Roto-fab CAI, a closer look...

[domano 68]

Originally Posted by Roto-fab 1

All of the little things make a difference when dealing with naturally aspirated vehicles. We've incorporated many features in the Roto-fab CAI system that may not be noticed at first glance. Also, we've had many questions about our Camaro intake and why we think ours is the right choice for Camaro owners. Here is a closer look at the components.
Our molded MAF sensor housing performs several unique functions. First, a "velocity stack" type of entry is molded into the part which invites a large amount of air to be pulled in quickly and smoothly. This is especially important during intitial acceleration when your engine demands a quick gulp of air. Not only does it perform well with a stock set-up, it's great to tune with or without mods or a even with a supercharger. That's why many tuners prefer our intake systems.
For mounting the housing to the air wall, we mold in 5 brass inserts. They are located on a flat surface which provides a good bearing surface to the air wall-not a pass through tube design with an air gap around it. On the filter side, we end up with a huge 6" mounting flange. The oil filter has the end feeding feature. (inverted cone) We also mold in two brass inserts for secure retention of the MAF sensor.







Our inlet elbow is designed to allow the air to travel smoothly through one large, continuous radius. Any jogs, straight-turn-straight designs will disrupt air flow and make the motor work harder to pull in the air- more work means less HP. The Camaro has some packaging restraints that made it difficult to achieve the desired path. That's why you see so many variations in tube design.
Just as intake manifold runners are tapered to allow air to gain velocity, our plastic tube tapers through it's length. It's a subtle feature, but you can see it if you are looking for it. (Your engine will notice even if you don't!)
We mold in a brass 1/4" NPT fitting for secure coupling of the PCV hose. The "boss" for the fitting actually protrudes from the outer surface of the inlet elbow allowing for good thread engagement length while maintaining minimal disturbance on the inside wall.
Because our duct work actually seals to the air box to prevent sucking hot air, we use a hump hose on both ends of the inlet elbow to help absorb motor rock.
Although we do offer a polished SS tube that performs well, we recommend our plastic tube for best performance. Some will settle for a slightly smaller gain in exchange for the polished look.







Our air box is designed to mount to factory points while maintaining a seal against the hot radiator and engine air. Yes, the top seal actually contacts the hood. You will see a witness mark after a few days. We use an open top design because it allows for a very large filter while maximizing the area around the filter. A round filter was chosen because it minimizes the amount of filter surface "hugging" the hood. Additional surface area is useless if air can't get to it!



The hoses are high gloss silicone which doesn't dry out and crack like rubber. The hose clamps are stainless steel and are non-perforated so they don't damage the silicone.
From start to finish, we've worked hard to address all of the details that make a quality intake system. We mold in a total of 8 brass inserts for secure mounting of all components. All screws are SS with internal lock washers. Our hose clamps are non-perforatated SS clamps to prevent damage to the silcone hoses. Installation is extremely simple using very basic tools. You will get great performance and sound without setting any codes.
We can't honestly claim to have "the best intake" without purchasing and analyzing every available system; however, there are several systems on the market lacking some of the qualities you are probably looking for. Our intakes are available now with a variety of choices including:
Black, yellow or red hoses
black, silver or red airbox (any other color can be special ordered)
Oil or dry filter
Polished SS elbow, black plastic elbow, Carbon fiber finish elbow

If you've taken the time to read this far, thanks for learning about our products!


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Last edited by Roto-fab 1; 08-18-2009 at 10:22 AM. Reason: add pic

Installed mine a few weeks back. Great product and love the nice new growl. Do you believe removing the washer fluid bottle would provide any benefit?

[Roto-fab 1]

Originally Posted by djsnoflake

Did you guys find any issues with having a 2 piece tube? Like wouldn't the air flow have some turbulence on the edges of the joints or was it pretty negligible?

I am not trying to be a dick, just wanted to know why you chose 2 piece over 1 piece.

EDIT: And how long do the dry filters last, what is their part # and how much do replacements cost?

We went with the hump hose on either end of the elbow to accomodate motor rock. With this type of system the alternative is an oversize hole in the air box to allow movement for the air tube. We realize the importance of maintaining a good seal in this area as it would be the easiest path for hot air to reach the filter.
A system that firmly couples to a rigid mounting point (such as an air box) and to the motor will ultimately fail. Motor rock will fatigue parts that aren't permitted to move with it. One exception is a system that uses silicone or rubber bends. In this design, the bends will collapse to some degree to absorb motor rock. That's a bad thing because the largest amount of motor movement occurs under hard acceleration. Right when you need air the most your inlet tube is collapsing and giving up cross sectional area!
If you brake torque and watch motor rock on you Camaro, you might be surprised at how much motor rock you see- I was. The motor mounts seem to give a little more than average. This movement increases in time as the motor mounts wear.
We do router a radius on each end of the inlet elbow which is not shown in the pics. This is done to help minimize air disturbance. Also, we mold a collar on both the MAF sensor housing and the inlet elbow to set the distance between the two during installation. The hose connecting the two is ordered oversize and cut to length here in our shop to maintain a tight tolerance. All of this is done to achieve alignment with the throttle body during installation.

