Fitting 99+ Intakes on 94-97

[r0lliSl1fe]

Alright, so this bugs me quite a bit.

Just picked up my excellent 96 in stunning condition...bone stock spare for a Sony CD Changer and a rag top with a glass window. Great and all...

...but of course, I'm thinking cold air. The stock system isn't as bad as most make it out to be...but there are plenty of products on the market.

It seems that my dreams of a simple mandrel tube with a filter stuck on are just dreams...The MAF, vacuum tube, and *unidentified tube* cause complications. Okay, so I can see myself getting around a couple of those issues, but what it comes down to are two questions:

1) What is this *unidentified mystery tube?* It's not the standard vacuum line going into the valve cover...it's not got anything to do with the MAF, and i dont think it's got anything to do with the throttle body...so what in god's name is it?

but more importantly...

2) Why do the cold air intake kits for the 10AE, and the 2000-present model years not fit my car? Looking at pictures, it seems like everything is damned near the same under-hood, spare some bracket placements...though I have to admit, I can't tell whether the *mystery tube* is there on the newer models or not.

It seems like Mazda, a company oriented towards performance, especially when it comes to cars like the Miata, would design a simpler intake...with the MAF wire after the throttle body, with only one simple vacuum tube...but perhaps they had motives i simply do not understand.

Can anyone shed some light?

Cheers,
r0ll