Hey XJ People,

For whatever reason a Cold Air Intake popped into my mind...Anyways, Spring is already here and summer is quickly approaching and I don't want to be that Jeep overheated on the side of the road. I just have a question...Or two...Would having a Cold Air Intake make the Jeep run to cold when the temps are chilly out? Should I wait to get to a Warmer Climate before I do something like this? What are the risks of having an engine run to cold in the winter? What are the benefits of having a C.A.I?

Was just out of curiosity...The Jeep has overheated before when my Mother owned it, and I would like to keep the chances of that happening to me slim to none, although I know that XJ's tend to overheat sometimes. But yeah...Those were my questions. I guess it's better to ask than to not ask at all and screw something up, right?

 

The only thing that will be cooler is the intake air temp depending on what CAI you put on. you will not notice the engine running any cooler and it wont help any over heating issue. engines dont overheat due to high intake air temp, they overheat due to coolant flow issues or extednded times of high rpms.
back to the cooler intake air temp, that will only happen it your intake is taking air from outside the engine bay. for example the spectra intake take air from the cowl area so it's cooler than the engine bay.
the theory behind the cold air intake is because cooler air is denser, you'll get more power due to better combustion with the denser air. also depending on the aplication you get better air flow to the throttle so the engine doesn't have to work as hard to get air (not really the case for the jeep, they are pretty free flowing from the factory).
as far as cold weather, you shouldn't have a problem. I've had CAI's on most of my cars and never had an issue while i lived in NC. they all ran the same in summer and winter.
hope this helps

 

You don't want to try and diagnose the overeating issue? A cold air intake in a jeep is so counter productive. Maybe a DIY cowl intake instead? Effective for cool air and unlike a low mounted CAI, won't draw in water. Even with a short ram WAI, there's danger of sucking water in easier than with an OEM setup.
As for the overheating- what maintenance has been done? The radiator, water pump, thermostat, hoses and fluids all need to be checked/flushed/replaced to be sure. Maybe an aux tranny cooler, too. Idk, just my two Lincoln's.

 

Most XJs overheat due to broken and worn parts from a lack of maintenance. Some have serious sludge problems from a lack of maintenance. The rest of them overheat while towing. Which do you have?

And reducing engine intake air temperature won't effect a water pump with no blades or a worn fan clutch.

 

Thank you very much to everybody that responded and answered my questions on this, I was obviously way off the beam on what a C.A.I was. But I'm definitely going to think about it.

@Salad I think I'm going to say neglect to the Cooling System, I can't remember a time where my Mother took the Jeep in for a Coolant Flush and Re-Fill when she owned it. The only time I can remember the Jeep ever getting new Coolant/Anti-Freeze was when I changed it out with PEAK 50/50 Pre-diluted Long Life Coolant/Anti-Freeze. Oil Changes were every 3,000 Miles on the dot, so I don't think it's a sludge issue...

 

The thing has never towed anything either...

 

The newest of the XJs are now 12+ years old. Any 12+ year old neglected vehicle is subject to problems. Go to just about any car forum and usually the number one topic during the cold months is "my heater doesn't work" and during the hot months the number one topic is "my motor overheated". Has nothing to do with the XJ and everything to do with vehicle age and maintenance. One would be well advised to do maintenance 1st, then mods......whatever the old vehicle is.

 

x2!!!

Thats what i'm doing with mine. restore then mod. i'm trying to do one system restoration every month. this month was the cooling system, next month will be the fuel system, after that stearing/suspension will be addressed.