Your question was a good one and also a topic we haven't talked about before. As we have stated before, there is much more thought in our intake than meets the eye.

BTW, the dry filter is a lifetime filter that must be cleaned periodically. Should you choose to buy a new one, replacement filters are $48.95 and available through us.

[Larry@Speed Inc.]

We have been happy with using the RotoFab CAIs in shop.

thanks

[djsnoflake]

Originally Posted by Roto-fab 1

We went with the hump hose on either end of the elbow to accomodate motor rock. With this type of system the alternative is an oversize hole in the air box to allow movement for the air tube. We realize the importance of maintaining a good seal in this area as it would be the easiest path for hot air to reach the filter.
A system that firmly couples to a rigid mounting point (such as an air box) and to the motor will ultimately fail. Motor rock will fatigue parts that aren't permitted to move with it. One exception is a system that uses silicone or rubber bends. In this design, the bends will collapse to some degree to absorb motor rock. That's a bad thing because the largest amount of motor movement occurs under hard acceleration. Right when you need air the most your inlet tube is collapsing and giving up cross sectional area!
If you brake torque and watch motor rock on you Camaro, you might be surprised at how much motor rock you see- I was. The motor mounts seem to give a little more than average. This movement increases in time as the motor mounts wear.
We do router a radius on each end of the inlet elbow which is not shown in the pics. This is done to help minimize air disturbance. Also, we mold a collar on both the MAF sensor housing and the inlet elbow to set the distance between the two during installation. The hose connecting the two is ordered oversize and cut to length here in our shop to maintain a tight tolerance. All of this is done to achieve alignment with the throttle body during installation.

Your question was a good one and also a topic we haven't talked about before. As we have stated before, there is much more thought in our intake than meets the eye.

BTW, the dry filter is a lifetime filter that must be cleaned periodically. Should you choose to buy a new one, replacement filters are $48.95 and available through us.

Wow, you gentlemen may have just sold me. Thanks for the very thurough explanation!

[eddie SS]

Definitely considering your product now that my sweet camaro arrived. Product looks good.

[Bill Dillow]

Ordered mine today with next day air delivery. Will be installed tomorrow evening. Can't wait to get it installed.

[Tillman Speed]

There's no question that the Roto-fab intake is the top performing intake on the market. We are actually using this on our Stage 3 supercharged cars putting down over 550RWHP with absolutely flawless MAF signals, great performance and fitment/quality.

They have hit it dead-on. Not one other manufacturer puts their entire design on blast like the guys at RF have in this thread. This shows confidence in their work, and I will stand behind them 100%!! The color matching is amazing, too! It's not just the obvious that makes them the best, but it's also the stuff behind the scenes on the calibration end that makes their intake the best! We've had consistency in MAF frequency and calibration enough where I can do a mail order Roto-fab tune with confidence that we'll achieve perfect WOT air fuels and part throttle the fuel trims will be dead on!

Buy Roto-Fab, FTW! We've installed them on everything from Camaros to G8's, Challengers, and had EXCELLENT results every time!!

I can't wait until they build a 100-110mm unit! *cough* please! *cough*

Chris Rose
Tillman Speed Inc.
610-497-5776

[general23cmp]

Does anyone know if this will mate up to a Maggie supercharger accurately?

[ddunerider]

Is the Roto_Fab Califorina compliant for smog?

[Longhorn SS]

UPS brought my Roto-Fab CAI tonight. Packaged immaculately. Workmanship is absolutely as described above. Car sounds MUCH better now (same as stock most of the time, but more Camaro-like during startup, revving and when my foot is down). This is my first mod. ARH LTs are on another UPS truck headed my way. Then LMR tune and I'm done.

Totally happy with Roto-Fab CAI. Only drove around the block, but everyone else is right about the "butt dyno" gains and additional wheel spin. Can't wait to take her out for a "spin" tomorrow.

[SPANKT U]

I have had mine for about 2 weeks. It looks great and the performance difference is very noticeable. Did I mention that it looks GREAT! Very high quality product. Simple installation. Oh, and it's the best looking CAI on the market to date.

[Roto-fab 1]

Originally Posted by SPANKT U

I have had mine for about 2 weeks. It looks great and the performance difference is very noticeable. Did I mention that it looks GREAT! Very high quality product. Simple installation. Oh, and it's the best looking CAI on the market to date.

Thanks for the kind words. I'm sure your impressions as an end user are valuable to anyone in the intake market. As more and more systems are hitting the market, it becomes more important to us that our customers share their thoughts on our system. Thanks again

[EvilbeE]

I absolutley LOVE my Intake from you, not only does the IOM cold air box look awesome, the car sounds and performs soooo much better! the packaging that the intake came in was a work of art in itself! 5 Stars to Roto-Fab!!!

[Busy_Boi]

I luv my Roto-fab you can feel the differents from the stock intake .I also added the Flowmaster cat-back together the sound of my car is excellen.t