sandman

Considering this intake was probably never even designed for our cars in the first place, chopping an inch off the pipe isn't gonna make a lick of difference. I think ractive had these pipes laying around for a different car, and they just happened to fit the pro as well. Seriously - if this intake was specifically designed for the pro, why would they include a bracket that doesn't actually FIT anywhere without modification?

Even if it was though, cutting an inch off isn't gonna change anything performance wise. You can gain or lose an inch simply by changing how much you push the gaskets onto the pipe when you're fitting everything together. I'd rather lose an inch of pipe and have properly fitting gaskets than pushing the gaskets farther up the pipe and causing bad seals because the pipes are too long.

What my plan is tho - if i shorten the pipe, is to cut that bracket that's sticking out that used to hold the stock intake and also holds the coolant reservoir, and pointing the cone right down into that spot. That way it's miles away from anything that it could bump into and, as we all know heat rises, away from the top of the hood where all the heat's gonna pool...

mesoh

just out of curiosity where did you guys buy the bracket, i went to home depot and couldn't find anything like it. maybe i'm looking in the wrong places?!!?

sandman

Home depot buddy!! I actually SCOURED every aisle there and didn't find them the first time. Then the second time i paid attention instead of just scanning the aisles and found them. They're in the 'Protege Ractive Brackets' aisle. Aisle 7 at my home depot!

Seriously though, they were in the same aisle as the nuts and bolts were. Officially it's called a corner bracket, and I found it among a sea of oddly shaped brackets in that aisle. They had 3, 4, 5, 6 inch brackets, and like Toru - I got the 5" bracket. 4" would be too short width wise, but is the perfect height, so I'm gonna cut down the height of my bracket by about an inch to drop the intake.

Cost me all of about 5 bucks.

BTW - Toru - my intake IS rubbing on the hood insulation!!! There's a bit of a scuff mark on the pipe where it's rubbing on the heat shield stuff under the hood. Its about the size of a dime or so. Of course, that'll change once I get everything trimmed and re-positioned.

Gonna try and do this this weekend, so I'll take pics and show you guys the results afterwards!!

mesoh

thanx ill look again

mesoh

oh yeah shold i disconect the battery to let the ecu reset? which terminal should i disconect

sandman

i didn't this time around since I wasn't changing the functionality at all - it was important when going from stock intake to ractive, but going from old bracket to new bracket... didn't bother.

But - it's the positive (red) you were supposed to pull off if you wanted to reset the ecu anyway..

Toru

Hmmm, I'll check the underside of my hood for any scuff marks as well. Maybe it was not enough the mark the cardboard, but is still rubbing?

I am in agreement with the concept of cutting the bracket shorter and slicing an inch off the piping on the engine side of the MAF if it does not clear the hood and/or to straighten the couplings out.

BTW, I don't know if these makes a difference, but I ordered the intake as a part for a 1999 Mazda Protege Sedan and the packing list says "2002 Mazda Protege". However, I think that it would fit as poorly on that model year as well.

What is the best way to slice the piping neatly? Band saw?

sandman

I'm just gonna mark the line to cut with a felt pen and use my hacksaw to cut it and file down any rough edges afterward. Doesn't have to be PERFECTLY straight since the silicon gaskets will be covering them anyway.. As long as there's no sharp edges that could cut the gaskets and it's mostly straight it should be fine...

btw, The intake clears the hood when the engine is off or idling, but it must rub while the engine is running. Remember whenever you accelerate or change gears or anything, the engine moves and thus the intake moves along with it..

To see what I mean, try starting your car with the hood open, you'll see there how much the intake bounces around just when you start the motor. Imagine what its like when you're driving and the engine is always moving and shifting around..


PS to anybody that is installing their own intakes - don't tighten those hose clamps too much!! I overtightened one the other day and it broke!! GRRR.. Once the band starts to shift to the side as you tighten it, that's tight enough according to my mechanic uncle...

norm228

Hey guy! great idea, got the same crappy bracket with mine. I took your Idea one step further. I used some black shrink tubing and covered the 5" bracket. the l bracket disappears now! I also mounted it a little different. I slipped a bolt through the hole, and mounted the bracket underneath with a few washers. this dropped the intake down a few inches and it doesn't rub on the hood. Thanks for the Ideas!

walight01

i did the same thing you guys did but with the two brakets with came with. i bought mine on ebay so the reactive might not of came with them the second image was before i mounted on the plate

gcs118

I snapped my Purge Solenoid Valve with my Injen as well, but there was enough plastic left to still clamp the hose on to it. How would the car not run as well? I haven't noticed anything different with mine broken, but the good gas mileage from my Injen. Any thoughts?