2007 Audi A3 - Power Adders - Project A3: Part 6

Neuspeed P-Flo
Several companies, including Euro Sport Accessories, offer cold-air intakes for the 2.0T. What’s more, several are cheaper than Neuspeed’s. However, they don’t offer the CARB compliance of the P-Flo, which makes it 50-state legal and has a sticker and paperwork to support it.

The P-Flo replaces the large factory air box that sits over the engine, muffling mechanical sound from the fuel pump in particular, while also giving good low-speed response. However, it creates a restriction at higher engine speeds, limiting output. A cold-air intake (CAI) removes that restriction, possibly at the expense of some low-speed torque, and allows you to hear the induction noise. While it sounds great, it can be a problem since it also introduces blow-off noise that might attract police attention, which is where the CARB compliance comes in handy…

Removing the stock air box exposes the top of the engine, again making it hard to hide its presence, but also necessitating an engine cover such as Neuspeed’s carbon fiber part if you wish to dress it up.

The intake kit is supplied with a heat shield for the exhaust, as well as a washable K&N filter. The large-diameter pipe helps airflow and houses the MAF sensor. The pipe is available with either a black or red wrinkle-finish as well as the fitting hardware.

Installation
Start by removing the stock airbox. To do this, first disconnect the air intake duct at the front of the engine bay. It unscrews from the front panel and then unclamps from the engine cover. Then disconnect the mass air flow (MAF) sensor and remove the screws to release the sensor from its housing. Now disconnect the turbo intake hose from the back of the cover. You then lift the cover from each corner to release the rubber grommets. These can be stubborn so take your time but apply force.

Remove the air intake hose from the top of the turbo by squeezing the spring clamp. Take care not to let anything fall into the turbo!

Final Results
With everything in place we drove to the Euro Sport dyno and our 2.0T felt great. You get pronounced induction noise and can hear the blow-off valve operating. There’s also a rather annoying screech at full-throttle as the air whistles through the tubes but you can avoid it by closing the throttle slightly.

Thanks to this induction noise and the moderately louder exhaust, Project A3 was finally sounding like it looked. So it just remained to see what numbers we’d get on the dyno.

We again conducted five dyno pulls. Since it was the following morning, the ambient temperature was back to 62˚F, so we had high hopes.

After more consistent runs, our average numbers were 215.2whp and 256.1 lb-ft, which were relatively modest gains at peak. We also noticed a slightly loss of torque from 2500-3500rpm. Beyond that, the engine started to breathe better, seeing a considerable peak increase of 13.3whp and 11.3 lb-ft at 6250rpm compared to the software and exhaust.

And while the low-speed pick up is mildly compromised, the top-end improvement actually gives us a really nice curve that manages to sustain the mid-range increases from the software and exhaust further into the power band. So we’re still gaining power up to 7000rpm where Vic would lift-off.

Comparing stock to the final results, we saw a best increase of 35whp and 52 lb-ft at 3500rpm. As you’d expect, the car feels very strong on the road, revving hard and clean all the way through the power band. But it’s the mid-range shove that’s addicting. We’re certainly happy with the results that exceeded our expectations given our previous experience with the 2.0T FSI.

Although stock power (blue) was higher than expected, every mod showed an increase, particularly the Revo software (red) and Euro Sport exhaust (green). The Neuspeed induction pieces (purple) are also worth adding if only to gain more top-end power to balance the big mid-range gains

Although stock power (blue) was higher than expected, every mod showed an increase, particularly the Revo software (red) and Euro Sport exhaust (green). The Neuspeed induction pieces (purple) are also worth adding if only to gain more top-end power to balance the big mid-range gains

The torque curve is even more impressive than power, with a huge increase from the software over stock from about 3000-4500rpm. This feels more impressive on the road, where the car accelerates quickly. The exhaust continues the trend, adding more lb-ft throughout the range, while the Neuspeed pieces do lose slightly at low engine speed but pick up as the revs climb

The torque curve is even more impressive than power, with a huge increase from the software over stock from about 3000-4500rpm. This feels more impressive on the road, where the car accelerates quickly. The exhaust continues the trend, adding more lb-ft throughout the range, while the Neuspeed pieces do lose slightly at low engine speed but pick up as the revs climb

Modifications to date