2016 Dyno Test

And the finally the CAI myth has been busted or are they going to say you were pulling in hot air from the engine lol

 

Glad the OP understands his own work, even if few others did.

I’d like to see results of a tune, a tune+TRD CAI, and a tune+TRD snorkel only one day.

 

OP, you need to change the thread name to add “Mythbuster” to the title. . Nice read and thanks.

 

For giggles, here is a graph of a 4th gear dyno pull with the Tacoma. Right at 110mph, the ECU pulled power big-time! I'm sure if it pulls timing, closes off the throttle-body, some combination of things... But it does NOT want to let the truck go past 110mph. That is why we had to make our pulls in 3rd gear.

 

Strong numbers for stock truck. Greatly appreciate the post!

 

This, the computer is not doing anything to control airflow--it is however controlling fuel. This test shows that the air filter system is exactly what LnL said--ample in giving the engine enough air.

I would bet if it was 45 degrees vs 108 degrees the engine would make more power.

 

The computer controls airflow by valve timing and throttle position.

I can't recall any tests were removing the filter element on a factory intake system really making a difference. In my experience this hurts performance.

However, a proper performance intake generally increases performances.

 

Yes, denser air (via lower temp) means more oxygen per volume, hence more power. But, the dyno corrects for atmospheric differences. Notice the "CF: STD" at the upper right, above the graph. That stands for "Correction Factor: Standard" being the basic DynoJet correction factor. I can turn the CF off, and get raw data, and in that case the low air temp would almost certainly be noticeably higher than when the temps are quite high. But with the correction factor turned on, I see surprisingly consistent dyno results (I've tested the same vehicle, with no changes, at different times of the year. That helps me feel comfortable that the dyno is performing consistently).

 

You control throttle position, the computer does control valve timing--which changes how the engine behaves by letting in MORE air at higher RPM and less air at lower RPM(based on valve timing for what is needed).

If an intake system is adequate, the engine will not gain any power from a "performance" set up.

Example:
If your intake system/tube can flow 1000cfm, but your throttle body can only flow 800cfm, you won't gain any power.

If your intake flows 1000cfm, your throttle body flows 1000cfm, and your engine only needs 800 you won't see any gains.

 

Yeah I saw that. I was just letting him know.
I loved the cold air in Alaska.

 

Volume is only one many variable to how an intake will perform. It would be really nice if all we had to do was look at CFM to determine how it is going to work.

 

I understand volume aspect of it, but with direct injection and port injection, volume is not as important. You will only be able to fill the cylinder based on the cam design for a specific RPM.
Your CFM determines the volume that can flow through the tube to replenish the intake an fill the cylinder.

 

I am ambivalent about the whole CAI argument but the computer does adjust fuel delivery based on the airflow into the engine. "... the fuel is mixed with air and burned in an engine. In order for this to work properly, an exact amount of air must be mixed with the proper amount of fuel. The "perfect" fuel air mix is called a "stoichiometric fuel ratio." This is 14.7 to one: 14.7 parts air to one part fuel. In reality most engines rarely achieve this ratio: they run a bit richer most of the time. an engine runs especially rich when accelerating, when cold, or when under a load." http://econofix.com/fuelair.html

We used to have to make these changes by changing the jets in the carburetor, now the computer does it. If you had two-stroke trail bikes you had to do this often depending on the elevation you were riding. There is a reason folks like to run the 1/4 mile in Eureka, CA. Cold, dense wet air at sea level = most power. I do construction estimating, we de-rate the productivity of equipment when working at high elevation - even with turbos they lose power with less air. Pilots refer to this as "density altitude" and they calculate the length of runway for landing/takeoff based partly on horsepower lost with increasing altitude and temperature.

 

Correct, volume isn't as important as how that air flows. Which is why when removing the element all together, even though it is an airflow restriction, one usually doesn't see much for gain. In my experience on a couple different vehicles I've tested, you see a decrease in performance.

 

would have been interesting with the air filter lid open with no filter in it. The idea behind a cai is to allow more flow than the stock air dam. Still a good test! Thanks for the info!

 

What would happen if you threw a cat back system on there to improve the exhaust flow?

 

The only CERTAIN thing that would happen if you bought and installed such a system, is that you'd have a lot less money.

The engine is like an assembly line. Think about making bread. Alfred mixes up the dough, Benny twists it into loafs, Carl puts it in the pans and shoves them into the oven, David pulls them out of the oven and puts them on the cooling rack, Evan bags them up and places in the trays to be delivered.

Each of them has a certain amount of loafs that they can process per hour. If Carl can only handle 500 loafs per hours, then hiring David's twin brother to help him is NOT going to result in more bread being made - David is not the bottleneck.

Now, if Carl is given a helper and can possibly make 900 loafs/hr, but David can only handle 600/hr, then you still haven't gained much.

That said, if the stock exhaust is bottlenecking the performance, then the power will increase. If it is not, then there will probably be little or no gain.

Now, if somebody wants to donate parts to my nephew, I'll help him install them, retest, and I'll share the results

 

@LnL great posts! You really know your shit lol

 

Can I be your nephew??
I wouldn't mind the exhaust being a little louder, but hey its a DD so keeping it stock(other than a grille) is where it's at for me.

 

I'm coming here 3 years later, but truly appreciate the data-driven post!

Let us know if you are able to do more testing (e.g., with more vs. less restrictive exhaust).