[???:)] Ok, so I've been looking around at CAIs a bit more with my birthday and Christmas approaching and I've gotten somewhat confused. I knwo I'm kinda beating a dead horse but I've seen the post by Egz in the PZEV forum, and Mofocus' post in Focus Chat so i have used the Search feature! But here we go-

I like the idea of Volant and Iceman, neither is available for my 2.3- so I found the FC CAI. But it's listed ~$159, while Volant and Iceman are both above $200? Should I wait for them (no word on either developing a 2.3 model) or besides looks (which FC lacks) am I mostly paying for a name?? I mean, I don't want to sacrifice serious quality, but I'm tempted to think a company like FC isn't like a ghetto intake off eBay... any thoughts? Here's the specific links:

http://www.newedgeperformance.com/foccencolair1.html

http://www.newedgeperformance.com/volcoolairin.html

i think marcymotorsport makes a 2.3 intake too

Quick reply! and yes, Marcy makes one too. But to the untrained eye (mine) it looks somewhat similar to the FC... or less like the other 2. And again it's significantly less than $200, so is there any major difference in performance? It looks like most get +/- 10whp on the 2.3, and I see some use a new airbox or certain parts... but is the Marcy or FC on par with the Iceman or Volant in tube quality and general specs- sorry to be a pain...

well i know on the Zetec FC intake, it is prety cheap and looks cheap as well, not sure about the FC 2.3 though

With the Volant and Iceman, you are paying for the name. I still gawk at the price of the Iceman for what you get. I guess its because they use plastic instead of metal.

Both the Focus Central and the Marcy Motorsports are of high quality. These are not like those cheap eBay clones of the AEM for the Zetec. If you really want quality, then wait about a week (hopefully) for the FocusSport intake. I'm not saying the other two are bad, but FS puts a lot of time and R&D into their intake. But it will cost a little more too.

They all are almost identical in design. While I've never seen any in person, they are very similiar to the intake I made. If you look at your engine, you have the throttle body in the front center. Then off the the right is the vapor trap (right after the crank case vent). The vapor trap then goes straight down to the MAF sensor, and then it curves to the right again and into the bumper/fender area, where the airfilter resides.

What they do is replace the vapor trap with a 90 degree bend, connect to the MAF sensor, and then they 90 degree bend back and place a cone filter there, replacing the big, clunky, restrictive filter. The only things they reuse is the MAF sensor adapter, and the lower splash gaurd (for lack of a better name).

HP gains should be the same across the board for all of them. And they are amazing. Take a look:

Peak Torque, +10 ft-lbs: http://www.marcymotorsport.com/images/MM-techpics/mm-hiflo-dyno-tqnew.gif
Peak HP, +12.4: http://www.marcymotorsport.com/images/MM-techpics/mm-hiflo-dyno-hpnew.gif

I wouldn't wait for Iceman or Volant to produce anything.

Thanks a lot Egz! Ok, I'll keep an eye out for the FocusSport and compare those 3, especially if you expect it to be in the near future... I'll probably put a TB and CAI on my Christmas list and I know my mother isn't doing her shopping yet, she's a procrastinator like me! Thanks again guys!

id hang around for the focus sport one...

volant and ice mean i disagree that you are paying for the name. its not a pair of shoes. the only focus oriented company i believe u pay for the name is would be HKS, somtimes AEM with their poor excuse for a udp.