Punisher121

Hi, new member and had a question. I purchased my automatic 5.0 about 6 months ago and have driven it 7000 miles so far. I've been wanting to start upgrading, and figured CAI + tune was the way to start....Thing is the CAI I have doesn't look stock. Photos I see online do not look like the one I have. The best I can tell, it looks very much like a Steeda. No clear or obvious name on it, same simple black plastic type elbow with the metal near the open air box. Only clear difference I can see is that my air filter is not the same blue color I see on alot of sites that sell Steeda. My issue is I had a dealership check my car's program/tune to confirm if stock or aftermarket, so I know whether going and buying a tune will be a waste of money....Thing is dealership tells me my tune is stock. I read, and was told by AM, that running Steeda CAI on the 5.0 without a tune will cause obvious issues with car running lean. How quickly would it be obvious this issue is occuring? I assume I would have seen something within 6 months? Or if the dealership screwed up and overwrote my tune the other day and is trying to hide it, would I know immediately that the car is running lean or does that take time to show? I have photos, but being new I can't attach yet. Any helpful tips to figure out what I'm running? Does it seem most likely the dealership was just stupid and my tune is aftermarket? Though my main question would be about how quickly car running lean would be obvious to me... (not getting a CEL or anything, no backfire)

grabber blue gt

Well for starters, Welcome to the forum. One this to get used to, a lot of people (I honestly dont mind) on here dont like reading LONGGGGG paragraphs lol.

As far as the car, if the tune was stock and you had lets say a steeda cai which required a tune, the car wouldnt run right. You would also almost 100% get a CEL. I turned my 2010 to stock when I only had a cai and tune (left the cai on but tuned it to stock), and it didnt run right.

aaquib1992

^+1 to grabber. Running a CAI that requires a tune will almost immediately throw a code. I've even heard of older S197s throwing codes with the "tune-less" CAIs after a short drive, so I would imagine you'd have had some problem by now if it were a true steeda CAI.

There is a possibility it is a tune-less CAI, there are a few of those options for the older mustangs however I am not familiar with the newer 5.0's options in that department (someone else might be able to elaborate on that). But if it is a tune-less CAI, IMO I would recommend you get rid of it and grab a tuner, and intake that requires a tune for much better gains overall.

If you are really worried about running lean, I was always told that you could check the ends of the plugs. If they are very white that means you're running lean.

Punisher121

Thanks for the responses so far, i was hoping that was the case that I likely would have seen a CEL or noise by now...Once I'm able, I plan on posting a picture of my CAI setup here so someone could let me know if they know which one it is!

Maraman

You should start by posting a picture so that we can tell you what model CAI it is.

I dont recall seeing any metal CAI's that dont require a tune, from the description that you gave it sounds like it could be a BBK I think that its the only other metal one out for the new 5.0's,

Posting a pic would help out alot, even if its a crappy cell phone pic.

CrzyHrs

One way you can tell if your CAI requires a tune is to measure the tube from your filter to your throttle body. If it's bigger than 3 or 3 1/2" (not sure what stock is) then it will require a tune. Stock tune doesn't compensate for the bigger tube, so your air/fuel ration is off. Pretty sure I'm right on that, someone else might be able to add to it or knows more about it.

tj@steeda

If you had a Steeda CAI than you would need a tune and your car would not be running properly. Here is a picture of 2011 CAI by Steeda to compare it to. Our CAI has a Stainless Steel Housing & Shield while others have plastic. Once we see the picture we will be able to determind what CAI you have.

Thanks

TJ

Punisher121

Thanks for the info. I have a picture all ready to post, but apparently I don't have access to post or view attachments just yet being new to the site. As soon as I can post I will.

clowe1965

PM it to me and i will post it. No need to drive around worrying about your car.

Punisher121

I think i see how to PM, but don't see how to attach a photo...Only a photo from a website versus attaching...