Blacksmoke

Do you need a tune when you get a CAI?
IF so then what the hell do you do when you want to take ur car in and not void the warranty and want to put the stock back on?

Im new at this but someone told me its easy to put the stock one back on.. but if you need a tuner for say......a K&N air intake kit.. wont you need it tuned again when you put the stock back on..?
And wont this trigger a flag when the dealer takes a look at it?

JPS51830

Depends on the CAI model. A lot of them need a tune, some don't. I had an aFe Stage II and it did not need a tune. When you by a hand held tuner, SCT Xcal or Diablo, they store your original program in them. If you feel the need to take it in and have work done, if you take off the CAI you just put your original back in. It's actually quite simple. As for installing the CAI, with little mechanical ability you can do it in less than an hour.

Not to confuse you anymore, but you really should have the car dyno tuned after you add any performance mod to get the max out of it and make sure your A/F ratios are correct as well a few other things they can look at. Again, with the SCT or Diablo, the tuner will still have you original program and they can store the dyno tuned program into the hand held so you can switch back and forth as needed, or even make some adjustments yourself. Best advice I can give is to find a reputable speed shop near where you live, find out what they use when they tune the car and go with the equipment they use. Most of it costs right around the same price. This way if you do have a problem, they can also check the car, they are usually much more reliable than the dealer.

jt14894

Go to this site for 5.0 Stang & Super Fords, which compares different CAIs, and all your questions will be answered.
5.0 Stang & Super Fords: Cold Air comparisons

As for warranty, it depends on the dealer, but to be safe put the stock airbox back on and load the stock tune before you take it in.
Before you tune your car, the stock tune is saved as a backup so you can load it back.

callahan

This is the main reason I have just a drop in K&N filter in my car. I have the diablo 93 octane performance tune, and the borla cat-back exhaust. If I have to go in for warranty repair work, all I need do is reinstall the stock parameters from the predator, erase any engine trouble codes which takes about 10 minutes, and be done with it. No dealer is going to give a hassle over a different exhaust. I'll consider a CAI after my factory warranty expires. I personally don't have the time to change back and forth between systems for the minimal gains you receive. I believe it is the tune that gives you the majority of the hp gains, not the CAI itself.

IA_Chiefs_fan

I already added a cat-back exhaust to my 06 GT. If I purchase a $400 tuner, will I have to purchase another $400 tuner in a year or two when my warranty is up and I wish to add a CAI?

callahan

I am not sure about having to buy another tune. I am assuming you can get the specific tune downloaded from Diablosport.
If not, then I will go to one of Diablosport's recommended tuners to have the car dialed in correctly. It would probably be more economical to buy the tune and CAI package together, but I don't want the hassle of switching back and forth while the car is under factory warranty.

Herknav

If you are driving with trouble codes, you might want to get them looked at.

Without the CAI there are almost no gains, no matter the tune. The tune allows the engine to safely use the CAI, but it is the increased airflow that the CAI allows that gets the gains...

No, you should get an off-the-shelf tune from the manufacturer of tha CAI and upload it to your handheld tuner. Better though is to take the car to a dyno and get it custom tuned.

Psycho79

Thanks for posting that link. I didn't even know that C&L Performance was just a 5 mile detour away from my daily drive home until I read the sources section.