Spectre CAI reviews?

Anyone running a specre cold air intake. I know you get what you pay for but they are half the price of a K&N kit. I just put a mufflex 18"" on my truck and want to feed it some more air. Thanks for the advice.

No experience with them but I can tell you that Moe's doesn't sell them.... so there's that...

Spectre is a division of K&N. BlownGP runs one on his 4th gen and seems to like it, you're gonna get a lot of people say s&b or vararam though.

What mods do you have aside from the Mufflex kit?

Of all the aftermarket intakes available, the Spectre kit is at the bottom of the list. It doesn't have a good heat shield to block engine heat, and it has a metal intake tube that absorbs heat as well. Kinda defeats the purpose of a "cold" air intake when the hot tubing is sucking in hot air.

I would apply that intake money towards a tuner.

Just have the mufflex and a level no other mods I know a tuner would be nice but I don't have the funds to drop on a high end one and I don't want to get anything other than a hemi fever product from what I've seen on here!

I learned my lesson a long time ago...its better to save longer and buy a good product than to settle for what you can afford now and have to replace it down the road.

I would hold onto that money you have set aside for the intake, and just keep saving until you can get the tuner. The InTune DCX is only $489 with the custom tuning included, and you will benefit more from that 1 mod alone than from even a quality intake, ported throttle body, and exhaust combined.

Alright thanks for the advice

I just bought a ebay copy of the Spectre intake. I always thought intakes were BS anyways but for 70 bucks I could not pass it up (I am more in it for the noise). I dont get a mod budget any more so when i find stuff like this I jump on it. I do plan to modify it to make it a bit better tho, please read on..

To elaborate on what Moes Performance said, All of K&N's intakes have metal intake tubes except the 63-1561. and same goes with 99% of the rest of the aftermarket. Other than the diameter of the tube, and the better filter these intakes (with the exception of the vararam) are all the same. The factory airbox is made of plastic and does not soak heat as much as metal, and neither does the rubber tube, but the corrugated tube causes flow issues as well as the box itself - this is the same for most factory intakes.

so with that being said regardless of the heat shield and tube material and the intake the intake system is still INSIDE the engine bay where it is surrounded by heat, and its getting air to the box from the outside - just like the stock air box did. I am a firm believer that the little increase of power intakes claim to give on this truck is due to increased air flow, not because of lower temps. if its cooler air you are after my suggestion with an intake of this style would be to wrap the tube in header wrap, and put some heat wrap on the "heat shield".

All of the claims that one is better than the other I have seen on here is due to quality and claims of power on the butt dyno. i guess what im trying to say is every intake except the vararam is the same in a sense and the small differences are not going to make a difference, at the end of the day it is what it is. a tube with a filter.. if you want a sick looking intake then spend the money on it, but if you want an intake that will probably perform the same and looks cheap then buy the spectre..

any pics of the spectre?

I'm actually considering the Spectre kit also. Sure, it's cheap. But, with my budget, it's what I can do. I'm also thinking about the DIY mod to allow more air into the box.

I'm not looking for huge performance gains... I don't race my truck or really need to go any faster than what I currently drive. I'm just looking for something to do to my truck to ease that "modification bug" that we all have. I'm planning on either painting the intake tube, or wrapping it with heat tape or something along those lines, anyway... so why not get something a little cheaper. That way, I can get an intake, and a Magnaflow muffler for the same price as K&N or S&B intake by itself.

I dont have pics yet. i just ordered it. once I install it and paint it I will post up some pics

Jmhm17 said:

I dont have pics yet. i just ordered it. once I install it and paint it I will post up some pics

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gotcha... just curious how they look installed!

I have one and like it. Design wise it's not any different than anything else besides the vararam.

It uses the lower factory part of the box and has a rubber gasket you install on the top of the box to seal with the hood. So it seems pretty well insulated.

I just took a road trip and my IATs stayed 5-6* above ambient temp.
And I got around 20mpg.

So there's that
I could care less about HP. I think most don't give you much anyways. BESIDES the vararam MATT!!!!!!!!!!!! But I dont think any others have been tested as much.

