I got a 2000 (V6) 150,000 mile 4runner. What's the best bang for your buck on cold air intake, and if you got it a good place to go to figure out how to the put the thing in! Thanks!

 

The best performance intake you can get is removing the elbow that goes into the fender on the stock intake combined with a quality filter. Anything else will cost you power and a lot of money for no reason.

 

Take the air filter box out and cut the front side out of it. On my 97 I gained a little throttle response and about 1 mpg, plus it sounds cool.

 

This will actually not net you anymore power over removing the elbow, just more sound.

 

look into the deckplate mod. If your wheeling this is the best option especially in wet conditions.

 

i got the K&N ca on my 97 and it didnt make a big difference, but it sounds oh so i good... not worth the money

 

It did for me, there was a difference in response...not a big difference but definitely noticeable. This, coupled with a K&N filter gave me about a 1 mpg increase in normal city driving. It's the same concept as the deckplate mod, only you're not using a deckplate and it doesn't cost anything. I don't off road so I have no need for the plate.

 

Was the elbow removed prior to this? The deckplate will net you the same power on the dyno as removing the elbow.

It will also sound louder leading to a placebo effect and generally a change in driving habits.

The dyno doesn't lie though, no extra power with the deckplate.

 

I would give you my CAI for free if you swapped me your stock airbox and all components...

 

Just a Question: does a cool air intake, in the end, really help in terms of HP? I've heard several ya and na's... First hand comments would be useful... I don't care about the sound...
After a mountain road trip this last weekend, it is apparent that a few more HPs would be nice, as I will be towing in the near future... I would love to do the supercharger upgrade when I can afford it, but in the meantime...

 

This should answer your question, back to back test within 10 mins of each other. Repeated the test 10 mins after that due to the unexpected results. Results backup up by Gadget when I asked him about this later.

"cold air intake" = loss of power from removing the stock intake elbow.

Blue = Stock intake with elbow removed
Red = Aftermarket "Cold air" intake.

 

Thanks for the response. It's clear from your graphic that cold air intake makes no difference. I'll same my money and apply the money to another mod. Again, thanks for sharing!

 

Not only does it not help power but it actually reduces it.