes the air stream to get all squirly and turbulent. Turbulent air is not dense nor consistent and causes problems with accurate metering. Straighten the path of the air to the MAF and you'll be much happier. props to flops for fixing his own shizzle. That's true rodder stylee right there.

02-27-2006, 06:57 PM	#13 (permalink)
NoKturnaL MustangTuning 5-oh Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Peabody, MA Posts: 1,950	You should also get rid of that Chome intake pipe. It gets superhot in the summer. go for a JLT RAI kit __________________ 2002 Mustang GT Coupe 5-Speed Performance K&N Intake Accufab upper Intake Plenum Accufab 70mm Throttle Body Steeda Pullies SCT 4-Bank Chip Dyno Tuned Mac H-pipe Flowmaster Cat-Back Steeda Shifter Centerforce Clutch SLP-Line-Lock And more upgrades visually

02-28-2006, 06:36 AM	#15 (permalink)
jeredan2003 Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Murfreesboro, TN Posts: 1,788	Yea thats just like when I swapped from a MAC CAI to a K&N FIPK. I gained MUCH more power and it runs smoother. The bend before the MAF screws up the A/F ratio. There are just more and more people having the same problems. DO NOT BUY A CAI. They really need to stop selling CAI's with the bend in them. I wont buy another MAC product. Theyres just something that scares me about a company that cannot even develop a decent CAI. Why would I buy MAC stuff again? __________________ 2003 DSG GT 5-speed Hellion 62mm and Flowmaster catback..... My bonestock 2v engine had been through 2 years of NX 100 shot, 3 years running 8-12lbs vortech s-trim, got into boost daily while racing on the weekends, had 157,000 miles on it, and was running like new

02-28-2006, 04:54 PM	#16 (permalink)
r3dn3ck Wowbagger hates me too! Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Magrathea/California Posts: 7,015	Don't get all bent jeredan... it's floppy's pipe. hahaha Really I agree with you. MAC has never shown me that they engineer any of their products to function, only to sorta' fit. I have to wonder who's their target audience... ricers that's who. Guys with GT badges on a 6er and such. You should consider all the parts that a maker puts out when you buy from them. Tells you a lot about their engineering, testing, and marketing practices. MAC seems to be in it for the money and has lost sight of the sport. That's cool, they're a business, they're allowed. And we're allowed not to buy their sh!t if'n we dun wanna. The fenderwell idea works quite well actually, in many applications but, you have to modify the kit as delivered from MAC to make it work properly. If you put the MAF farther up the pipe after the bend it'll work just fine. Done it as a test. Not perfect but close. Down side is the pipe is now like 5 pieces instead of 3 and it's prone to leaking when it gets hot. No bwaynoh. As for intake air temp, come out to the desert southwest and try touching your intake pipe around august. Yeah Florida gets warm... here it gets flat hot. I did the touch it in the summer trick, once. It gets quite hot and does heat the incoming air, but maybe 10 degrees by the time the motor has sucked it in so it won't matter unless your tune is already on the edge. If you're going to use a metal pipe setup then at least wrap it in good high quality heat reflective padding (aluminum tape works but much less well). problem solved and it looks racey. I had a C&L and it was the worst heat soak offender ever. now I have a steeda kit and it's clean looking but that's about it.

03-03-2006, 07:52 PM	#17 (permalink)
jacliff_3521 Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: North Port FL. Posts: 156	The only thing about taking your mac fenderwell cai off and doing that is there is no brace. I plan on zip tieing up mine. I have it tied up with a wire right now, just haven't got around to getting a zip tie around it yet. I'm thinking about maybe making a brace for it. Any other ideas? i haven't thought too much about it.

03-05-2006, 07:37 AM	#19 (permalink)
floppy Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: royal palm beach, florida Posts: 1,809	mine doesnt need a brace, it sits perfectly in there how it is. __________________ -Floppy Check out www.MustangGenerations.com

03-05-2006, 06:40 PM	#20 (permalink)
mfj Supercharged Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 10	looks to me like you have taken a quality cold air intake, and turned it into a hot air ram style intake. You dont take cold air in from your engine bay. the reason it goes to your fender is because the air is cooler in there. Yes, it may sound louder, which in return, can falsely trick you into thinking you are faster, but it is not true. If i were you, i would return the mac cai to its original position. that is what i truely believe.