K&n Intake Not Working On '03 Ls Pics.

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RAPHAELJUNIOR

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PLEASE HELP!! i just installed a k&n intake kit fipkII (the blk one w/the heat shield) on my 2003 ls v8. i paid $270 as you know its originally for a '03 thunderbird but they have the SAME engine setup. ok i installed, tested the vehicle and my nightmare started...
I drove 1/2 a mile i was driving an easy 40mph max., i heard a caution ding (like you're low on fuel, i was full) quickly looked at the info center on the guages and it read "ETC FAILSAFE MODE". OK ON TOP OF THAT. my car was still on but would'nt go over 10mph or 1500rpm, i also got a check engine. i pulled over turned off the on and it was back to normal but with a check engine, i ran again drove for like 2miles and got the same "ETC..." AND COULDNT GO OVER 10MPH.
i ran for codes and apparently the throttle body is getting too much air, the Ford dealer said the new k&n kit is throwing off the computer and its not giving enough gas where it should go. when it goes on etc failsafe mode i try to floor it and i hear a loudish thump coming from the back of the car. what does all these mean? does anyone else have this problem? DOES THE SCT TUNER WORK with an '03 ls v8.

DSC02993.jpg
 
yes, everything that my eyes can see everything is connected properly! my mechanic even double checked! should i just return the intake kit?
 
I've been running the aluminum version of the K&N intake for over 2 years now, on both a '03 and '06 LS without any problems what so ever. Have you checked your MAF sensor? Did you put it in correctly? Is it damaged? Did you check the sensor's connector and wiring?

Try putting the stock intake back on, to see what happens.

K&N-CAIWeb.jpg
 
The first step is to return the intake to stock and see if the problem goes away. If it does, you can reinstall the kit, making sure that everything is connected correctly, and that you have no air leaks between the MAF and the ETC.

FWIW, the behavior you described is normal for an ETC Failsafe condition. ETC is the Electronic Throttle Control; when it goes into Failsafe mode, it will only idle, because you and the car no longer have control of the throttle, and thus have no way of controlling acceleration. Idling will get you about 10mph, more or less.
 
T_Man said:
I've been running the aluminum version of the K&N intake for over 2 years now, on both a '03 and '06 LS without any problems what so ever. Have you checked your MAF sensor? Did you put it in correctly? Is it damaged? Did you check the sensor's connector and wiring?

Try putting the stock intake back on, to see what happens.
Click to expand...

thx i did check the MAF i even bought a new one and still! yes i put everything correctly, i dont see any damage but im no pro. i did check the connectors and wiring and everything looks good. my old intake is worse/broken thats why it got this new one, i took off 1 of my catalistic converters and the two resisters (i dont know exactly what they're called) toward the back of the exhaust, could that be it, also i havent changed my fuel filter in 4 yrs.. just incase!
 
SoonerLS said:
The first step is to return the intake to stock and see if the problem goes away. If it does, you can reinstall the kit, making sure that everything is connected correctly, and that you have no air leaks between the MAF and the ETC.

FWIW, the behavior you described is normal for an ETC Failsafe condition. ETC is the Electronic Throttle Control; when it goes into Failsafe mode, it will only idle, because you and the car no longer have control of the throttle, and thus have no way of controlling acceleration. Idling will get you about 10mph, more or less.
Click to expand...

yes everything looks correct, i dont think i have air leaks, i had one with the stock, thats when the problem started thats why i got this new kit. i dont have the stock intake well i do but its in poor condition. could the problem be with the throttle body or a sensor? or oil getting into the spark plugs.
 
RAPHAELJUNIOR said:
yes everything looks correct, i dont think i have air leaks, i had one with the stock, thats when the problem started thats why i got this new kit. i dont have the stock intake well i do but its in poor condition. could the problem be with the throttle body or a sensor? or oil getting into the spark plugs.
Click to expand...
If you have a coil failure on cylinder #3 or #4, it can throw a false ETC failure code (which would trigger the ETC Failsafe condition). Those cylinders are close enough to the PCM that the RF from the failing coil can interfere with the signals going to the PCM. You could try moving the coil on #4 up to #5 and see if the problem goes away.

