I've already got a few stickers on my sedan, so I'm good on power. But if Stillen's website is to be trusted, I stand to gain a couple HP on at least the peaky side of my power.

2013 G37x Sedan 7AT

Honestly, I consider my car a prude schoolgirl. Incredibly reserved in most every way (except MPG), but when she decides to put out, you'd better hold the f on because she's been wanting this for awhile. I would prefer to have my car be a bit more on the slutty side, and I understand a CAI will help her purr a bit louder during every day driving instead of just at WOT.

Eventually I plan on getting an exhaust, but I've decided to wait for the meantime to avoid pissing off my neighbors any more than I already do.

I've been eyeballing the G3 CAI for awhile, but $500 isn't exactly pocket change. I'm very close to pulling the trigger, so why shouldn't I buy the Stillen at $500 versus, say, some cheaper alternatives?

 

"Watch out! It's a trap"!

 

Your euphemisms are pretty great. Going along those lines, my car is the old, sad prostitute who still performs well despite being the most worn-out woman in the brothel.

Anyways, there is a bunch of debate on the claimed numbers. Most people on this site tend to stick towards the functionality of a true cold-air intake, while others just say "whatever sounds good to you". Depending on where you live, I could probably help make up your mind a bit easier.

Do you sit in traffic often? Is that traffic you're sitting in surrounded by really warm, humid air? If "yes", you might want to stay away from short-ram intakes, which really only leaves the Stillen Gen 3 or the Takeda intakes on the table.

Because I'm bored, I'll play devil's advocate here.

While aftermarket intakes are great, the good folks at Infiniti/Nissan over-engineered the sh*t out of our intakes. They perform really well, and while your butt dyno may feel better for having those Gen 3's, the actual performance is quite negligible in the larger scope of things.

Aftermarket intakes usually give you more gains in the higher end of the RPM band, while stock airboxes and short-ram systems usually provide more grunt in the low end. The Amuse (yes, THAT Amuse) racecar (350z version) used stock intakes FWIW.

Since you're like me and have an X, your choices for exhaust and mods are a bit more limited than our 'S' brethren. If that $500 is burning a hole in your pocket for mods, I'll list some you can actually feel:

1. Sway bar: Our cars greatly benefit from a better rear sway bar (ours is disgustingly puny, hence the gross amount of 24/7 understeer).

2. RTP/RHFC: Since you aren't sure on exhaust yet, a pair of resonated test pipes or high-flow cats will provide gains you can actually feel on your butt dyno, while also slightly increasing the VQ growl we all love. Since gains from catback exhausts are quite poor on a power/cost ratio, getting rid of your stock cats is one of the best things you can do to free up some power for not a large amount of money.

3. Drop-Ins for stock airboxes / Z1 silicone tubes - You can buy modification parts aimed at retaining the stock airboxes and making them slightly more efficient.

Instead of blowing $500 on G3's and having the joy of taking a dremel to your car to make them fit, you could spend around the same amount of money and have 2 of the three things I listed above. Just food for thought.

At the end of the day, its your call. Do some more research if you need some more claims to back whatever argument you side with

 

Ha! Great input, thanks. Maybe I should go sway + HFC instead. The only thing with HFC or even test pipes I worry about is ****ting all over the environment without the cat. IDK how much worse it is, as I've never done such a mod, but if it's like sitting behind the Civic that smells like it's about to burst into flames I might pass.

That said, sway bars are a great idea. I like to go sideways and would love a bit more snappy handling to help when I screw up.

 

"Sway bar: Our cars greatly benefit from a better rear sway bar (ours is disgustingly puny, hence the gross amount of 24/7 understeer)."

Quoted for truth. Substitute a rear Sport bar. Can be found in the Classifieds forum regularly. Fits perfectly and AWD owners rave about the new handling feel.

 

Well, I've run test pipes/open dumps on my last two turbo cars and eventually got used to the smell. It's really not that bad, I think some people on forums over-exaggerate the smell. If you're that concerned about it or the environment, OR you live in a state that does emissions testing: go with the RHFC. The HP decrease is negligible between them and true test-pipes. And for the love of god, whatever you decide upon, make sure to get them resonated, or else you'll sound like that Civic.

As to the sway bars, def a worthwhile upgrade. It is absolutely a night/day difference. As Slarti mentioned, you can usually find them in the FS section, BUT, you can also troll the370 forums as well, since our cars can take G37s sway bars as well as sway bars taken from 370z Nismos. Remember to replace the endlinks. When all is said and done you shouldn't have a problem breaking the tail loose occasionally

 

Test pipes aren't an odor problem for the you, it's a problem for the cars following you. Gack!

 

What hfc would u recommend & one that wouldn’t set off CEL light

 

Check the Tech/Intake and Exhaust forum.

 

There is a good amount of debate surrounding much of this, only because most of the evidence is anecdotal. Some people run ____ brand of HFC and get a CEL, others don't.

That being said, myself and the overwhelming majority of the community really like FI HFC or RHFC. They are a bit pricey compared to brands and carry a 4-6 week waiting time, but they are quality pieces and have stellar customer service.

Of course, this isn't saying that Kinetix, Z1, or Berks are necessarily bad choices either. Almost every company "guarantees" no CEL with their product, yet individuals still get them here and there.

My advice to you is: do some research behind the brands/prices and see what works into your budget. You may get a CEL with any brand above, you may not. One thing to remember is that the labor for this part sucks because of the demon bolt (look into that and you'll see what I mean). The norm is around 2 hours of labor for test-pipes/HFCs usually. Also remember that you'll see the most gains from this part with a tune, which also totally negates any CEL you'll get (as an added "grain of salt" to my point).

 

So though I'm considering a RHFC now, could I expect much of a performance gain without a tune? I've also got the OEM exhaust, so IDK if better breathing through a RHFC would be the case if the exhaust still choked it, so to speak.

 

Yes. The cats/y-pipe are the most restrictive points of the stock exhaust system, so any modifications you did to improving them would be immediately noticeable. You will absolutely get a butt-dyno approved power gain from bolt ons like TPs/HFCs.

Think of a tune as the spices you add to a dish. Your bolt-ons are your stock/base that carries the real flavor, but your spices and garnishes marry the flavors and bind everything together. Tunes optimize what you already have, and just like a base for a sauce or stew, are only as capable as the ingredients and flavors (bolt-ons) they are able to accentuate.

 

Perfectly explained again, thanks.

FI seems like the way to go. Hopefully they'll run a special in the coming months so I can justify it for my bday.

That is, Fast Intentions, not forced induction....though that would be the bees knees.

 

Motorvate has a video where he dynos simple drop-ins and gains 10/10 hp/tq. If I could do it over, I'd modify the stock box and do drop ins. Won't be the most expensive drink for your school girl, but it will definitely do the trick and loosen her up . I'll agree with everyone else and say, sway bars for dayyyys. That + strut bar and the car is just a different animal. Before, the weight and body roll would let me know when I needed to back off. Now, I'll catch myself on a twisty road rocking along at 60 in a 30 without even really noticing.

Back to hp gains though, HFC/test pipe + replacing the stock mufflers and you're off to the races. Keep in mind, a good tune is needed to pull everything together.

 

Art pipes