[evaunit6]

My father has something like this installed on his non-hybrid car and raves about it...

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/SAVE-GAS ... 8003569620

Does anyone out there have any experience with these vortex air intake things?

 

[jeromep]

I have looked at the ebay link. These things do not do anything. That has been proven by Consumer Reports time and time again. Also reputable car show folks who have not been bought off by the manufacture of such a device also will tell you that those intake inserts are useless.

Don't waste your money on stuff which has no proven effect on vehicle efficiency or performance.

I do not wish to insult your dad, however, most of the time these types of vehicle "snake oil" items are very placebo in nature. You install them and then you convince yourself, self-consciously, that they were not a waste of money and are doing what they advertise.

I'm an old marketing major; I know, marketing is very powerful. It can convince people to buy stuff because it will make them look sexy or feel better, when in actuality the product will do nothing like that. The same goes for a lot of auto parts offerings.

If you have a Prius, just drive it like it is.

 

[mrv]

The Vortex hasn't been specifically tested by the EPA yet, but other products like it have been... Results are not all that the marketing make it to be...
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/autos/gasave.htm

 

[KTPhil]

I would not buy from a vendor who has this policy about people posting negative feedback, regardless of the product:

"If Negative Feedback is left for us after all parameters of this auction are met by Grille-Tech, Negative Feedback will be left to your eBay account, eBay will be notified and legal action could result."

 

[hyperion]

How could you say that Phil. When I installed the velocity tuner in my Prius along with a "hot" coil for the distributor, four multi gold tipped plugs for the ICE along with a pair of four barrel carburetors. and a set of "headers" my fuel consumption is now up to 90 MPG.. This struff "works like a charm!" ........... (You can even forget the V10)

 

[richard schumacher]

I want what he's smokin', but only if I don't have to use it every day.

 

[mikepaul]

I would not buy from a vendor who has this policy about people posting negative feedback, regardless of the product:

"If Negative Feedback is left for us after all parameters of this auction are met by Grille-Tech, Negative Feedback will be left to your eBay account, eBay will be notified and legal action could result."

Wow, "we will punish you if you complain or warn other potential suck... customers about how badly our product worked."

Seems like eBay should have a policy against such policies...

 

[mikepaul]

Does anyone out there have any experience with these vortex air intake things?

X-1R Engine additive did wonders for my 1999 Kia Sephia. I was averaging 36MPG on the highway and when I had the engine flushed (and the X-1R removed) the MPGs dropped to like 30. It took another bottle of X-1R to bring the MPGs back up.

However, X-1R isn't doing anything exciting with the Prius, but I still add the bottles I bought on sale last year in case the extra lubrication is doing something positive.

Other than that, I haven't ever had any car add-on of add-in that I found did any good. Never did try the platinum-vapor-injected-into-the-air-intake mod from way back, but since you don't see it anymore I doubt it was effective.

They do sell Vortex at what I thought were trustable auto stores around here, which bugs me...