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MPG improvement with cold air intake?

Discussion in 'Performance and Tuning' started by joonbug, Jan 11, 2017.

?

How did your CAI affect your MPG's?

  1. worse

    11.9%
  2. no change

    20.3%
  3. slight increase

    25.4%
  4. increased 2-3 mpgs

    3.4%
  5. more than 3 mpgs

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  6. Stock so don't know the affect

    39.0%
  1. Jan 11, 2017 at 11:12 AM
    #1
    joonbug

    joonbug [OP] °°°°°°°°°°

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    Okay, for as long as I've been here, all I've heard was that there was no benefit to getting an aftermarket CAI. But everyone that has one seems to recommend it and report an increase in MPG's. I don't really care too much about actual MPG's, or cost of fuel, it's more about the range of a full tank. With my lift and bigger wheels, I seem to be getting about 13 mpg's. With essentially 20 useable gallons of fuel, that's only giving me a range of 260 miles. That doesn't get me very far in the desert. An increase of 2 or 3 mpgs would get me another hour of driving. So I'd like to hear from the guys who have one.
     
    Lilly and Bob like this.
  2. Jan 11, 2017 at 12:37 PM
    #2
    bobeast

    bobeast really old member

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    - Bull Bar - LED Bunny Burners - AMP retractable running boards - Headlight leveling retrofit - P3 Brake Controller - 60% rear seat delete - relocation of Sub to rear wall - Bilstein 5100 x4, top setting with 2 shims per side - Coach builder +2 rear shackles w/carrier bearing drop - Firestone Air bags - on-board compressor with auto-leveling - Dual Undercover Swing Boxes. - P285/65/R20 (34.6") BFG TA KO2's - TRD Front skid plate - Pop & Lock Tailgate lock - Remote Tailgate mod - LED Headlights - Nav Bypass - iPhone integration - Serius/XM retrofit - 25% front tint - Bizon electric tonneau cover - Power folding tow mirror upgrade - 2010+ leveling Headlight mod - Auto-fold mirror mod. - one-touch lane changer mod - Flash to open garage opener mod - Rigid H/L fog light upgrade - Pushbutton / Remote start mod.
    There's a little human nature at play there. If you spend $3-400, on something its easy to convince yourself that it was an effective purchase. I've heard more stories about loss of torque than I have about more power or better MPG. From a logical standpoint, the primary advantage of a CAI is that it pulls colder air from outside of the engine bay. Ours already does that. An aftermarket unit may allow for more potential airflow, but that presumes the factory unit is overly restrictive, which I do not believe it is.

    At the risk of starting a flame war, I lump such claims in the same category as those who claim premium fuel on the factory tune gives more power. Ummm...no it doesn't.

    Edit: I should note, I had one for a short period of time and my butt-dyno noticed no difference, I saw 0 increase in MPG, and I found the additional noise annoying.
     
  3. Jan 11, 2017 at 12:38 PM
    #3
    14tundra

    14tundra On Wisconsin!

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    I'm interested in this. I have a 2014 stock truck with 26 gal. tank and in the winter I get like 11mpg. on 20inch wheels with 275/55/20 tires. Not too sure this is cost effective for 1 or 2 mile per gallon increase...Prove me wrong! :popcorn:
     
    joonbug[OP] likes this.
  4. Jan 11, 2017 at 12:46 PM
    #4
    TheBeast

    TheBeast The Beach

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    welcome to the club..I carry extra jugs in the bed
     
  5. Jan 11, 2017 at 12:53 PM
    #5
    joonbug

    joonbug [OP] °°°°°°°°°°

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    I'm not so interested in saving money, because I don't put a bunch of miles on my truck. But for the average driver, 2 mpg equals about $200 a year. It would pay for itself in a couple of years. Another added benefit.
     
    Last edited: Jan 11, 2017
  6. Jan 11, 2017 at 12:55 PM
    #6
    TheBeast

    TheBeast The Beach

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    save your money and hit that fresh pow in Tahoe instead ;) should pay for couple lift tickets.
     
    trayday and joonbug[OP] like this.
  7. Jan 11, 2017 at 1:03 PM
    #7
    joonbug

    joonbug [OP] °°°°°°°°°°

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    I'm going to Tahoe on Saturday and going to put my kids in ski school for the first time. $750 for the both of them!! o_O WTF? There's 2 CAI's right there.
     
