Is it really worth putting a Cold Air Intake on 370z and what HP gains

Originally Posted by Speedy

I've seen a couple of folks mention better throttle response, but I'm confused by that. I've not looked at the stock intake system on mine too closely yet, but does it have mufflers or baffles? That would be about the only thing that could cause any sensation of better throttle response going with an aftermarket system that eliminated any such baffling allowing a more direct shot for the air to flow, but it would have to be a significant change. Cooler air alone isn't going to help the throttle any.

Like I said early on, the 370z is a MAF based system (mass air flow) so it's PCM can and will adjust to more air flow by adding necessary fuel and thus more power is made. Same with Mustangs and Camaros. However, I think it'd be hard to really say you feel 20HP. It's just not going to be that obvious when it comes to moving a 3300 lbs car. Under IDEAL conditions and perfect driving you'll only realize about a 2MPH faster ET in the 1/4 mile with an extra 20 horses. That's not a lot considering and I'd be shocked if one could actually feel it driving.

The best bang for the buck will likely be a custom tune. My next thing to look in to is the tuning on these cars to see what's what. I can tell ya on the Challenger, adding 1 degree of timing to the tune gives an extra 15-20HP. I'd imagine it's similar on the 370z, but you have to be careful and run good fuel. So if the stock tune is uber safe, and they normally are, you could fatten up the AFR a tick and keep it around 12-12:5 and add a couple degrees of timing and gain 30-40HP just in the tune alone, and likely with throttle by wire make the throttle a bit more sensitive in the program, and have a REAL gain in throttle response.