# swiss cheese airbox



## KN78 (Feb 2, 2010)

Has anyone ever done this? a friend mine has a miata and is trying to convince me to do it. so far i searched and supposedly its suppose to give you more of a growl. Just wondering if anyone has done this and if they regret it or not.


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## M this 1! (May 17, 2000)

just buy a proper intake


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## M-Power M3 (Oct 15, 2007)

^^word, or build one. :thumbup:


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## AnotherReflex (May 31, 2007)

alot of people with turbo cars tend to do this.... technically its better than getting an intake because its alot easier on ur MAF. intakes dont do anything on turbo cars except give us that sweet noise. I've actually been thinking about just smoothing out my stock airbox and swisscheesing it also.


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## SteveCJr (Aug 3, 2008)

To answer your question. Yes. People have done it and from what I've heard, no one has regretted it.


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## Neb (Jan 25, 2005)

it was one of the first things I did when I got the TT. Added a K&N filter and swissed the box. Doesn't do anything but give a better sound


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## Senater_Cache (Dec 28, 2007)

I not only swiss cheesed the airbox in my 225, I "decapitated" it.
Basically a K&N breathing freely from the bottom, with stock look from above.

It helps with breathing for BT cars, and costs nothing.


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## DurTTy (Aug 14, 2007)

if you are looking for an "OEM" look then yes, (if an aftermarket intake will fail emissions via visual or if the police is extra harassing in your area)

to say intakes dont do much for turbo, is too broad of a statement. 

i would argue that a "cold" air intake will have "minimal" effect on your car as the air is superheated at the turbo side and then re-cooled by your intercooler. 

so really the air is only as cool as the IC can keep it for a Turbo car vs NA motor where the only cooling on the air is the ambient temperature. 


i would argue the real benefit of open element filter vs enclosed OEM filter is the flow rate of the filter itself. 

in that sense i would go with an open element filter and maybe get an encasement for it so you can isolate it from the engine bay temps...

look at the Neuspeed intake for a better idea. 


having cooler air is a "plus" just not as lucrative as the NA motors. if you see the competition cars .... the emphasis is placed on the intercooler (ie ice boxes, nitrogen spray, A/W coolers etc) and not on the intake. 

more emphasis is placed on the ducting to bring cool air to the brakes rather than the intake.


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## cWade (May 26, 2010)

Anyone have photos of the swiss cheese airbox?


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## jetta2.8 (May 18, 2009)

I just bought a AEM dryflow and a K&N breather filter and have no problems whatsoever


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## DurTTy (Aug 14, 2007)

God i certainly hope you dont have a problem with just a filter


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## jetta2.8 (May 18, 2009)

I was hoping it wouldn't blow up my car or light it on fire. So far so good:laugh:


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## Doooglasss (Aug 28, 2009)

DurTTy said:


> God i certainly hope you dont have a problem with just a filter


Actually, yes, you can have a problem with just a filter. 

I slapped a K&N cone on the stock MAF BEFORE I was chipped and I would enter soft limp all the time. The airflow the MAF was seeing was more than stock spec is what I was told. After getting chipped and nothing else changed I never had this issue again.

Also another reason that "cold air intakes" aren't favorable on turbo cars is the increased piping and distance from the MAF sensor. 

There was a flow test done on here that proved that an OEM box with a K&N was actually the best flowing according to MAF readings. This was about 5 years ago now so I cannot dig it up, but I bet it's somewhere in the 1.8T or mk4 FAQ.


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## DurTTy (Aug 14, 2007)

DougLoBue said:


> Actually, yes, you can have a problem with just a filter.
> 
> I slapped a K&N cone on the stock MAF BEFORE I was chipped and I would enter soft limp all the time. The airflow the MAF was seeing was more than stock spec is what I was told. After getting chipped and nothing else changed I never had this issue again.
> 
> ...


this topic has been overdone many times before, but, the simple fact is that the intercooler is the responsible reason for cool air in a turbo application. 

it is important that you 
1.) clean your MAF every 2nd oil chnage. 
2.) clean your air filter every 2nd-4th oil change. (interval depends on area and style of filter)

failing which, the maf will either fail prematurely or receive incorrect reading causing the ECM to react as it sees fit. 
limp mode is just the ECM reacting to an improper value from a reading... boost leaks can cause limp mode. 
i foudn that with my HKS Honeycomb 4" intake filter --- 3layer washable dry foam, the MAF(while i stil had one :laugh
was getting grimy quicker... ever month the car would loose a lil more gas mileage and run a lil richer.. as soon as i would clean it back to normal... 

for that matter... when i got the car and took off the oem box + filter.. the maf was all gunked up to sh!t.. so even the oem filter + box still requires the same maintenance, just not as often. 

Not all filters are "quality" filters. some filters focus solely on air flow and do little about filtration of air particles (dust etc) and others are visa-versa 

the distance to the MAF really does not have any siginificant difference.. the OEM airbox bolts right up to the MAF int eh same way the filter does. 

In order *not * to complicate for the OP, 

make sure your car is in good working condition before you go aghead and starting tinkering with it, otherwise you will start to get wierd results.


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## speed51133! (Aug 5, 2002)

i have an audi tt 225 airbox, unmolested if anyone wants it as a spare.
30 plus shipping.


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## ILLA NOIZ (Jul 2, 2007)

Just throw in a drop in K&N filter for better air flow and longevity.
:thumbup:


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