Product Review: A'PEXi Power Intake

[xpertsnowcarver]

Hello everyone. I would like to take the time to submit a product review for the A'PEXi Power Intake for the 2004-2006 TSX. This review is mainly oriented for TSX owners who do NOT have a Hondata ECU but do have an aftermarket intake or, in this case, the A'PEXi Power Intake. (In the future, I will provide dyno results of this intake and a Hondata ECU, but not any time soon.) The results in this review are of a 2006 TSX 5 Speed Auto (w/ Navi).

To Begin:


Here we have the box and its contents. You are provided with a foam weather strip (w/ adhesive), intake pipe, intake cone, intake cone gasket, six bolts, washers, two brackets, one hose clamp, and installation instructions (in Japanese). The intake pipe is mandrel bent and approximately 80mm in diameter.

Assembly and Installation:


The installation is quite straight forward. Pictures (not in color) are provided in the instructions to guide you on the location of the brackets. The intake is to be assembled completely before placing in engine bay (keep the four bolts holding intake filter loose). The factory intake tubing is still used. Insert the assembled A'PEXi intake pipe into the factory intake tube (the hose clamp is placed around the factory intake tube). Then, align the brackets and tighten all six bolts and the hose clamp. Lastly, the instructions say to stick the weather strip on the plastic that runs along the right of the engine bay. This causes a seal between the hood and the plastic to direct any water away from the filter. It didn't look that great sticking it there, so I ran it along the side of the hood pointing down. Works Perfect.

After Installation/Before Dyno:


Here we show the current modifications to the vehicle. They are:
- A'PEXi Power Intake,
- Throttle Body Coolant By-Pass,
- Circuit Sports Oil Catch Tank, and
- a few Ground Wires [(a)battery to tranny, (b)battery to throttle body, (c)tranny to spark plugs, (d)spark plugs to strut bar, (e)from alternator to chassis)].

Other valuable vehicle information:
- Oil Life according to gauge cluster reads 60% life.
- Oil used is Mobil 1 Synthetic 10W-30.
- Tires used were Michelin Pilot HX MXM4s.
- Tire pressure was approximately 38psi.
- Wheels and Suspension are oem.
- VSA disabled

Environment information (approx.):
- Ambient temperature: 69.1F
- Atmospheric Pressure: 30.03 in-Hg (provided by http://www.intellicast.com/)
- Relative Humidity 49% (provided by http://www.intellicast.com/)

Dyno Results:


Allow me to explain each pull of the three pulls on the graph.
First Pull: NO ECU RESET. I was curious to know what air/fuel ratio the ECU was using after its constant self-adjustments on the road. The result was 152.6 WHP.
Second Pull: ECU RESET. Generally shows the base air/fuel ratio the ECU follows. The result was 158.5 WHP.
Third Pull: ECU NOT RESET. Shows how the ECU adjusted itself after one pull. The result was 160.8 WHP.

Analyzing the information provided on the graph:
We can see the first pull showed an a/f ratio much richer than the others in the low-end, generally the same in the mid, and steadily increases to lean in the high-end. After the ECU reset, the a/f ratio did not change much at all. It was slightly richer in the low end but follows the same a/f ratio from mid to high. The last pull shows a surprising and unexpected change in the a/f ratio. It is noticeably leaner than the first two pulls all the way until it hits vtec. Once vtec kicked in, the a/f ratio went much richer than the other pulls.
As far as why you do not see a torque curve, it is merely a function incorporating a specific whp(y-axis)) at its rpm(x-axis).
The equation is WHP = (Tq X rpm)/5252. so in this case, use Tq(y) = [WHP(#) x 5252]/rpm(x).

Last thing to mention. (This was explained to me at the place I had the car dyno'd) Most (I use that loosely) dyno results will read 7-8% more than what should be displayed. I don't have proof to show for it, but my friend had dyno'd his car in one other place before having a dyno run here with no modification in between and shows exactly a 7.7% difference in dyno results (140.1 whp before, 129.3 whp after). Assuming this to be true, my results on an average dyno would be approximately 164.4whp, 170.7whp, and 173.2whp. According to ImportTuner magazine, their 2006 TSX 6 Speed is said to be approximately 178.3whp. This shows to be consistent but still not FACT. So, simply use this information to understand the inaccurancy the average dyno graph may show.


Side Note:


Awkwardly enough, the lack of wind flowing through the engine bay caused one of the hoses to slightly melt. You can also see some of the oil trapped inside as well. This will happen within 50 miles of driving after installing the catch can. I highly recommend switching to heater hose.

Video of Dyno Pulls:
Note: High Definition version uploaded as well, with 5.1ch Surround.
Test Pull:
YouTube - Dyno 2006 Acura TSX Test Pull (1 of 4)
Pull One:
YouTube - Dyno 2006 Acura TSX Pull 1 (2 of 4)
Pull Two:
YouTube - Dyno 2006 Acura TSX Pull 2 (3 of 4)
Pull Three:
YouTube - Dyno 2006 Acura TSX Pull 3 (4 of 4)



Overall Impression:
The intake is subtle in appearance. It was extremely easy to install. I do NOT notice any increase in power after the install. Very LOUD at WOT and very quiet when one drives normal. The intake filter receives COLD AIR. After driving a few miles and opening the hood to see how hot the intake pipe was, I found the temperature of the intake pipe to be about 70F. So, a full CAI system is not necessary until it boils down to intake pipe resonance, which I won't get into.

