Holley iNTECH CAI for 2.0L Non-eTorque Initial Review

[TrailSnail]

I installed Holley's intake over the weekend and figured I'd do a post about it since I hadn't seen much prior to purchase.

Installation was simple and took under an hour. Like most things, it didn't go without a hiccup or two. The sealed airbox-to-filter-to-tube design takes finagling to assemble. Even once you get it figured out, it's not exactly an easy or intuitive process and by nature of the design, cleaning the filter will mean disconnecting the vac lines and IAT sensor and removing the tube from the inlet. I'm not sure why manufacturers are going to airboxes like these (the AFE on my last Tacoma was the same way) but it's much more of a PITA to service the filter than just removing a cover and undoing a single hose clamp. On the bright side, the filter is huge, nicely designed, oil-free, and Holley's design retains the factory "snorkel" piece and airbox inlet location. This means there is no more risk of water/dust inhalation than the stock airbox, but also that there's likely no practical drop in IATs either.

After installation, I took the Trail Snail for a quick test drive, hammering the gas a few times. Past experiences taught me to expect a slightly harder pull in the upper-mid RPM range, especially at WOT, some intakes even bumping the "grunt range" of the engine higher in the RPM band at the expense of low-end response much like a manifold with longer runners does on a carbureted engine. Nothing like that was observable. Similarly, I was hoping for the deep, throaty induction sounds most aftermarket intakes produce - even newer "sealed" designs with helmholtz resonators. But to my dismay, it sounded completely stock... no growl, no resonance, just "whoosh" as it was to begin with. The lack of what I expected to feel on the butt dyno, combined with stock-sounding acoustics, made my initial impression "well, this was a waste."

Later the same day I jumped in and just went about my business, almost forgetting that I had just installed the intake. I immediately noticed that it seemed different. I was of the opinion that my JLU already drove very well, but there was suddenly a notable increase in smoothness, for lack of a better term. It just felt "happy." The way in which power was being delivered from the very bottom of the RPM range through the low-mid range compared to before was quite obviously better. Wait, what!? I thought maybe I was imagining things. But the more I drove, the more impressed I was. The turbo seems to spool faster off idle and there's almost no observable boost lag under normal driving conditions now. From a dead stop, it smoothly and strongly scoots away with a quick and buttery smooth torque delivery until the 2.0 begins to get gassed out up high, just as before. whereas I was able to clearly distinguish where boost started building as the RPMs climbed before. It has a more linear and less "stagey" feel throughout the power band Further evidence of this was observed this morning, because I was surprised at how quickly and effortlessly I was building up speed on the same route I take to the office every day.

TL;DR: It doesn't feel faster or sound beefier, therefore, it won't tickle a boy racer's pickle. However, this is a surprisingly well-engineered and mature upgrade that enhanced the areas where the little 2.0 already shined, bringing more liveliness and refinement to power delivery down low where it's most useful.

500 MILE UPDATE
As the Jeep's computers have adjusted to the new intake over time, power has continued to improve considerably (in the same areas noted before). Believe it or not, I can even hear a sucking sound that wasn't there before, indicating the PCM is actually allowing it to breathe more. I am absolutely impressed with the performance - specifically, with how and where the improvements are found. From idle to over 4,500 RPM, it undoubtedly runs smoother and revs quicker than stock despite the weight and rolling resistance I've added. It takes off like a little brick-shaped rocket on 35s eagerly and effortlessly from a red light. Power delivery is noticeably more refined and the Jeep is just happier feeling overall. Hands down, this is the most pleasant and well-engineered CAI I've ever owned.

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[Herson]

My understanding is that Mishimoto has an article on these CAI on the turbo engine and basically it does nothing. I was considering one but I rather spend money on the superchips tune and gain power and torque for sure and not spend about the same money on a CAI system and not change anything.

 

[TrailSnail]

My understanding is that Mishimoto has an article on these CAI on the turbo engine and basically it does nothing. I was considering one but I rather spend money on the superchips tune and gain power and torque for sure and not spend about the same money on a CAI system and not change anything.

Clearly you didn't read my post, but that's cool. You do you.

 

[cs2k]

I really enjoyed reading this review, much more informative than just "more power". Thank you for taking the time to share. In the Mishimoto blog post on CAI development, they did mention that their in-dev CAI didn't have a drastic effect on HP/torque but had a pretty big effect on the torque curve. I wonder if the Holley intake works through similar ways, by altering the torque/hp curves.

Its also interesting to see your 500 mile update about how the PCM has adapted to the increased flow. I wonder if PCM tunes (flashpaq) and/or Piggyback tunes (jb4/pulsar) will take advantage of CAIs further.

