Im planning to get an rx8 very soon. I've been researching religiously every night after school for the past months to prepare myself of owning my first rotary and I'm glad to say it's worth it. But at this point I only see people running CAI not many short rams. I understand that there are benefits to both, but at the moment I'm leaning towards the short ram. Looking at how the intake system is set up on the car, a short ram would seem perfect. It's not that close to the engine, with a larger diameter, straight piping and shortness of the tube, I would gain much more volume of air at the higher RPMs. (Since that's where the rotary is most happy, i think it would be beneficial.) What do you guys think?

 

rotary engine generates ALOT of heat in there! No way I would ever have a short ram in my car...i want that pure cold air coming from outside

 

Short ram= inside engine bay... Inside engine bay= heat... heat=less dense air... less dense air means less oxygen molecules... oxygen is power, the more you can force into the engine the more power you can get, its that simple. Ive read about people getting the K&N short ram and have actually lost horsepower because it pulls in heat from the engine bay.

The stock intake is really perfectly fine, to take a quote from Street Rotary by Mark Warner,PE Pg.75

"The RX-8, for instance, has a remarkably efficient intake system and air filter installed from the factory. (The aftermarket company Speedsource races their RX-8 with stock intakes and paper filters, which should give you an idea of how efficient they are.)"

The stock intake is fine, just buy a K&N drop in air filter and, if you choose, buy Racing Beats Ram air duct and hook it up to the stock intake...