Jim Wolfe Dual PopCharger

Red__Zed

I heard the previous owner of your intakes had some issues with them. Car didn't respond well to the water.



Turned his car into a mustang or something.

Red__Zed

On topic, at the cost of the JWT's, I'd go for something more proven. $300ish is too much to spend on something that gives such inconsistent gains, and often losses.

shadoquad

Actually, I wonder if mustang did have those issues with the injens. Can't remember if we even discussed it. But I haven't had any issues, I've had them on since winter.

But as for the topic at hand, I would certainly opt for CAI's or drop-in filters over short rams.

edub370

strange that a company such as JW wouldnt dyno test there ram air sytem to ensure hp gains. I mean is this something that could be changed by adding more heat shielding to the system? or maybe running some ducts from a hole in the heat shield down into the fender such as people do to brake systems to cool them? maybe something that JW could incorporate into future designs???

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gbrettin

It seems like CAI is a big hoax. I'm pretty sure the engineers at Nissan calculated the air flow needed for this specific engine setup. Why wouldn't they use longer charge tubes if it offered better performance? I mean, this is a performance car after all.

I'm not trying to down anyone's mod btw. 5hp at top end rpm seems pretty minimal to me. Perhaps there is something I'm missing?

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Edit

I re-read. They claim 15hp gain. That's not too bad if it works.

shadoquad

Part of the draw of CAI's is the sound. They sound better, because they're less restrictive.

The stock intakes are also long tubes btw, but they're designed with different purpose in mind. Not everything on a 370z screams performance, as with all sports cars. There are also part and tuning decisions made with reliability, fuel economy, or of course cheapness in mind.

KillerBee370

Well "seems" and "is" are two different things. CAI are dyno proven. Yes, it's closer to 15 (on a cold day without the front bumper and a big fan blowing on it but still...)

Anyway, there are a couple reasons why Nissan (or any other auto manufacturer) doesn't just go ahead and put long tubes all the way up into the front bumper or wheel well or wherever in order to squeeze out just a bit more horsepower. Cost is one. Hell.. cost is probably the reason the car didn't come with a stock oil cooler. Anyway the other thing is just general maintenence. Why would Nissan want to pull the front bumper every time they need to change out an air filter? A car is a car is a car and Nissan or anyone else isn't neccissarily looking to redesign the wheel when they are happy to present a car that makes 332 hp rather than 340 with the added headache of more wrench time for simple mundane maintenence tasks.

Typically speaking, a stock airbox is a "cold air" intake in terms of where it's drawing the air from and the fact that the stock airbox is shielding the actual intake from the hot air inside the enging compartment. The problem is the lousy tubing they generally use. It's rubber, rippled and usually has different changes in diameter up to the manifold. I agree that the JWT pop chargers look fantastic under the hood but I could care less about looks over power since I don't have a show car.

onzedge

+1 Rep for a great write-up.

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gbrettin

Thanks man. This was exactly what I was looking for. I was on the fence about changing out from stock.

kenchan

the lousy tubing is used to preserve reliability. engine rocks back and forth quite a bit so less resistance, longer durability.

looks ugly though, your're right. i think the HPS tubes are soft enough to accomodate the movement needed. it'd be funny if we started seeing HPS tube that were collapsing under the breather areas due to the engine movement. in the stillen steup i think things are just banging around.

that is one area i am a little concerned about in my current setup... deformation.

KillerBee370

True true. This is where some solid engine mounts would come in handy. The coupler sleeves on the solid tubes where it meets up with the intake manifold are supposed to take up some of the slack there. I haven't noticed any problems with my Gen III's in this regard.

shadoquad

I heard something about the Gen3's heating up and either rubbing or melting a wire, but I don't know if there's any truth to that.

The Injens I bought had some wear (some rubbing) from the previous owner, so I believe you, ken, about the possible wear issues.

280z/300zx

Another thing to consider which no one has really mentioned is that the Gen 3 intake are only good for about 5-7hp when coupled with exhaust. On their own the Gen 3's have been proven to be good for 12-15hp but it's also been proven that on cars that already have a CBE they are only good for another 5-7hp. You can get 4-5hp with simple drop in k&n filters using the stock air box. Much cheaper and far easier install and upkeep. And if you really want to get rid of the ribbed stock hoses go for the HPS tubes for smoother air flow.

I was going to get Gen 3's but wasn't excited about cutting up my car nor having to remove my bumper every time I wanted to inspect or clean my filters. Then when I saw dynos showing that I could get near the exact same gains with the drop in filters I decided to forget about the Gen 3's. Don't really care about the look under the hood or the sound. Then again I went down the mod road with my 280z and know what a pain it can be when you start getting crazy with mods. Wanted to keep my 370z simple.

kenchan

in your calculation your KN drop-ins will only net about 2-3whp if you already have a CBE.. no? hardly a bargain.