I'm sure you all like to save money where you can on builds/upgrades, etc. I noticed K&N offers their intake with a UICP. It's not the ENTIRE intercooler pipe from turbo to intercooler though. It's only the top half.

I see other name brands that do the entire pipe.. Is there really a difference from a full piping kit vs just the top half? I figured there would not be but you never know.

 

It's a pipe take it for what it's worth...

 

It's def a good price for what you get. I was trying to clarify if the entire piping being replaced is better then this.. bottlenecks, smoother bends, etc

 

Ultimate Racing and ETS also offer only the upper portion of the UICP at a lower cost than the complete UICP. I'd say it's fine and not going to cause a restriction if you stay with the stock intercooler.

 

To me, the only reason the uicp/licp is changed out coz it doesn't expand under pressure and temp. If ur changing out the turbo and the intercooler, then going with a larger diameter would be a good idea, as to get rid of any bottlenecks.

The bottom of the uicp is already a hard pipe so changing out the upper part has the advantages of the full uicp coz it takes out the cons of the stock uicp...expansion under pressure and temp.

Again, I'm only saying this from my point of view. My car is not heavily modded and still has stock turbo and stock fmic. I only changed out the uicp to take out the expansion problems. Licp will be changed out to hard pipe as well.

In my case though, I change the whole uicp coz I bought my ets uicp used and I got a deal on it. That and it's aesthitically pleasing to have matching uicp. The silver finish on the stock uicp isn't that good looking, IMO.

If anything, the real bottleneck is not on the pipes, but the throttle body.

 

The 90 degree bend isn't going to be worth much, but it will definitely give the engine bay a much cleaner look. The reason for the rear portion is to remove the 1.75" restrictive area right out of the turbo. Once this bottle neck is removed the air will go directly into a 2.5" instead of 1.75" We have seen reports of up to 9whp gain and throttle response increased.

In the years to come it will be important to upgrade the upper pipe and remove the stock rubber hose. Stock rubber hoses are prone for expansion and ballooning under throttle. Ballooning+Oil is what causes the factory hoses to pop off.

Just like Kracka said, we can do just the rear pipe a well. It's $120.00 vs $240.00

Hope this helps!

Michael

 

Will changing the stock upper pipe with this on or any other after market one void the warranty if some thing happens down the road?
Have you looked at changing the turbo inlet tube with the cobb for smoother air flow from the intake to the turbo and would that also void any warranty?
But the K&N is a good choise.

 

Definitely a great option if you're on a budget.

The only reason I'd upgrade from the 2 piece design would be to eliminate one other place for a potential boost leak and the t-bolt clamps. Our VRSF/Muse piece is a 1 piece design and includes the t-bolts. It's only $150 shipped so for a few more bucks you can get the full pipe vs just the rear section