a CAI is only as good as the heatshield, most companies like K&N or AEM come with heatshield that are decent but to get the best results i would suggest building your own(there is a how to on the forum) if you already have an afterarket exhaust the CAI will make youe exhaust a bit louder and there is no reason to remove your intake during the winter, where i live it gets -10 to -25(without wind chill) on a regular basis and i leave my K&N on all year long.

 

Um..the spectre intake is good, and it's pretty common in terms of availability..the hpr cone is openly available almost anywhere you go like the k and ns..this is going to be my first winter with the intake, i've never heard of anyone taking there's off..but then again i stay in ga. my winter is a little more permissive. and YES. if you have a aftermarket exhaust system..the intake will make you rumble if your exhaust set up is any good.. mine has a real aggressive tone when i want it. the def. work hand in hand..i heard that the throttle body spacers, poweraid anyway is a third wheel in terms of sound too, so that's my next thing. the reason your exhaust will get louder with the cai is because it's sucking up more air, more air means more power, more noise..atleast to your pipes. cai's are really all the same imo. just get a good filter and u'll b a ok.

 

oh n yea..we have the same set up on the intake.. 3.5 inch pipe..hpr filter..spectre. same deal. but my car's dual..maybe i would have heard it if i didnt do that.

 

Sound is sound and power is power. They don't necessarily have to do with each other. If sound is all your concerned with just make a recording of a car you do like the sound of, and play it in your car. LOL