According to the knowledgable sales rep at Advance Auto Parts. The best CAI for my (non-turbo) Mazda3 would be an AEM. When I mentioned Injen, he told me they perform the best only with a turbo and AEM would be the way to go. I know alot of members here have CAIs, I was wondering if you could give me an opinion about AEM products?

 

there is always a argument between which one is better. i dont think you are going to see THAT MUCH of a difference between the two. but go with what you think is better, to me i lean towards AEM

 

Thanks for the input. I've found a new aem CAI (blue pipe) for under $250 with shipping. That's a good price. How difficult is installation? I don't have experience under the hood; could I do it with a few friends or would it be above us?

 

fyi, a mazdaspeed intake is made by AEM

i just bought a F5 Fujita.
$200, and no problems at all

 

installing the intake is a bit tough...
there are two ways of doing it.

removing the fron bumper or removing thedriver's sidewheel/wheel well.
once you remove the old intake, and resonator, the rest is easy.

 

I have the AEM cold air intake in my 2.0 mzd3 sedan. Fortunatley no CEL. Took my car a week or so to get used to the new intake. But everything is all good now. I love the sound at high RPM. Esp when im flooring it on the freeway. =)

As for installation..taking out your stock intake is a BI*** but putting on the AEM is quite easy. took me less than 30 minutes to do it. I didnt remove my front bumper, jut the cover@the bottom.

 

funny that everyone is saying its easy. i took my mazdaspeed intake to this guy who SUPPOSEDLY knew what he was doing. he suggested i CUT the pipes cuz a short ram is better. i just looked at him and didnt know whether to laugh or yell at the idiot. btw this guy doesnt work for mazda. it was a regualr shop. neways, whether you get a mazdaspeed, injen, or aem intake, if its made for a specific car, there is no cutting required!! just a small tip for anyone trying to "junkyard rig" their car.

 

So is the warranty covered if u have it put in/do it yourself OR mazda does it ?

 

Your Mazda's warranty will be fine as long as your CAI doesnt affect other parts of your car. But, if you buy a cheap CAI and something happens to it, your screwed. (FYI; I have the 36mo/30,000 mi, and straight from the Mazda shop's mech. and won't go against your warranty. He also stated now a CAI is one of the most common inexpensive mods that truly is effective)

 

who to believe???