  8. Jan 11, 2017 at 1:06 PM
    #8
    Black Wolf

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  9. Jan 11, 2017 at 1:06 PM
    #9
    TheBeast

    TheBeast The Beach

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    haha..yep..I just got back from the snow..and put all 3 kids to ski lessons...my wallet felt a lot lighter ..there goes my KINGs...
     
    831Tun and joonbug[OP] like this.
  10. Jan 11, 2017 at 1:07 PM
    #10
    trayday

    trayday New Member

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    I'd feel ripped off. I learned to ski by riding the lift to the top and had to get to the bottom of the mountain somehow. Riding the lift back down wasn't an option. Just tell them "Pizza" and "French Fries"
     
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  11. Jan 11, 2017 at 1:42 PM
    #11
    joonbug

    joonbug [OP] °°°°°°°°°°

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    Yeah, it's killing me to pay that much. But I just don't have the energy to take them both up the mountain. I just hope they learn enough for me to take them out next time... I'm not paying for ski school ever again.
     
    831Tun and trayday[QUOTED] like this.
  12. Jan 17, 2017 at 1:22 PM
    #12
    badams1897

    badams1897 New Member

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    So I was looking into Exhaust and a CAI to re-coup some power and MPG loss after my lift and bigger tires. I am guessing the answer is CAI = waste? I do not know anything about the factory air intake, so it is hard to compare. I also find it strange Toyota makes a TRD CAI, so they are saying that is worth $400 yet has 0 impact to the truck?
     
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  13. Jan 17, 2017 at 1:26 PM
    #13
    joonbug

    joonbug [OP] °°°°°°°°°°

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    Yeah, so it looks like 10 out of 10 people said little to no change in MPG. :( Guess I need to look into some big gas cans.
     
  14. Jan 17, 2017 at 1:46 PM
    #14
    scurdyness

    scurdyness One thing is sure, uncertainty is certain

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    I cannot answer that either, it's a mind thing I guess?. It's in there and I do not really notice the 'extra noise' but there again for me, it's not about mpg - it's a 5.7L Tundra right? Mind you at WOT the TRD Dual Exhaust lets me know I am booting the throttle.
    90% of the time around town etc, I am driving with the nannies off, so I am sure that messes up the mpg too.
    Last week I did a 300 miles round trip at 75mph on the Interstate and 84mph on the Turnpike with a little bit of city driving (Tulsa) and came away with 17.6mpg for the trip, kinda surprised me as nothing was allowed to overtake me (especially on the Turnpike) , hahahahah
     
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  15. Jan 17, 2017 at 1:54 PM
    #15
    Nor7

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    My 2 cents. I have the TRD CAI and I see an mpg improvement at higher speeds. i think the stock filter was designed for the rpms at average speed limit on the highway. When you rev it high I think is where you see the improvements because the engine is trying to suck in more air through a constant opening, I have noticed more power when I 'get on it' but I haven't seen much of an mpg increase.
     
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  16. Jan 17, 2017 at 1:56 PM
    #16
    040Tundra

    040Tundra Teddy 2013-2019

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    A little of this and a little of that.
    Looks like quite of few people said CAI is a waste of money. I bought a K&N CAI and installed myself. I love the extra sound coming from the engine bay. Almost like a little turbo spooling. Now, as far as my opinion of the CAI I have to agree with @Nor7 . That about sums it up.

    Was it worth the purchase, I believe it was, and that's what counts.
     
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  17. Jan 17, 2017 at 2:06 PM
    #17
    tomsinamerica

    tomsinamerica New Member

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    I have the TRD intake and i don't think there's any improvement in efficiency - or at least if there is, it's too small to measure using real world measurements. Sure, looks nice & sounds cool if you like that kinda thing but it ain't gonna pay for itself by magically yielding any significant mpg increase. Given how amazingly inefficient these trucks are, if the CAI did impact it, even in lab conditions, i'm sure Toyota would slap them on in the factory to boost the EPA rating where Tundras are pretty much dead last in efficiency.
     