^^ lol this is why i like you man.

here is a link to the site: http://www.spectreperformance.com/search/product.aspx?prod=9934 if you look at the install .pdf it shows you a picture if it installed. the box looks a bit eh.. but honslty whatever, its not a show car, and I could care less.

GP post up some pics

BlownGP said:

I have one and like it. Design wise it's not any different than anything else besides the vararam.

It uses the lower factory part of the box and has a rubber gasket you install on the top of the box to seal with the hood. So it seems pretty well insulated.

I just took a road trip and my IATs stayed 5-6* above ambient temp.
And I got around 20mpg.

So there's that
I could care less about HP. I think most don't give you much anyways. BESIDES the vararam MATT!!!!!!!!!!!! But I dont think any others have been tested as much.

Click to expand...

Any pics? I agree having had various intakes through the years they don't really do much except make some noise... I would love to see actual dyno sheets before and after the vararam showing said gains!

Jmhm17 said:

^^ lol this is why i like you man.

here is a link to the site: 9934 - Spectre Air Intake Systems - Muscle Car, Spectre Air Intake Kit if you look at the install .pdf it shows you a picture if it installed. the box looks a bit eh.. but honslty whatever, its not a show car, and I could care less.

GP post up some pics

Click to expand...

thank u sir!

The vararam actually works because there's no plumbing to restrict flow and there's a very limited space for the air to travel before it enters the TB so its getting "cooler" air. but again, its ugly, and stupid expensive, and you have to take it off every time you do anything to your truck, and replacement filters are a monopoly since they are proprietary.

As for "actually works" comment I made its not going to give you this ridiculous power thats going to make you **** your pants when you hit the throttle, and for 300+ bucks on something thats supposed to be a supporting mod is just overkill (and over rated).. it just increased air flow and lowers temps and the gain is minimal (if existent) for a stock motor.

in the world of intakes and doing what its suppose to do, yeah - sure, it works. as for giving you real power on its own for the price? no, its an overpriced POS thats making someone very rich..

Jmhm17 said:

^^ lol this is why i like you man.

here is a link to the site: 9934 - Spectre Air Intake Systems - Muscle Car, Spectre Air Intake Kit if you look at the install .pdf it shows you a picture if it installed. the box looks a bit eh.. but honslty whatever, its not a show car, and I could care less.

GP post up some pics

Click to expand...

Thanks man, I try

The filter is actually bigger than that photo...The box is really sturdy and not plastic like most you see.

CMil527 said:

Any pics? I agree having had various intakes through the years they don't really do much except make some noise... I would love to see actual dyno sheets before and after the vararam showing said gains!

Click to expand...

Yeah Matt posted dyno gains of vararam. Whoo Whoo. We went round and round about how the Spectre CAI isn't good but whatever. For $150 you can't beat it.


Don't mind the dirty engine..lol

I don't want to fire up this argument again, so I will try to keep this short. We have run a few trucks on the dyno and seen as much as an 18hp/tq gain from the Vararam over stock, and even saw a 16hp/tq gain over the LMI short ram intake. We also tested 4 intakes on the same night at the dragstrip on a 2012 crew cab...only mod on this truck was our 85mm throttle body (stock tuning). Stock intake it ran 15.2. With K&N 63 series, it ran a 15.1. With the S&B w/o scoop, it ran a 14.9. And with Vararam, it ran a 14.8. Any mod that knocks .4 off your 1/4 mile time for only $300 is a bargain.

Not all intakes are created equal, so to say that all intakes are just noise makers is wrong. That's like saying all headers are junk because you only gained 8hp with your shorties. Many guys have picked up 25-30hp/tq on the dyno from longtubes.

We all have different goals, wants, and needs from our trucks...how much power do you want to make? That question will determine which route you should go with your mods.

There's nothing wrong with scratching the itch with a cheaper mod, but I learned long ago that those cheaper mods usually end up coming off and getting replaced with better mods down the road (thus costing you more money in the long run). That is why I say to hold off until you can afford the better part, regardless of which mod it is that you want.

Phss... 150 bucks?

here I think theres one left...
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