[RedDevil]

A 1500W hair drier blows out much more air than 4 liters per second, and it does heat it up far beyond the level I'm aiming at.
I have tried to heat the engine with a hair drier too. It does not work well.
I need to heat air, just air; not engine.

I do not worry about heat loss in the intake trajectory. Air is flowing in at over 10 liters per second (at low pressure). The total volume of the throttle house etc. is maybe just one liter, so the air spends just a tenth of a second there.
Sure it will lose some heat. It will not lose all.

Because of the adiabatic expansion caused by the throttle valve the temperature will drop by several degrees anyway; it just drops less deep than when it was not preheated. But there won't be a big temperature difference with the intake trajectory.

I like the lamp heater idea. I got a bunch of spare 55W halogens since my HID&LED conversion, so maybe they can be of use.

Of course if it does not work I will scrap it.
My research goal is: Will a 12V 150W air intake heater produce a beneficial effect on fuel consumption in the first few miles after a cold start?
I will run several tests alternating A and B until the result becomes clear.

I will gladly post my failures, like I did with my previous hair drier experiment.
If just to warn others not to try this, backed with proof.