Cobb intake with car completely stock?

[gmerdj]

Hey everyone. My 2008 MS3 is completely stock and i am looking to get a cobb intake. I have done some research but want to see if anyone here has feedback after doing so. Cobb site said a tune is required for the intake, but i have read on threads that it is not required. So reading a lot of different opinions, anyone have experience with only getting the intake?
I am not looking to do any other mods besides the intake, maybe a Rear Motor Mount if necessary with the intake.

Thoughts? Thanks in advance!

[Wcdfmt510]

No a tune is not required unless you're going to a 3.0 or 3.5 in intake

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If you plan on modding it alot more. Next thing you should buy is hpfp internals then a accessport

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[gmerdj]

Originally Posted by Wcdfmt510 No a tune is not required unless you're going to a 3.0 or 3.5 in intake Sent from my Moto Z (2) using Tapatalk If you plan on modding it alot more. Next thing you should buy is hpfp internals then a accessport Sent from my Moto Z (2) using Tapatalk

Man thank you so much for the quick response. I want to keep the car as reliable as possible but want to add the intake to get a little more turbo noise. Do you recommend a rear motor mount or anything else among getting the cobb intake? I do not want to get it if i am going to have to buy other mods or run into problems down the road.

[Wcdfmt510]

Imo buy the damond Motorsports mount.. best out there. . You will be fine with the intake without having to do the hpfp or accessport..

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If you get the Cobb intake. Get the one with the turbo inlet pipe to

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[MSMS3]

Originally Posted by gmerdj Man thank you so much for the quick response. I want to keep the car as reliable as possible but want to add the intake to get a little more turbo noise. Do you recommend a rear motor mount or anything else among getting the cobb intake? I do not want to get it if i am going to have to buy other mods or run into problems down the road.

As long as you retain the stock diameter of the MAF housing, no tune is needed. I hope you are modifying for power and not just noise. A short ram or cold air intake will generate about a 15 whp gain because the stock air box is so restrictive. It will let you hear the turbo spool and the rush of air passing through the filter. But, it’s purpose is to make more power.

I disagree regarding turbo inlet pipe. No power gain. Zero performance gain. Wasted money except for making juvenile noise.

A good rear motor mount is a solid investment. There are many threads here about the choices. Choose one of the former than stock, but not really hard centered ones, or you will have noticeable cabin vibrations at idle, especially if the a/c is on and pulling idle rpm down. Look for the center to be made of 70 dura stiffness. 80 will produce a lot of shaking at idle on stock idle rpm. 60 is too soft.

The official “sticky” on motor mounts (always begin by reading the stickies):

The Motor Mount Thread

Be sure to read the first page and the last, if you don’t want to go through all 9 pages, although they are excellent.

[Wcdfmt510]

So what's the point of having a better flowing intake if your gonna leave the plastic OEM poorly shaped inlet pipe on it?

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[gmerdj]

Originally Posted by MSMS3 As long as you retain the stock diameter of the MAF housing, no tune is needed. I hope you are modifying for power and not just noise. A short ram or cold air intake will generate about a 15 whp gain because the stock air box is so restrictive. It will let you hear the turbo spool and the rush of air passing through the filter. But, it’s purpose is to make more power. I disagree regarding turbo inlet pipe. No power gain. Zero performance gain. Wasted money except for making juvenile noise. A good rear motor mount is a solid investment. There are many threads here about the choices. Choose one of the former than stock, but not really hard centered ones, or you will have noticeable cabin vibrations at idle, especially if the a/c is on and pulling idle rpm down. Look for the center to be made of 70 dura stiffness. 80 will produce a lot of shaking at idle on stock idle rpm. 60 is too soft. The official “sticky” on motor mounts (always begin by reading the stickies): The Motor Mount Thread Be sure to read the first page and the last, if you don’t want to go through all 9 pages, although they are excellent.

Thanks for the response. Although i would like to get some additional power with the intake, i have read that they do not truly add a noticeable increase, which is why i said i wanted it to hear the turbo more and to let it breath a little more. However, if it does really add some hp, that would be awesome. Would the cobb intake be safe in terms of same sizing of stock MAF housing?
Also, i have found a used cobb intake and turbo inlet pipe, $200 for both, should i go for this? Or should i just get a brand new intake without the inlet.
And i will definitely check out the thread for the motor mounts, thanks again.