Emissions: I am searching for any California exemptions in regards to this modification, but as far as what's widely known, this modification is most likely illegal. To my personal experience, since the factory intake tubing is still incorporated, it is legal. But, I do not have hard evidence to support this.

Pardon if I leave any important information out; I will make revisions and include any other information I missed. I hope one enjoys and learns from my experience.

Camera and accessories used to record the event were a Sony DCR-SR300 40GB 3.2 Megapixel CMOS Sensor (w/ 6.1 Megapixel Digital Camera Function) with DTS 5.1ch Surround, incorporating the Sony Bluetooth Microphone, and Sunbeam x0.5 Wide-Angle Lens and Ultraviolet Filter.

Thank You TSXClub for your time,
Joel

[conboracing]

wow man good review.

[TSX_WS]

8.5 WHP from SRI? Sounds sweet. Too sweet, in fact....

[Peregrine]

Thank you for the excellent Review!

On a side note, I'd highly recommend replacing these oil catch tank hoses to a better quality. These you have there are known to melt easily under high temp. as you noted yourself at one point.

[xpertsnowcarver]

thanks guys.

hahaha, no kidding about those melted hoses. when i searched around for threads regarding oil catch cans, i didn't see anyone mention anything about them melting. but i replaced them already with heater hose

[xpertsnowcarver]

made some serious revisions and added extra info such as humidity (which was surprisingly high). i sadly, completely switched the words lean and rich around in explaining the dyno graph. so silly of me...

[lcrazyaznl]

Nice review !

I'm running ccccolicehockey's old cusco can and the lines that came with the can are bent but none are melted.

[tekneek]

very good review. not many people have this SRI. I got it a couple of months ago and i couldn't be happier with it. installation was super easy although the instructions weren't too helpful.

but something that people often bring up about my SRI (this could be said about any short ram intake) is that there could be some heat soaking going on. that basically means that the heat from the engine is spreading towards the intake which isn't desireable. i was thinking about making a heatshield of some sort but it doesn't seem like the intake is sucking in hot air.

i'll inform everyone if i ever get some time to test this.


Lastly...

Originally Posted by xpertsnowcarver

Another note for you Californians: the factory intake tubing is used and nothing less, SO! This intake meets CA Emissions Laws and does not require a CARB Ex. Number.

Do you have this in writing somewhere? I'm not doubting you...I've just never knew about this before and it may be useful if i were to ever get pulled over. Thanks!

[TSX_WS]

^ If its so, then I will buy CAI off eBay and cut it so I could use stock tubing

[xpertsnowcarver]

Originally Posted by tekneek

Do you have this in writing somewhere? I'm not doubting you...I've just never knew about this before and it may be useful if i were to ever get pulled over. Thanks!

thats a good point. im going to look it up for myself. i state it immediately because when i received a state ref ticket (for my 240sx - notorious for modified emissions), i was using the factory intake piping and used an adapter to fit a cone filter on the end, which is what the apexi intake basically is. the tech administering the test has to do a visual inspection and passed the intake setup i had. he explained that chp doesn't like that, but as long as the factory intake piping is NOT replaced, then it is allowable. speaking to a couple chp officers themselves, they boil it down to this, "if it didn't come with the car, it doesn't belong on the car." either way, ill look into the actual law itself and post it in the first post.


oh and about that heat dispertion deal. its not really a problem unless your continuously idling and sitting at every red light you come upon. on the freeway or spirited driving through the canyon, you shouldn't have to worry about that. this is in my experience thus far. i wouldn't mind putting together a heat shield anyway though.

[xpertsnowcarver]

i will remove that information until i see the actual cvc laws stating what is exactly illegal. so far all i see is, if it doesn't have a carb sticker, its not allowed. but no one, not even the ca.gov websites, are showing the actual laws themselves.. the state ref didn't have an objection to my previous modification with my other car, and i'd assume to be a state ref certified smog check station, they'd have to completely understand what's legal and not. this can continually be debated, but not necessary to. ill keep looking around.

btw, thank you for taking the time to read completely through. im most likely going over things that need correction.

[Mayuga]

great review.

[xjohnkdoex]

very thorough. nice!

[TSX_WS]

Originally Posted by xpertsnowcarver

thats a good point. im going to look it up for myself. i state it immediately because when i received a state ref ticket (for my 240sx - notorious for modified emissions), i was using the factory intake piping and used an adapter to fit a cone filter on the end, which is what the apexi intake basically is. the tech administering the test has to do a visual inspection and passed the intake setup i had. he explained that chp doesn't like that, but as long as the factory intake piping is NOT replaced, then it is allowable.

I remember now.... I bought a Civic a couple of years ago and I had a brand new short ram intake for Corolla ( Ordered it and crashed the car in 3 days...). I fit that intake into Civic's original intake tube and then took it to CHP for inspection and they didnt say anything...

[xpertsnowcarver]

thanks guys.

well, no luck finding the law(s) regarding certain modications. so, we'll have to assume it to be illegal. i was thinking about stopping by the chp office, but i keep putting it off.