If it is a coil failure, you may have gotten lucky--Ford just extended the warranty on the '03 LS V8's coils to 10 years/100K miles.

If you had an air leak, the car should run like crap, because the unmetered air would be throwing off the air/fuel mixture (I ran into that problem in my '89 T-Bird SC). If it was idling OK, then I'm thinking you probably don't have a leak. If the MAF sensor was damaged, I'd think the idle would also be ragged...
 
ILLS said:
Did you reset the PCM so that it cleared the KAM?
Click to expand...

i just now got back from a 3 mile run, all good. prior to that i disconnected the neg. cable on the battery for 2hrs so that cleared my check engine. thx i still think its to good to be true so... ill just see.
 
SoonerLS said:
If you have a coil failure on cylinder #3 or #4, it can throw a false ETC failure code (which would trigger the ETC Failsafe condition). Those cylinders are close enough to the PCM that the RF from the failing coil can interfere with the signals going to the PCM. You could try moving the coil on #4 up to #5 and see if the problem goes away.

If it is a coil failure, you may have gotten lucky--Ford just extended the warranty on the '03 LS V8's coils to 10 years/100K miles.

If you had an air leak, the car should run like crap, because the unmetered air would be throwing off the air/fuel mixture (I ran into that problem in my '89 T-Bird SC). If it was idling OK, then I'm thinking you probably don't have a leak. If the MAF sensor was damaged, I'd think the idle would also be ragged...
Click to expand...

ive had my ls in 2 times for the gaskets and 2 times for the coils, sucks... but yeah youre on top of it. i, just today got a letter from ford about the additional warrenty called 07m07 and 07n09. so ill see. ford told me to put the stock intake back on $470+ but they didnt/couldnt tell me if that'll fix the problem for sure, "it might need additional work" he said. more money whoa!! thx
 
Even though those rubber couplings look like they are on right, loosen them up and put them on again. I had an issue like this before where the clamp was a little crooked and let air in by the coupling.

Also try to disconnect your battery overnight. This car acts really weird when changing parts that alter performance.(More air, fuel, etc...)
 
It seems like some how or another when you put the intake on there was a leak. Then the air got metered with that leak and the car needs to be reset by disconnecting the battery.

Also make sure that your not over tightening the couplers, they do need to be just right. Some times people put them on half ass and more on the tube itself rather than tightening the tube to the throttle body.
 
02V8Sport said:
Even though those rubber couplings look like they are on right, loosen them up and put them on again. I had an issue like this before where the clamp was a little crooked and let air in by the coupling.

Also try to disconnect your battery overnight. This car acts really weird when changing parts that alter performance.(More air, fuel, etc...)
Click to expand...

THX, i double check the couplings and theyre on good.this car is wierd, that battery thing is a good idea. i did disconnect the battery and so far no problem but i only drove 3 miles.
 
RAPHAELJUNIOR said:
THX, i double check the couplings and theyre on good.this car is wierd, that battery thing is a good idea. i did disconnect the battery and so far no problem but i only drove 3 miles.
Click to expand...

cool, but make sure you disconnect the battery for a few hours to reset the PCM's learned driving habits.
 
Eliot_Ness_Ls said:
It seems like some how or another when you put the intake on there was a leak. Then the air got metered with that leak and the car needs to be reset by disconnecting the battery.

Also make sure that your not over tightening the couplers, they do need to be just right. Some times people put them on half ass and more on the tube itself rather than tightening the tube to the throttle body.
Click to expand...

you might be right about the leak with mods i did to my stock intake (see pic.) i did disconnect the battery and 3mile i drove have been no problem. the couplers seem right and i made sure i got one clear on the throttle body and one on the tube thx.

this picture is of my stock intake with a mod i did that i read on here, which was to cut the bottom of the itake box. it worked good for a year then 1 month ago the problems i first discribed started.

