Airaid Rebate Surprise

BruceWGT · **Posted:** Sun Oct 19, 2014 6:47 pm

Airaid had a $50 rebate on their CAI's during the month of September. With the Airaid rebate, club discount and birthday money from mom the $300 CAI only would cost me about $150 so I decided to buy one for the Ghost. I wouldn't get a better deal. I bought the CAI online from AM within hours of the September 30 midnight deadline.
After receiving and installing the CAI, I filled out the rebate form with the necessary paperwork and sent it to Airaid. In less than a week I received an envelope from Airaid. At first i thought they might be sending me a rejection letter but as I start to open the folded letter i can see a rectangular paper inside. A rebate check! I happily thought. But as I got the letter open I was shocked when I realized it is not a rebate check but a crisp $50 bill!
In this age when mail often gets opened in transit and they say never to send cash through the mail, I was surprised to receive $50 cash in the mail. When they said "$50 cash back" they really meant it. lol
Thanks Airaid!

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By the way, here is the Airaid installed on the Ghost!

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Great White · **Posted:** Wed Oct 29, 2014 4:49 pm

Both the CAI and $50 are VERY NICE!

BruceWGT · **Posted:** Thu Oct 30, 2014 1:05 pm

Red Baron · **Posted:** Sat Nov 15, 2014 3:17 pm

You definitely scored a great deal on your Airaid CAI Bruce! :btu:

The fact that they sent you a crisp $50 bill back is totally unexpected. Like you said, hardly anyone sends cash through the mail anymore.

Now, can you tell me if you can feel the difference in having the Airaid CAI system on the Ghost or an increase in gas mileage?
I would love to add a CAI system onto the Red Baron if I didn't have to run on 91 or higher octane gas or buy an expensive tuner. Is it worth the cost just to add the CAI over the stock air filter system?

The Red Baron
MCOM Treasurer-Historian

BruceWGT · **Posted:** Wed Nov 19, 2014 6:53 pm

Steve,

I can't comment on the gas mileage because I haven't really checked it. I do feel an improvement in acceleration and Di says she can feel it too. As for how much improvement I don't have any numbers for it but it is noticeable. An engine will always run better when it breathes better. Thats why back in the day we always replaced the stock air cleaner with an Edelbrock or some other aftermarket open filter to let the engine breath better. At the very least, the lid to the stock air filter housing was inverted to allow more air in lol.

Right now I am running with the venturi insert installed in the inlet tibe which limits the additional airflow enough to keep the mass airflow sensor from going nuts and causing problems. I wont feel the full potential of the CAI until I get a tune on the car (which I hope happens very soon) and can remove the insert.

The Airaid CAI that I installed can be run without a tune with the venturi insert installed but there are several CAIs that are designed specifically to not require a tune, and as such tend to be less expensive. They have a smaller filter and inlet tube that prevents the above aforementioned excessive airflow problem from occurring. They do improve performance but the results are less than a CAI that has a larger inlet tube (which typically requires a tune). The CAIs can be run on regular 87 octane gas, it is the race tune that requires 93 octane or better. If nothing else, a CAI adds a deeper throatyness to the engine sound and they look badass when the hood is lifted lol.

Bruce

Red Baron · **Posted:** Wed Nov 19, 2014 8:49 pm

Maybe next year in the spring or summer when I'm detailing cars and earning some spending money Bruce. Linda Queen knows a guy who will give me a C&L CAI system in exchange for detailing his car. I just like the look of the Airaid CAI system better.

I'm sure that there would be some increase in performance just by increasing the air flow. If it were measurable the manufacturers would be promoting it in all of they're ads.

The Red Baron
MCOM Treasurer-Historian

BruceWGT · **Posted:** Thu Nov 20, 2014 5:24 pm

Steve,

I am no expert on CAIs and only have the information I found online. Airaid states the typical gain with their CAIs is 10 to 15 hp. Not earth shattering but it is an increase. Attached are a couple of dyno run charts that Airaid presents on their web site. Jared from Airaid confirmed for me that the results are with no tune. I also found a dyno chart online for a C&L CAI without a tune. The dyno run with the C&L also shows about a 10 hp difference.

For what its worth.
Bruce

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Red Baron · **Posted:** Thu Nov 20, 2014 6:12 pm

Thanks for the update and the test results for the Airaid CAI Bruce. :btu:

An increase of 10 or so more horsepower and torque would be noticeable in a 2006 GT. So if you go the tuner route you can change your engine to run more efficiently with even more air flow to boost your performance to around a 35 hp and torque increase over the stock settings.

I've often wondered since there are so many people who have owned 2005-2010 Mustang GT's and have purchased tuners whether it would be possible to "borrow" their tuner to change the settings on your computer. You wouldn't have the luxury of changing the settings anytime you wanted but if you just wanted a basic upgrade for street use this might be a possibility.

It sure beats shelling out $379 to $399 for a Bama Tuner.

The Red Baron
MCOM Treasurer-Historian

BruceWGT · **Posted:** Sat Nov 22, 2014 12:40 pm

Steve,

Its not that easy. If it was, there would be people doing it all over the place I am sure and the tuner companies wouldn't be making many sales. As I understand it, a tuner is locked to the control module of a car when a tune is installed on the car. The only way for a friend to be able to put a tune of your car would be for him to reload the stock tune on his car and then the tuner is unlocked to put a tune on your car. However, while the tune is on your car, the tuner is locked to your car and cannot be used on your friend's (who loaned you the tuner) car unless you put the stock tune back on your car which defeats the purpose of putting a tune on your car. Its the same as having a software license that can only be used on one computer system at a time. Anyone please feel free to correct me if I am wrong on this.

Bruce

Red Baron · **Posted:** Sat Nov 22, 2014 2:00 pm

I'm sure that you are probably right about the tuners having the software to only work on one specific car. That being said there are probably some people savvy enough to modify the tuners too.

The Red Baron
MCOM Treasurer-Historian

BruceWGT · **Posted:** Fri Nov 28, 2014 4:47 pm

Picked up a tuner for a really good price. Removed the insert from and the CAI and the Ghost got its first performance tune. Feels good. Haven't been able to stretch its legs like i want because of all the traffic but the low end power increase is very noticeable. Thanks Bob!

Red Baron · **Posted:** Sun Nov 30, 2014 12:05 pm

Great news Bruce! :btu:

It's nice to know that you can feel tangible results after installing the CAI with the Tune. Kind of makes you wonder why the factory doesn't offer this as a performance option.

The Red Baron
MCOM Treasurer-Historian

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Airaid Rebate Surprise

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