 

[TrailSnail]

I really enjoyed reading this review, much more informative than just "more power". Thank you for taking the time to share. In the Mishimoto blog post on CAI development, they did mention that their in-dev CAI didn't have a drastic effect on HP/torque but had a pretty big effect on the torque curve. I wonder if the Holley intake works through similar ways, by altering the torque/hp curves.

Its also interesting to see your 500 mile update about how the PCM has adapted to the increased flow. I wonder if PCM tunes (flashpaq) and/or Piggyback tunes (jb4/pulsar) will take advantage of CAIs further.

I'm glad you got something out of it. Indeed, it's hard to say definitively that there's "more power" so I try to avoid making that sort of claim, but I can say with certainty the Jeep indeed "runs better" than it did before. The biggest problem with reviewing something like this is that there's so many factors at play... Maybe I got better gas this time. Maybe it's the cooler weather. Maybe its subconscious justification of my effort and expense and I'm completely full of crap.

As always, the reader's mileage may vary, but I wouldn't be keen on posting about it if I thought it sucked. Unless it REALLY sucked.

 

[Herson]

Clearly you didn't read my post, but that's cool. You do you.

Yes I read your post and that's why I posted what I said.

"On modern turbocharged vehicles, an intake likely won’t make power without an ECU tune. Turbocharged engines operate within a much smaller margin of error, so the ECU is programmed to hit a target torque within a target air/fuel ratio and not deviate from those specs unless there’s an issue. No matter how much better the intake flows, the engine won’t pull in the air unless it’s told to by the ECU."
Mishimoto

I saw the holley graph of this CAI and it is very hard to believe the dyno run and those gains. The gains are very similar to the gains of the superchips ECU tune. Some people believe in ghosts but, just like you said you do you lol

 

[TrailSnail]

Yes I read your post and that's why I posted what I said.

"On modern turbocharged vehicles, an intake likely won’t make power without an ECU tune. Turbocharged engines operate within a much smaller margin of error, so the ECU is programmed to hit a target torque within a target air/fuel ratio and not deviate from those specs unless there’s an issue. No matter how much better the intake flows, the engine won’t pull in the air unless it’s told to by the ECU."
Mishimoto

I saw the holley graph of this CAI and it is very hard to believe the dyno run and those gains. The gains are very similar to the gains of the superchips ECU tune. Some people believe in ghosts but, just like you said you do you lol

My point, though subtle, was that I don't care about opinions from those with obviously no experience in the matter being discussed, especially when they weren't asked. I made no claims about performance numbers, I did not post a dyno chart, and I didn't introduce any 3rd party conjecture.

Speaking of conjecture, merely citing another opinion which parallels your own is not evidence that backs up your claim, especially when that opinion comes from a small-time manufacturer who posted their excruciatingly long, blog-like development processes which boiled down to taking a pig and a poke at minor design revisions akin to something I'd do in my garage rather than what's to be expected from a professional R&D team. "Hey, let's try this and see if it works..." is not engineering, it's trial and error. In the end, they themselves said there was nothing to be gained from their intake and fallaciously drew the conclusion that it had nothing to do with their design, but rather the "ECU"... which, by the way, is a PCM, not an ECU. There is a difference, but neither you or they seem to know that, either.

Feel free to fire back, I have a couple hours before my next meeting.

 

[Herson]

My point, though subtle, was that I don't care about opinions from those with obviously no experience in the matter being discussed, especially when they weren't asked. I made no claims about performance numbers, I did not post a dyno chart, and I didn't introduce any 3rd party conjecture.

Speaking of conjecture, merely citing another opinion which parallels your own is not evidence that backs up your claim, especially when that opinion comes from a small-time manufacturer who posted their excruciatingly long, blog-like development processes which boiled down to taking a pig and a poke at minor design revisions akin to something I'd do in my garage rather than what's to be expected from a professional R&D team. "Hey, let's try this and see if it works..." is not engineering, it's trial and error. In the end, they themselves said there was nothing to be gained from their intake and fallaciously drew the conclusion that it had nothing to do with their design, but rather the "ECU"... which, by the way, is a PCM, not an ECU. There is a difference, but neither you or they seem to know that, either.

Feel free to fire back, I have a couple hours before my next meeting.

Nah… just enjoy your rocket ship with that CAI.

 

[TrailSnail]

Nah… just enjoy your rocket ship with that CAI.

So rekt you had to resort to taking quotes out of context. Classic move, you should run for office.

 

[jjvincent]

Looks like a well made product. It's good to see the aftermarket use advanced surfacing and then utilizing OEM style materials as to make it not look like some guy built it in his garage. I can see that they must have done some testing as they have that extra part right in the middle (between the two bolts) as that's to change the resonance of the intake so it won't have that drone. Many cars use that today to tune the sound so it's not annoying.