DSC02999.jpg
 
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RAPHAELJUNIOR said:
you might be right about the leak with mods i did to my stock intake (see pic.) i did disconnect the battery and 3mile i drove have been no problem. the couplers seem right and i made sure i got one clear on the throttle body and one on the tube thx.

this picture is of my stock intake with a mod i did that i read on here, which was to cut the bottom of the itake box. it worked good for a year then 1 month ago the problems i first discribed started.
Click to expand...


So your gutted air box started the problems?
 
02V8Sport said:
cool, but make sure you disconnect the battery for a few hours to reset the PCM's learned driving habits.
Click to expand...

sorry what is a pcm? i disconnected the battery last night for about 2 hrs, i had a 3.5mile run with no problem, the engine light also went off. just now i left the car running for 20 mins with no problem, its all normal for now, thx
 
Oh , thats all. This would happen if the car wasnt reset thats all it was. It was getting different readings then what it was used to seeing.

Some people say that you should drive about 15 miles after reseting
( as a rule of thumb )then it should be all good. I think you are all in the clear now.
 
Re-read the first step in the install guide. It plainly states to disconnect the negative terminal on the battery.

http://www.kandn.com/instructions/57-2562.pdf

What this will do is re-calibrate the PCM to accept the new air flow so that it can adjust air/fuel mixtures. Since you didn't do this first the car thinks something is wrong and shuts down.

I have noticed a couple of things on the K&N intake kits. I installed one on the 01 Pathfinder I have and noted that some of the parts did not exactly match up like I thought they would. It took me about 3 hours to install the kit on my Pathfinder because I had to modify a few things to make it work. Now, you have to realize that the K&N kits are mass produced and sometimes they might miss something. Also, all of the clamps, couplers, screws and such are there for a reason. You will definitely need to recheck everything in about a 100 miles or so.
 
RAPHAELJUNIOR said:
sorry what is a pcm? i disconnected the battery last night for about 2 hrs, i had a 3.5mile run with no problem, the engine light also went off. just now i left the car running for 20 mins with no problem, its all normal for now, thx
Click to expand...
PCM = Powertrain Control Module. It's what most people call "the computer." In the 2nd Gen LS, it controls pretty much everything electronic in the car, thanks to the CAN architecture. There are other "computers" in the LS (DDM, FEM, REM, etc) that control various functions, but they're all controlled by/interact with the PCM.
 
SoonerLS said:
PCM = Powertrain Control Module. It's what most people call "the computer." In the 2nd Gen LS, it controls pretty much everything electronic in the car, thanks to the CAN architecture. There are other "computers" in the LS (DDM, FEM, REM, etc) that control various functions, but they're all controlled by/interact with the PCM.
Click to expand...

sorry i was out of the country, so everything got worse now i turn on my car, it hesitates to turn on but when it does... right away check engine light and "etc engine failsafe mode" comes on. and now i get absolutly no throttle response, when i step on the gas i get ABSOLUTLY no response!! i disconnected the neg. on the battery for 48hrs and still right away check engine etc...i did put the stock intake on. i will be away from the forum for a while sorry!
 
sorry this might be a dumb question i am new here. so this air intake for the 03 to 06 thunderbird will fit my 03 ls v8? if so, where is the cheapest place to get one? thanks all!
 
Maybe you somehow blew a fuse.
I was trying to figure out a way to disable my rain sensitive wipers under the hood and shorted 2 wires, blowing a fuse which caused all my dash lights to light up and put the car in failsafe mode.
Later I figured out how to disable the rain sensitive feature that I hated but that's another story.
Turned out I blew the fuse for the wipers and rearview mirror.
Replaced it and everything went back to normal.
When I did my CAI on my 04 I removed the MAF sensor and carefully cut the snout off the airbox.
I used a 40.00 K&N type cone filter from Autozone that fits openings from 3 to 4 inches. It's longer than the ones that come in the kits I see. I used the 3 1/2 inch sizing which fit snug on the factory snout with a little bit of effort.
I used a couple of electrical ties to keep it from moving around.
Put the MAF back in and the air filter worked great right away and I didn't have to reset the ECM.
Sounds impressive and the response is much better.
 
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