rollingthunder

Bottom line........

Any "CAI" which most of them ARE in fact NOT..... will make your truck run lean at WOT unless you have a CUSTOM tuned programmer. You are pulling more air, getting the same amount of fuel... You are not getting anymore performance at WOT. And you are doing this with air at higher temps than stock intake..

Simply put, most CAI are a MARKETING SCAM... Just because your truck sounds better, more than likely that performance increase you think you see is in your head...



I know the other CAI look cool, but the gotts mod is really the best option.

ssgsmc19k

I have done all kind of searchin and have not found any example of anybody 5.4 gettin hurt from a cai. I have the Airaid on mine and it runs fine. The MAS is in the same spot as the stock intake."yes I know it can only comp so much" I live at 6000 + feet in CO, and have made the trip to KY and back running my edge in setting 2 and have no ill effects. I have called Airaid and talk to there tech guys and what they tell me is there intake will not cause the truck to run lean. "Yes I know they would not say it would to protect themselfs" but now that I have that little email saved if by some far out chance it does run lean and get hurt they can help pay to fix it. "Yes I all ready know it would be tuff to get them too". Now if these big name companys CAIs were causing the 5.4 to run lean and hurting them you can bet by now they would not be selling them anymore, and we would deffintly have Hard Proof that it was happening ouy there. My tuck 07 F150 Lariat 4x4 5.4 SC 33600 miles. Mod Airaid CAI, TBS "prob paper weight" Fitch Fuel Catalyist" Truck does avridge 15.5 16 mpg intown, but I do drive like an old man.

rollingthunder

The key is at WOT, if you don't spend much time at Wide Open Throttle, you won't have any issues.

otto457

[quote=ssgsmc19k;782308]I have done all kind of searchin and have not found any example of anybody 5.4 gettin hurt from a cai. quote]
Search harder. Long term effects cause this type of damage. No you won't blow your motor in a year or two....but maybe three or four or ? depends how much you like to gamble. It still runs lean all the time, it's just worse at WOT.

ssgsmc19k

Otto Im not tryn to argue at all here just tryn to learn. If they run lean all the time and worse at WOT then why isnt the computer thowing codes? Why isnt fuel mileage, and performance suffering in the trucks. Damage like that doesnt happen because of a CAI aloan. After a prolonged condition these trucks will throw a code. If problems like that were the norm again these products would not sell like they do. The Companys makin these things would have all kinds of law siuts against them. The car and truck mags would be all over it. these thing have been around for years. If the MAS could not comp for more air comin in again you would get a code. Lets do a servey. How long has anybody had a CAI on there 04-08 5.4?? What problems have been noted due to the CAI aloan??? What did your plugs look like after long use of the CAI??? What alttitude do you live at???

otto457

Ok I'll try and break these down so I can address all the issues:

1. There's a difference between slightly lean and lean. Optimal a/f is about 14.7 at stoich ratio. The CAI can make it run in the low 15 a/f range, causing the problems shown in my last post. The PCM is slow to throw codes until it knows there is a problem and won't trigger a CEL until about mid 15 a/f. Due to this, the PCM may never throw a code until there is catastrophic failure.

2. At low 15 a/f mileage and performance will be negatively affected, but not enough for the user to know there is a difference. I'll say it once and I'll say it again, every truck is different. There are hundreds of different PCM strategies for trucks that were made in the same year and have the same motor. This is the reason not every truck experiences the intake the same. This is why intakes still sell and there aren't people up in arms. It's the minor percentage that experience problems, and most don't even realize the intake may have caused the problems. To fully take advantage and get your money's worth out of an intake, a custom tune is needed. This is why I and any tuner worth their salt suggest a custom tune, to cover the percentage of problem vehicles and help people get the most out of their mods.

3. The reason the MAF alone cannot account for intake is because it doesn't think. The MAF believes it is always in a stock tube without tuning. If a 3" intake is put on vs a 2.5 stock intake, the MAF cannot account for the .5" above it because it doesn't know it is there. Same with location, if it is moved it still believes it has x/y length in front/behind of it.

4. Due to the small sample size of trucks that are on forums, hundreds of different strategies, and the prevention we suggest, there won't be many failures on the forum where it will seem like a large problem.

If you want more information and want another opinion, talk to Bill at PHP. He knows more about vehicle power management than I. He's tuned thousands of gas and diesel vehicles with intake modifications. He also wrote the stock tunes for the Edge Evolution. Their forums are a wealth of information.