[gmerdj]

Originally Posted by Wcdfmt510 So what's the point of having a better flowing intake if your gonna leave the plastic OEM poorly shaped inlet pipe on it? Sent from my Moto Z (2) using Tapatalk

Good point. I'm fairly new to all this so i dont know much about the turbo inlet pipe but after you commented yesterday i did some research on it. It seems 50/50 that people replace the inlet pipe when they get a new intake. Like i said i want to keep the car as reliable as possible so im just trying to get educated by your replies and other threads before i jump into anything.
I'm unsure if you saw my response the other person responding, but i found a used cobb intake and inlet for $200. Should i go for it or buy new? He said he put around 20k on it, but bought it used himself as well. Thanks in advance, i appreciate the inputs.

[Wcdfmt510]

Personally I would just get the intake with the inlet pipe. Not gonna loose any reliability.. there might be little to no performance gains, but it will help air flow and turbulence in the intake track

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[MSMS3]

Originally Posted by Wcdfmt510 So what's the point of having a better flowing intake if your gonna leave the plastic OEM poorly shaped inlet pipe on it? Sent from my Moto Z (2) using Tapatalk

Because that strangely, not “poorly”, shaped inlet pipe outflows the maximum cfm of the turbo, at least at safe AFR levels on premium pump gas. That is my real world experience in running the stock inlet pipe with my mods below maxing out the turbo at 300/310 whp on 93 octane.

Hook a fire hose up to it and it will still flow no better than the turbo can. Weird pancake shape notwithstanding, it flows quite well on the stock turbo.

That’s why.

Originally Posted by Wcdfmt510 Personally I would just get the intake with the inlet pipe. Not gonna loose any reliability.. there might be little to no performance gains, but it will help air flow and turbulence in the intake track Sent from my Moto Z (2) using Tapatalk

Except it doesn’t. Doubt me, show me the proof.

[Wcdfmt510]

They are designed to have optimum flow at 15psi for stock levels. Now when up up the boos to 20-21, about Max for the ko4 then it be like a bottle neck. My car didn't like stock inlet pipe at 20psi

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[MSMS3]

Originally Posted by Wcdfmt510 They are designed to have optimum flow at 15psi for stock levels. Now when up up the boos to 20-21, about Max for the ko4 then it be like a bottle neck. My car didn't like stock inlet pipe at 20psi Sent from my Moto Z (2) using Tapatalk

Is that 20-21 psi at 6,000 rpm or higher on pump gas on a K04? Or did it taper? I would think 20-21 psi would make too much torque to be safe at lower rpm, and generate way too much heat at higher rpm - dangerous EGTs and very hot IATs that would kill power. You would need to be running ethanol blend in the E30 or E35 to get away with that. What does your timing curve and AFR look like?

I ran 17-18 psi tune at 4,000 with taper to 14 at 6,000 and maxed out the turbo at 300/310 whp at 17-18 degrees of timing up top, with the stock TIP, 3” catless dp/rp, upgraded pump internals and Mazdaspeed/AEM CAI.

Do you have a data log or dyno pull? I’d love to compare.

[MSMS3]

Originally Posted by gmerdj Thanks for the response. Although i would like to get some additional power with the intake, i have read that they do not truly add a noticeable increase, which is why i said i wanted it to hear the turbo more and to let it breath a little more. However, if it does really add some hp, that would be awesome. Would the cobb intake be safe in terms of same sizing of stock MAF housing? Also, i have found a used cobb intake and turbo inlet pipe, $200 for both, should i go for this? Or should i just get a brand new intake without the inlet. And i will definitely check out the thread for the motor mounts, thanks again.

Intake doesn’t make noticeable power? Strange observation. The stock air box is notoriously restrictive. Usually a SRI or CAI intake is the very first thing we recommend because that alone gives you 15-18 whp gain. That is huge. When Car and Driver tested a new Gen 1 they did before and after dyno pulls and saw +18 whp from the Mazdaspeed/AEM CAI. That was on stock tune. A SRI will do the same. Our collective experience reaches the same conclusion.

There is no other single power mod that produces more horsepower per dollar on this car than an SRI or CAI. Period. Any intake designed for this car, provided it has the stock MAF housing diameter and has a good high flow conical filter, including Cobb, will be safe.