Cold Air Intake Upgrades for the 2022+ WRX

What an Intake Changes

The factory airbox on the VB WRX is quiet, and it holds a hydrocarbon trap. That trap is a federally mandated emissions part, which is why COBB’s tube leaves the box alone. AMS and Mishimoto replace the box with their own sealed housing.

What you are buying is airflow into the turbo, the temperature of that air, and the sound that used to die in the stock box. A less restrictive pipe lets the turbo take air with less effort. Denser air is the point of a sealed box or a duct that stays out of engine-bay heat. Throttle response is the part the driver feels before any dyno sheet. Sound is the part people notice on the first pull: spool and intake noise the factory box hides.

All three kits fit the 2022 through 2026 WRX. AMS and Mishimoto keep the stock calibration. COBB’s tube works with the stock tune or a COBB off-the-shelf map. A tune still matters when the number you want is the tuned figure, or when the car is already on a map written for a different intake.

Side by Side

Pick the row for the constraint that actually matters. Pipe size, filter, and the emissions line are in the brand sections under the table.

AMS Cold Air Intake

AMS is the enclosed kit with the largest published gain. The AMS Performance cold air intake is the complete kit with airbox and duct for the 2022–2026 WRX and the turbo FA24. The pipe is a full 3-inch mandrel bend in aluminum. That diameter is the airflow gain over the stock intake tube.

The housing is the heat control. The enlarged duct and airbox are there to keep hot engine-bay air out of the filter, and AMS states a 149% larger duct-to-airbox opening so more outside air can enter the box. A 4-inch velocity stack sits in the MAF housing. The coupler is 4-ply silicone with the inside diameter matched to the 3-inch pipe, which is how they describe a path without a step that stirs the air.

The filter is a rechargeable dry element. There is no oil to put on it. The MAF housing is 6061 billet aluminum, shaped to keep air-fuel ratios in spec. AMS says there is no check-engine light and no ECU calibration required to install it. The sound is a deeper, more aggressive intake note.

Both figures are for this intake against a stock intake. They are not a promise for every fuel, exhaust, or tune on the car. 15 WHP is the stock calibration. 25+ WHP assumes a tune. Expecting the tuned number from a stock ECU mixes the two up.

COBB Tube and Filter

COBB keeps the factory airbox. The COBB intake tube and high-flow filter swaps the tube between that box and the turbo inlet, and the hydrocarbon trap stays with the box. The trap stays because it is a federally mandated emissions part.

The tube is 3-inch mandrel-bent aluminum in wrinkle black, with black 5-ply silicone couplers and clamps. The filter is COBB’s high-flow element, woven cotton and metal mesh on a molded rubber base. Filter 716110 and tube 746100 are the two pieces, and the package works with the stock tune or a COBB off-the-shelf map. That is the plug-in case: the company that writes the map builds the tube those maps accept.

Used the way the application guide says, the tube is legal for sale and use on emissions-controlled vehicles in all 50 states, under CARB executive orders D-660-173, D-660-190, and D-660-242. COBB does not publish a horsepower number for it. Choose it for the map match and the airbox that stays.

Mishimoto Airbox Intake

Mishimoto is the other enclosed kit, with its own stock-tune dyno line. The Mishimoto wrinkle-black cold air intake includes the airbox and fits the 2022–2026 WRX as a direct bolt-on. The inlet is mandrel-bent aluminum. The MAF housing is CNC-machined aluminum, and that housing is what keeps the air-fuel ratio readable so the kit does not need a tune.

The airbox is powder-coated steel, and it shields the filter from engine-bay heat. The filter is a high-flow oiled cone, serviceable and reusable. That is a different service job than the AMS dry element: this one is oiled. Mishimoto rates the kit at up to 13.3 hp and 16.6 lb-ft on a stock tune, with a stronger intake sound and a cleaner throttle. Those numbers are for this kit on the stock calibration.

How to Choose

Match the intake to the calibration you plan to keep, then to whether the factory airbox has to stay. Sound and the dry-versus-oiled filter break a tie.

1. Match the tune to the kit. AMS needs no calibration to install, and it separates 15 WHP out of the box from 25+ WHP with a tune. Mishimoto needs no tune, and it is rated at 13.3 hp and 16.6 lb-ft on the stock tune. COBB works on the stock tune or a COBB off-the-shelf map. Skip this and you will hold the wrong kit to the wrong number.
2. Decide if the factory airbox stays. COBB’s tube keeps the box and the hydrocarbon trap. AMS and Mishimoto replace that box with their own sealed housing. COBB is the one that publishes a 50-state executive order.
3. Pick the filter you are willing to service. AMS is a dry element. Mishimoto is an oiled cone. COBB’s high-flow filter is woven cotton and metal mesh. Oil on an element is a maintenance step. A dry element does not have that step.
4. Treat heat the way the housing does. AMS uses the airbox and the enlarged duct. Mishimoto uses a powder-coated steel box. COBB leaves Subaru’s box in place, trap included.
5. If a tune is already on the car, the map has to match the intake. The stock ECU can run the AMS kit, the Mishimoto kit, or the COBB tube. A protune or an off-the-shelf map written for a different intake is a different calibration. Changing the intake after that map means the tuner has to see the new part.

FAQ

Do I need a tune for a cold air intake on a 2022+ WRX?

AMS and Mishimoto both run without a new calibration, and each rates a gain on the stock tune. COBB’s tube and filter work with the stock tune or a COBB off-the-shelf map. A map written for a different intake still has to be updated when the intake changes. AMS’s 25+ WHP figure is the tuned one. 15 WHP is out of the box.

Which cold air intake shows the largest gain?

AMS, when the car is tuned. 15 WHP is out of the box. 25+ WHP is with an ECU tune. Mishimoto rates its kit at up to 13.3 hp and 16.6 lb-ft on a stock tune. COBB does not publish a horsepower number for the tube.

Does the COBB intake replace the airbox?

No. The package is a 3-inch aluminum tube and a high-flow filter. The factory airbox and hydrocarbon trap stay.

Will an intake make the turbo louder?

AMS describes a deeper, more aggressive sound. Mishimoto describes a stronger intake note. Both replace the factory box. COBB’s tube leaves that box in place, so it is not the same sound change.

Is the Mishimoto intake CARB legal?

No. Mishimoto does not rate this kit CARB legal, and it does not include a CARB sticker. The COBB tube is the one sold with California executive-order numbers.