I decided to make some non-biased informational posts on popular mods for the 2008 Lancer. The target audience is anybody new to cars/modding and those who aren't really sure where to put their money.

Part I: Your Car Sucks! No, really, it actually does:

INTAKES

Types of IntakesCurrently, there are three ways to mod the air intake of your 2008 Lancer: Short Ram (SRI), Cold Air (CAI) and High-Flow Drop-in Air Filter. SRI’s and CAI’s are designed to eliminate the restrictiveness of the stock intake setup. However, the 2008 Lancer does not have a very restrictive stock intake setup to begin with, it’s already quite efficient.





What You Can Expect to See
The SRI improves low end power while somewhat sacrificing torque, the CAI improves mid & top end power while somewhat sacrificing the low end, and the drop in filter produces smooth gains across the whole power band, however, the peak power gain seen from a drop-in are not as high as an SRI or CAI. Those are the facts. Pick the one that you think well fits your needs, install it and go play.

Warranty with Intakes
SRI’s & CAI’s may or may not void you warranty, it depends on your dealership. A Drop-in will not void your warranty. So, you can clearly see which one to choose if you have warranty concerns but still want to give the car a little more pep.

Cost
Drop-in filters are the least expensive, followed by Short Ram intakes. Cold Air intakes are the most expensive. Coincidentally, the order of cost is also the order of complexity in regards to installation. You may want to factor installation costs if you don’t have the confidence to DIY.

Maintenance
Most filters nowadays have the ability to be cleaned & recharged, which eliminates the need to buy a new one when the time comes. Recharge kits range between ~$20 to ~$30. Do it with every oil change to ensure you’re always getting the best performance. If you’re not sure if the intake air filter is rechargeable, ask the people you bought it from.

Problems & Considerations
With an SRI, you may want to consider an aluminum heat shield, as the filter sits on top of the transmission and reasonably close to the exhaust manifold, both of which generate a lot of heat. Leaving the stock intake duct in place is also an option. The shield & duct will help to ensure the SRI is getting the coolest air possible.

With a CAI, placement of the filter can increase the risk of sucking in water through said filter, which may damage/destroy your engine. There are fabric shields you can buy to mitigate the risk of this. Alternatively; you can man up, go to a drug store and get a pair of pantyhose to put over it…they will both do the same thing. Put the shield or a section of the pantyhose over the air filter.

With a Drop-in, make sure that when you recharge the filter, you are recharging the correct side, which is the side that faces AWAY from the engine.

Which One is Right for You?
This all depends on what your ultimate goal is. Decide what you’d like the car to be when it grows up, do a little homework on that and then choose the product that will best suit your needs.

 

very good info!, but did you forget ram air intakes? (like ones that mount someware war air is forced into the car IE grill, or bumper "hole")

 

I think that was left out due to it not being available for our car and the assumption that no one is going to make a custom one

 

This is great, thanks a bunch. I never really understood the differences between all of these choices, along with the pros and cons, so this thread is appreciated.

 

dont be so sure about that (i want to make my own , if no one makes one)

 

Until it exists, it's not worth talking about. He's teaching n00bs about the currently available AFTERMARKET goods, not custom items.

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Great writeup, NJ!

 

^true

 

Very nice. I'm getting the pulley, Injen CAI when I get back from France in 2 days. I get 1grand from my grandfather for XMAS so...

 

It would be nice to see the gains that we can get with the new RRM intake V2, cause it gona has heat shield, and with that, maybe we can get the benefits of a SRI and a little bit of the CAI, low end and entire powerband increase, considering that the actual SRI in the lancer, it´s close to the exhaust manifold.

(X) PIGGY V2
(x) HEADER
(X) CAI
(X) PULLEY
(X) CAT DELETED
(X) FRONT AND REAR BARS
(X) FALKEN 18" WHEELS