whats the difference between

whats the difference in having a short ram intake compared to a regular intake for my civic?

A short ram intake which sits in your engine bay sucks in more air than the stock intake which give a little more hp. The stock intake is very restrictive, if you ever look at your it probably has 2 boxes. One that holds your filter ( which is very restrictive also) and the other in your bumper that has many twists and turns and a little opening for air. This design helps so no water can get in there and to keep things quiet. The Cold Air intake which has a long pipe running to your fender well and to your bumper brings in air from outside the vehicle which is colder than the air in the engine bay. Colder air is better for the intake and adds hp. Something about it being denser I think makes it better in the combustion chamber. The diference between the short ram and cold air is that the short ram is sucking in hot air from the engine bay and doesn't add as much power as the Cold Air. If you can get a Cold air for your car (AEM, Iceman) then I would say get that. If you live in a wet area where it rains a lot then get the AEM bypass valve for safety. Hope this helps a little. Peace

Couldn't have said it better myself.

Ben

I woulda said the same thing. :D

there are alot of misunderstandings about intakes that often throw people off....naturally a cold air intake will provide better HP when receiving the same airflow because cold air is more dense...and you're engine eats that shit up. Lets step away from air temperature for a second though and look at intake sizes. It is important to realize....that a larger intake pipe does not necesarrily mean that you are getting more HP. Two things are important here. Velocity and Volume. The problem is....the more air (volume) that you are sucking in (i.e. the larger the pipe)...the slower the velocity of the air will be. Therefore velocity and volume are inversely related. This is the theory behind why many people position their intakes in headlight assemblies and such to "force" the air in at a greater velocity. It is important to find an intake that has a pipe whose circumference is not too large or too small...the perfect size will always be debated. Restriction is also another problem that affects the performance of intakes ...restrictive filters are typically the biggest problem with air flow...but too many bends in the intake piping will also cause air restriction. K&N seems to be the automotive filter of choice....and alot of your major brand intakes come with a K&N filter. What does all of this mean??....there still isn't a perfect intake...but add up all of the parts of the equation and i'm sure you'll find one you like.

so what else do you look for in a cold air intake...

1) one that avoids the hottest points in your engine
2) one that has very few bends...promoting good air flow
3) one that has an effective...yet unrestrictive filter
(do not subsititute a cheap filter... engine damage will occur)

but aside from all of that shit....if you're looking for my preference.....i have an AEM CAI...and i'm pleased with it. If you want the perfect intake for your car...you'll have to make it yourself...which isn't that hard by the way. Chances are you'll probably like the sound that an AEM will give you too. Sorry so long.