I just wish companies would stop using "cold air intake" as just about every car made has one. It should be "alternate intake" as that's what it really is. It would be nice if they would insulate it as that would reduce the amount of heat transfer and heat soak that you get with traditional intakes. Since I'm in the world of motorsports, we see this and thus insulate the intake to help keep a more consistent level of power as an event goes on.

 

[mgroeger]

Interesting to note that Holley discontinued this...

https://www.holley.com/products/discontinued_product/parts/223-37

 

[Zissou]

I installed Holley's intake over the weekend and figured I'd do a post about it since I hadn't seen much prior to purchase.

Installation was simple and took under an hour. Like most things, it didn't go without a hiccup or two. The sealed airbox-to-filter-to-tube design takes finagling to assemble. Even once you get it figured out, it's not exactly an easy or intuitive process and by nature of the design, cleaning the filter will mean disconnecting the vac lines and IAT sensor and removing the tube from the inlet. I'm not sure why manufacturers are going to airboxes like these (the AFE on my last Tacoma was the same way) but it's much more of a PITA to service the filter than just removing a cover and undoing a single hose clamp. On the bright side, the filter is huge, nicely designed, oil-free, and Holley's design retains the factory "snorkel" piece and airbox inlet location. This means there is no more risk of water/dust inhalation than the stock airbox, but also that there's likely no practical drop in IATs either.

After installation, I took the Trail Snail for a quick test drive, hammering the gas a few times. Past experiences taught me to expect a slightly harder pull in the upper-mid RPM range, especially at WOT, some intakes even bumping the "grunt range" of the engine higher in the RPM band at the expense of low-end response much like a manifold with longer runners does on a carbureted engine. Nothing like that was observable. Similarly, I was hoping for the deep, throaty induction sounds most aftermarket intakes produce - even newer "sealed" designs with helmholtz resonators. But to my dismay, it sounded completely stock... no growl, no resonance, just "whoosh" as it was to begin with. The lack of what I expected to feel on the butt dyno, combined with stock-sounding acoustics, made my initial impression "well, this was a waste."

Later the same day I jumped in and just went about my business, almost forgetting that I had just installed the intake. I immediately noticed that it seemed different. I was of the opinion that my JLU already drove very well, but there was suddenly a notable increase in smoothness, for lack of a better term. It just felt "happy." The way in which power was being delivered from the very bottom of the RPM range through the low-mid range compared to before was quite obviously better. Wait, what!? I thought maybe I was imagining things. But the more I drove, the more impressed I was. The turbo seems to spool faster off idle and there's almost no observable boost lag under normal driving conditions now. From a dead stop, it smoothly and strongly scoots away with a quick and buttery smooth torque delivery until the 2.0 begins to get gassed out up high, just as before. whereas I was able to clearly distinguish where boost started building as the RPMs climbed before. It has a more linear and less "stagey" feel throughout the power band Further evidence of this was observed this morning, because I was surprised at how quickly and effortlessly I was building up speed on the same route I take to the office every day.

TL;DR: It doesn't feel faster or sound beefier, therefore, it won't tickle a boy racer's pickle. However, this is a surprisingly well-engineered and mature upgrade that enhanced the areas where the little 2.0 already shined, bringing more liveliness and refinement to power delivery down low where it's most useful.

500 MILE UPDATE
As the Jeep's computers have adjusted to the new intake over time, power has continued to improve considerably (in the same areas noted before). Believe it or not, I can even hear a sucking sound that wasn't there before, indicating the PCM is actually allowing it to breathe more. I am absolutely impressed with the performance - specifically, with how and where the improvements are found. From idle to over 4,500 RPM, it undoubtedly runs smoother and revs quicker than stock despite the weight and rolling resistance I've added. It takes off like a little brick-shaped rocket on 35s eagerly and effortlessly from a red light. Power delivery is noticeably more refined and the Jeep is just happier feeling overall. Hands down, this is the most pleasant and well-engineered CAI I've ever owned.

I had the Holley intech on my 2016 Mustang GT.
A key lesson I learned on that car was that you needed to disconnect the battery during the install so the computer essentially reboots (basically I think it needed to be disconnected for like 20 min, and it was going to take about that to install it).

After doing it both ways it ran so much better when the battery leads were disconnected and reset.

Similar to you experience it's a very OEM+ build in that it looks and sounds stock. On my mustang there was a noticeable butt dyno improvement in the mid-range. An open box would have had all the induction sounds, but certainly would not have filtered air as well, which is the sole purpose of the air filter haha.

I was very impressed with it on the mustang. If they make one for the 392 I would consider getting one when mine comes in.

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