Hotshot CAI, Not Impressed

[ephwang]

Has anyone recently purchased a Hotshot CAI? I just installed one and I'm not impressed by the quality, especially for something that cost over $200. I installed it in a MX-6 V6 5spd, but I'm presuming under the hood the MX-6 and Probe are the same. Specifically:

1) Air filter - The air filter supplied was a "Hiper Flow". The problem I had with the filter was at the end, instead of a solid cap, there was a wire screen. Seems to me that most, if not all, of the air would be drawn through the wire screen and not through the filtering material. That can't be good. Emailed Hotshot about this and they have not answered. I purchased a K&N filter (inverted top, RR-3001) of similar dimensions. Add another $50 to the overall cost.

2) Intake Tube - There is a nipple for a 3/16" vacuum line on the HS intake tube. Since the original line is too short to reach the nipple, HS supplies a new one. Nice touch, except the new vacuum line is still approximately 12 inches too short!

3) Elbow - There is larger nipple on the elbow. The location of this nipple is not in the stock location either. I was able to pull the original hose out approximately 3/4 inch to attach. But since the hose goes way under the back of the engine, I can't tell how much hose is left attached.

4) Intake Tube - The tube itself is a tight fit in the engine compartment. The lower portion of it leans on the lower radiator hose(s). Also, the air filter is very close to the transmission housing. When I first attached filter, it was rubbing the housing. I was able to get some wiggle room, but worries me that it may rub and damage the air filter.

If you are not into "looks", save your money and go to Home Depot. Hotshot CAI gets a big from me.

[SLEEPER 626]

In my opinion, HD CAI's look like ASS.

The Hotshot can be a tight fit, but you just have to work with it. In my case with my 626, I hacked 6" off the bottom of the down pipe as it was way too low for the amount of city (NYC) driving I do, as well as it was rubbing the reverse switch/sending unit sticking out of my tranny.

The nipples (I said "nipples"....:grin were never a problem for my vehicle.

Personally, I like the reaction from people when I pop the hood at a gas station to check my oil and they see that chrome beast in the engine bay

- later

[ZEturboGT1]

1st thing....did you get the MTX intake?
2nd thing.... i have the same intake and everything fits perfectly...
all hoses and vaccuum lines are the right length, the one vaccum line i actually longer than it should be.

if im correct hotshot intakes were designed right in the engine bay, and should be a perfect fit, and i havent heard of someone havin so many problems.. are u sure its not upside down? :grin:

[ephwang]

Originally posted by SilverPGT-R
1st thing....did you get the MTX intake?

The instructions were for a manual transmission.

are u sure its not upside down?

I wish it was that simple.

[SlammedJDM]

Try a PRM.....

i have yet to have the hotshot on my KL, but the PRM works well, doesnt sound extremely loud, and looks comparable to the hotshot style, but no chrome elbow....but u can always order one from RR-R. i like the filter placement better too, because even though the end of the downpipe is by conducted heat, the filter stays cleaner because its closer to the VAF. maybe u would like that set-up better.


or if not just get another HotShot, id like to try one too.

[pgtfreak]

Originally posted by ephwang

2) Intake Tube - There is a nipple for a 3/16" vacuum line on the HS intake tube. Since the original line is too short to reach the nipple, HS supplies a new one. Nice touch, except the new vacuum line is still approximately 12 inches too short!

Either buy a long piece of hose, or a little vacuum extension and use both the stock hose, and HS hose.

3) Elbow - There is larger nipple on the elbow. The location of this nipple is not in the stock location either. I was able to pull the original hose out approximately 3/4 inch to attach. But since the hose goes way under the back of the engine, I can't tell how much hose is left attached.

Don't worry about the PCV hose. It's firmly attached to the rear valve cover, with a snap clamp.

[c-man]

Originally posted by ephwang


1) Air filter - The air filter supplied was a "Hiper Flow". The problem I had with the filter was at the end, instead of a solid cap, there was a wire screen. Seems to me that most, if not all, of the air would be drawn through the wire screen and not through the filtering material. That can't be good. Emailed Hotshot about this and they have not answered. I purchased a K&N filter (inverted top, RR-3001) of similar dimensions. Add another $50 to the overall cost.

Do you mean you can see through the to the cai pipe without any filtering element from the wire screen? A pic would help.

2) Intake Tube - There is a nipple for a 3/16" vacuum line on the HS intake tube. Since the original line is too short to reach the nipple, HS supplies a new one. Nice touch, except the new vacuum line is still approximately 12 inches too short!

Buy a small fuel filter (looks like an hourglass with a filter in the middle) for a couple of dollars to use as a connecter for the new and original line.

3) Elbow - There is larger nipple on the elbow. The location of this nipple is not in the stock location either. I was able to pull the original hose out approximately 3/4 inch to attach. But since the hose goes way under the back of the engine, I can't tell how much hose is left attached.

You can try rerouting the hose to get more slack. Like it was said, a snap clamp is on the other end.

4) Intake Tube - The tube itself is a tight fit in the engine compartment. The lower portion of it leans on the lower radiator hose(s). Also, the air filter is very close to the transmission housing. When I first attached filter, it was rubbing the housing. I was able to get some wiggle room, but worries me that it may rub and damage the air filter.

Mostly everything is a tight fit. You can try to wedge a spacer in between the rad. hose and pipe...but mine has touched how you described for years and years w/out any problems. You can try pushing the filter higher up on the pipe to get clearance. But the filter won't stay perfect even then, since rocks/sticks/road dirt/etc will ding/dent the filter over time.

[ephwang]

Originally posted by c-man

Do you mean you can see through the to the cai pipe without any filtering element from the wire screen? A pic would help.

The wire screen itself would filter out large particles like gravel and sand, but finer particles such as dust would be ingested by the engine. Another annoying thing with the Hiper Flow air filter is it does not appear to be pre-oiled like K&N filters are. No instructions were supplied. I presume it needs to be oiled since it reads "washable" on the box.

Buy a small fuel filter (looks like an hourglass with a filter in the middle) for a couple of dollars to use as a connecter for the new and original line.

Fortunately, I had extra vacuum line on hand.

You can try rerouting the hose to get more slack. Like it was said, a snap clamp is on the other end.

The original routing is already pretty straight forward. I think the hose runs straight behind the engine and then turns 90 degrees to attach to the elbow.

Mostly everything is a tight fit. You can try to wedge a spacer in between the rad. hose and pipe...but mine has touched how you described for years and years w/out any problems. You can try pushing the filter higher up on the pipe to get clearance. But the filter won't stay perfect even then, since rocks/sticks/road dirt/etc will ding/dent the filter over time.

Thanks for the reply.

[Quicksilver]

personally i think the hotshot is a great thing to have, yea the intake does lean against the radiator hose a little bit, but the show quality is great.