Warm Air Intake - suggestions

I modded my air box to become a warm air intake that I could open in the winter and close off in the summer. Basically I just did the Deck Plate Mod on the header side of the air box. It was good for 1-2mpg in the winter. It raises air temp 20-30deg. Good mod for less than $10, but lacks the cool factor of an intake.

 

If you have an auto and want more power range get a manual. Easier to feather the gas on hills or tight spots and can use the power band to you r advantage auto is either on or off. Gears change at a lower rpm.

 

Do you have a write up on how you did it? Now that I have my lift and tires I'm looking to scavenge as much MPG as possible

 

If you look at the 1st Gen Deck Plate Mod, it is pretty much the same thing with the deck plate on the side of the air box with the exhaust header. I used a combination of saw and Dremel tool to cut the hole. It doesn't have to be pretty. A hole saw is an easy way to start the hole.
I used the bottom of a cup cutoff to stuff in the cold air side.

 

Okay sweet I'll look into that, cause in a mountain town it'll definitely help

But do you think this mod is a efficient as getting a whole warm air intake?

 

Just found a stack of old Car Craft mags. They were shitting all over the warm intake era... Does anyone know if the ram-air hood will fit on the standard base, baby tacos? I don't want to cut anything, namely my hood...

 

I would look into the company of your choice and ask, cause it may be some modding but not much

 

Cold Air vs Warm Air vs Ram Air have different goals.
For me I just wanted to have as close to 70deg intake air temp as possible year round to avoid mileage swings. That is why I did mine so that I can switch back and forth depending on the season.

 

CAI = cooler ambient temperatures for increased power
WAI = warm air from the engine to reduce power and increase fuel
RAI = larger volume of air, usually at a slightly warmer temperature then stock, to gain small power and small efficiency but not the extremes of CAI or WAI

That's my understanding... So you did the mod for a more consistent temp, the benefits from that is just the consistent mpg? Or what else?

 

This is far from the truth

 

And why do you say that? Cause I'm seriously considering all options... And just don't know what'd be the best for my living conditions (temperature, altitude, and the driving i usually do)

There has to be a reason these aftermarket parts exist for our trucks

 

Headers for me was a night and day difference for me. They add a dyno-proven 10+ hp. Getting the truck tuned will help maximize the gains from performance parts by optimizing Air-fuel ratios, but you don't absolutely need a tune for the parts to give you hp gains.

 

Yep, it's because a lot of people have more money than sense.

 

A CAI on a naturally aspirated Tacoma is a waste. However, once you chuck the blower on there, you do see a reasonable increase in power and mileage. Our intakes were not designed for a supercharger. Adding one and getting the most out of it requires modifying the engine and control system.

 

Headers I know, but I plan on doing headers, a well crafted y-pipe, O2 sensor sims, and gettin my custom exhaust redone when I've had the truck longer and can spend $1000+/- on it

 

CAI I knew was a waste

But back to my OP, warm air intakes will make a difference for MPG if I don't mind losing some power, which if I'm wanting to increase my mpg obviously it means I'm not racing and horsing it around town. But then someone will say a WAI doesn't help either MPG

Then there's ram air, which is a WAI but make for volume and temperature to stop the loss of power or gain minimum, but gain a little MPG, then someone will say those don't work.

SO... I'm gonna restate all of my driving conditions and see if a WAI or RAI will benefit me specifically haha it's selfish but it appears my conditions may benefit from one

FYI: I am getting a scan or ultra gauge, doing research on which is preferred and for price

Driving Conditions:
- 7,000ft or higher above see level, so low pressure and thinner air

- mostly dry but some snow and rain thought the year

- temperatures during summer roughly 70 to 80 (sometimes higher but not usually), winters are around 20 to 40

- I don't reach over 45mph, on average drive between 30 to 40mph

With these conditions, my assumption (which may be completely wrong) is that a WAI or RAI would benefit me. Why? Because if the intake is pulling warmer air from the engine, it means the air is less dense, which makes up for the thinner air (WAI). Now if you look at a RAI, it will intake a higher volume and warmer air, this is even more substantial because it's more air and it's warmer, so the truck will "feel" like it's at a lower elevation, resulting in better performance and MPG


Now that's my assumption, please someone shed some light on this, because I agree the intakes may not make a difference for people closer to see level or an warm areas, but with the conditions I drive the truck in, it can't be the same

 

Stock!

 

You are really beating this horse man... the bottom line is that you aren't going to come up with anything that the Toyota Engineers haven't already figured out. Maybe you can save yourself one MPG by dropping a few hundred dollars into aftermarket stuff and spending hours of your time by doing it, but will it ever pay off? Absolutely not, so it comes down to, if you want to spend the money on something that will not pay for itself in fuel savings in the long run. If it was my money burning a hole in my pocket, I'd spend it on something with some return on the investment.

 

Im stubborn in that way haha but I guess you're right

Are you talking like a scan guage, headers, supercharger? For the return

 

Headers and supercharger without a doubt will lower your mpg's, so you are spending money on that specifically for hp gains, so that's how you need to justify the money. If you are justifying money for mpg gains, then you need to understand that you won't be getting that money back in savings at the pump.