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There are a number of reasons that one should consider investing in a cold air intake system. We typically associate the modification with pure power gains, however, it also turns out that the system provides a wide variety of gains over the factory air box. While horsepower truly is the main reason that we typically purchase an after market intake, they also provide a possible increase in fuel economy as well... that is assuming that you can keep from planting your right foot into your new found horsepower. In some case an after market intake can offer a slight weight reduction and in most cases the intake system itself will offer a much cleaner install and reduced clutter in the engine bay. Finally, majority of after market intakes make use of a reusable cone filter... which means, that if properly maintained, the filter will be the last one that you ever have to buy. Add up the cost of replacing stock paper filters and the intake will no doubt have paid for itself over the life of the vehicle.

Now, what should one look for when purchasing an after market intake system. In general it is a good idea to look for a system that is designed specifically for your vehicle from a respectable vendor such as K&N, AEM, SBC, etc. Many systems make use of a K&N filter and this has proven to be a pretty good building foundation. The filters themselves have excellent flow and in most cases have actually been proven to have a higher filtering efficiency than even the stock filter. Filtering efficiency is very important, you don't want to increase horsepower but allow foreign objects to enter via the intake tract and shorten the life of your motor. So do your homework on the filter element itself, if you want to skip this step or are confused by the results you find... take the safe route, go with K&N. The next question that comes to mind is metal or plastic tubing? This really depends on your preference, both have their advantages. A setup incorporating plastic tubes is going to offer a more factory like appearance as well as offering less noise resonance. Plastic also offers the advantage of having better thermal properties in that it does not retain heat in the same manner as metal. Metal tubes offer a "reach out and grab your attention" element under your hood. Most make use of polished aluminum. In general these intakes are going to be significantly noisier and do not offer the possibility of the thermal gains of a plastic tube.

The final thing to consider is whether a

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