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  18. Jan 17, 2017 at 2:38 PM
    #18
    duerj70

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    Don't mind me, I'm just here for the results.....:benchpress:
     
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  19. Jan 17, 2017 at 2:39 PM
    #19
    ColoradoTJ

    ColoradoTJ Certified tow LEO Staff Member

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    Do you have some dyno sheets to back that up?

    Interesting how noise is thought to be power.
     
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  20. Jan 17, 2017 at 2:54 PM
    #20
    ColoradoTJ

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    Joon,

    You sir would be better off doing what has been proven to increase fuel economy or just increase range. 13 mpg with lifted and larger tires is not all that bad.

    Assuming you have done all the proper maintenance items on your truck........
    Some proven mpg increase items:

    -headers, x-pipe, good exhaust system. Keith has countless hours on a dyno proving this.

    -install a larger tank to get some range. This is not a cheap mod, but imagine doubling your capacity?

    -You can always build/buy a rack system for fuel cans. 4 Jerry cans or MX Jugs works great. Still pain in ass to fill jugs and ensure they don't grow legs and disappear.

    Don't feel bad. Can you imagine what a newer 4 door JKU, underpowered, large tires and a 19 gallon tank can get into a problem in the desert....or anywhere for that matter. When I go out to Moab, I have to be very careful on some trails due to them being very difficult, very long, and usually have to carry some extra fuel.
     
    joonbug[OP] likes this.
  21. Jan 17, 2017 at 7:06 PM
    #21
    Nor7

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    No dyno but my 0-60 is better.
     
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  22. Jan 17, 2017 at 7:35 PM
    #22
    joonbug

    joonbug [OP] °°°°°°°°°°

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    If transferflow tanks were legal in CA, I'd already have one. 46 gallons would be freaking awesome. I just need to find out definitively if installing one would affect passing smog. I can't really imagine how that would affect it. And if it turns out it won't, I will drive to Nevada, if I have to, to have one installed. In the meantime, I think I need a couple 10 gallon jerry cans. Do they have some that don't expand in the heat and doesn't leak vapors to make my bed smell like a gas station?
     
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  23. Jan 17, 2017 at 8:43 PM
    #23
    ColoradoTJ

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    F'n CA. I forgot about that.

    How detailed is the visual inspection? I remember when in CA, the inspection didn't look to involved, but that was in 97'.

    I like the VP gas cans. On this link, there is a fuel hose...etc.

    https://www.amazon.com/VP-Racing-Fuels-3512-Motorsport/dp/B003TTV972
     
  24. Jan 17, 2017 at 8:46 PM
    #24
    ColoradoTJ

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  25. Jan 17, 2017 at 9:00 PM
    #25
    joonbug

    joonbug [OP] °°°°°°°°°°

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    :annoyed: Both say they can't ship to my location. Lol.

    And I think I can get past a visual inspection. As long as it doesn't physically fail a test. I just don't think they'll be able to detect that the gas tank is larger.
     
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  26. Jan 17, 2017 at 9:13 PM
    #26
    ColoradoTJ

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    In that case, I would be driving my happy ass to the next state.
     
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  27. Jan 17, 2017 at 9:15 PM
    #27
    ColoradoTJ

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    I guess maybe looking into what I need to do for running the Rubicon Trail this year will entail. I definitely have a CEL on my Junk...I mean Jeep.
     
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  28. Jan 17, 2017 at 9:22 PM
    #28
    csuviper

    csuviper Moderator Staff Member

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    Agree with this one!!
     
  29. Jan 17, 2017 at 9:30 PM
    #29
    csuviper

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  30. Jan 17, 2017 at 9:31 PM
    #30
    csuviper

    csuviper Moderator Staff Member

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    If someone wants to buy me a TRD or aftermarket CAI I will do the testing to determine if it's useful or not. Have mpg backup for over 3 years thus far.
     

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