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Best Cold Air Intake for the Focus ST?

127357 Views 143 Replies 54 Participants Last post by  Duece McCracken
I recently bought a new leftover 2016 Focus ST and im already looking at getting a cold air intake for mainly the sound.

What are your recommendations on one that sounds good and has decent proven power gains? So far, I know of Injen, Roush, and K&N

I will be sticking with a stock exhaust for now.

Thanks,
Mike
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Doubt you find repeatable power gains from a cai on these cars. There is an insane amount of heat under the hood on these cars.
I'm running a green filter with an rs airbox. As for power, didn't notice anything except maybe smoother response. It gives that open airbox sound, but since it actually seals to the hood not as much added heat gets to it.
Excuse the dirty engine, I had just returned from post intercooler install test driving !

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CPE Intake. Expensive but sexy as hell!

Vehicle Car Auto part Engine Hood


Sorry, tried like 5 times to get the pic right side up but it is not cooperating and I don't feel like wasting more time on it right now. I'm lame, I know...
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Roush is pretty bada$$, sounds and looks good.




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I bought a green filter and installed it without the lid. I get the sounds and no gain you get out of a full CAI for 50 bucks.
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RS airbox, 80 bucks and done. There is no power gain, they flow more than enough air as it is. Just noise.
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I have the injen an I love it!! Adds a lot of turbo noise an you can here the stock bpv also.

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Are these no tune needed CAI's?
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I guess technically (varies by person), stage 1 is CAI or filter and a cat back exhaust. But I am confident that you can run both without a tune (I did it). I am also confident that you could run a stage 1 tune without a CAI/filter and cat back.

I replaced the stock exhaust at like 800 miles since the stock exhaust sucks so bad it could take the hair off a donkeys nuts from 100 yards. The air filter came shortly after that. I ran both for a couple thousand miles before I got an AP.
This topic has been beat to death. The consensus seems to be that the stock intake piping is suitable to flow enough air to our tiny turbo. Replacing the paper filter with an aftermarket filter is the best bang for your buck. Other than that, it just comes down to which one is more aesthetically pleasing to you in regards to piping


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Get a green filter. Like turbo noise? Take top cover off. Want less turbo noise? Put cover back on.
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I bought an injen intake just because I think the rubber elbow that goes to the filter is ugly. And the filter doesn't have to be oiled which I find convenient. Just turn the regulator down on the air compressor and blow it out from the inside and you're done.

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Best CAI is no CAI, slap a small filter on the intake side of the turbo. boom more powa. OR instead of going over the whole hot engine block with a pipe, simply add a 90 d. elbow to the turbo, cut a 3 ' hole in the plastic put the straight tube through the plastic and boom instant intake stack. The front passenger has a great view of a intake.
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I have the InJen and love it, super loud and really cheap (245 @ autohance.com) you have to sand down the sheet metal where the heat shield attaches to the pcm ground cable though, not in the instructions but if you don't your car can randomly turn off while driving, after that fix tho it's awesome


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Green filter with stock tube ftw
Thanks for your opinions guys. Based upon my budget and what I am sensing... it is best to just replace the airfilter with either a Green Filter or a K&N and leave the airbox alone for now. (Might get CAI when i get an MBRP exhaust) but for now it appears the noise from a CAI compared to a re-usable filter with stock airbox, doesnt make much of a difference in both power and noise.
Thanks for your opinions guys. Based upon my budget and what I am sensing... it is best to just replace the airfilter with either a Green Filter or a K&N and leave the airbox alone for now. (Might get CAI when i get an MBRP exhaust) but for now it appears the noise from a CAI compared to a re-usable filter with stock airbox, doesnt make much of a difference in both power and noise.
It's been said before, not just by me,
AEM dry filter has better filtration than green and K&N, still flows more than stock, doesn't require oiling, and can be had for $40. If you want sound you can leave the lid off. Enjoy
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It's been said before, not just by me,
AEM dry filter has better filtration than green and K&N, still flows more than stock, doesn't require oiling, and can be had for $40. If you want sound you can leave the lid off. Enjoy
Yup...surprised this actually isn't pushed around here more than it is. Don't know why the Green gets all the hype.
Yup...surprised this actually isn't pushed around here more than it is. Don't know why the Green gets all the hype.
I think it's the open end. I think the only open-ended dry filter I could find was Airaid and it had a special box/lid to go with it, was more expensive and nobody was running it. Coming from a turbo outback, my symposer delete, closed airbox and stock exhaust sounds fine for me right now. Maybe down the road I will do res delete.
doesn't leaving the lid of the airbox off create more heat in the engine bay? Not something i really wanted to do. AEM dry filter does seem like a good buy, but if it doesnt offer any sound difference the only purpose of it is for re-usability
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