HI, I have a 2000 F150 SC, 5.4L, auto, 14500K, and about 1-2 months ago I purchased and installed a K&N FIPK II and K&N cat back exhaust system. My problem is that after running for awhile I start to noticed lack of power when I try to pass on the fwy or on the streets, specially if I have or had the AC on!
I took it to the dealer and they told me that they could do a better analysis if I put the original air system back!
I have been reading some posts and noticed that my problem could be the heat on the engine. My problem never happens when the engine is cold. It drives GREAT!
Has any of you designed a box to enclose the air filter, so that it draws cold air from the fender, as the original Ford design?
I spent about $200 on this FIPK and would like to continue to use it. When the engine is cold I can really noticed the difference in HP from the stock setup.

Thanks!
Ed.

 

I had the same problem. It sounds like the pressure feedback sensor that controls your egr valve. It opens the valve more than it should and robs you of power when the engine is hot, more noticeble when under load, such as a/c on or towing. Sad thing is dealer has a hard time, cause the damn engine light will not usually come on.
Terry

 

TerryW,

I've noticed the same symptom on mine just like EANDRES. Can you expand on the 'EGR pressure feedback sensor', i.e., can it be adjusted or modified or replaced with a different sensor or EGR valve to compensate for the exhaust mod? What did the dealer do for you?

Kevin

 

Kevin, I do not have an answer for your questions, wish I did. I have had to take the truck back again for the same thing. It ran great for about 2 weeks and then it acted it up the same way. The check engine light still did not come on. They replaced the same sensor again and now it runs great again. I dont get it. The one thing I do get is that there is a big difference in how it runs with a good sensor. I think that something else is causing the sensor to go bad. The plastic cover over the throttle body on my truck is sagging as in melting. The dealer has no idea why. It has never overheated. The sad thing is that the techs dont seem to be able to diagnose anything without a check engine light. Its like they scared to do anything without a code.
Terry

 

Terry,
I did find some information on the EGR Pressure Differential Sensor in my Ford CD Manual. I pulled off the EGR valve to see if there was excessive carbon build-up...there wasn't. I sprayed a puddle of WD40 into the outlet of the valve to see if there was any leakage to the inlet side...there wasn't. I smeared some gasket sealant on the mating face of the EGR valve and put it back on and it runs good now. I'm totally puzzled.
You say the cover over the throttle body is warping? What does the underside of the cover look like...any melted plastic, or do you think the 3 brackets which hold it are misaligned somehow causing a "force warpage"?
I will search around for some info on your symptoms. It would help if you could explain your symptoms a little more...can you expand some? I assume that outside temps in Victorville have been around 100?
Kevin

 

Eandres & TerryW,
One thing I failed to tell both of you is that when I was driving back from a camping trip to the Sierras I was about 30 miles northwest of Victorville (where Terry lives) and was stopped at a light for about 3-4 minutes. Outside temps were at least 105. When the light turned green, I put my foot into the accelerator pedal to pass a semitruck and the truck almost beat me to 'two to one lane' merge point. It was like my HP was reduced down to the performance of a 57 VW with a 36 horse motor. After moving for about 2 minutes at about 65mph, the HP picked up again. I am tempted to move the temperature sensor thats on the intake to a location behind the grill to see if this helps this problem. I know sitting at a light in the middle of the desert will make the underhood temps rise to at least 160 degrees.

 

Thank you guys for your inputs! I'll stop by the dealer and purchase an EGR Pressure Differential Sensor to see if that helps with my truck.

Ed.

 

eandres,

Hi Ed....
The list price on the pressure differential sensor is $83. You might try pulling off the EGR valve first to see if there's carbon build-up on the valve/valve seat. I did this a couple days ago and mine did not have any and the valve was closed tight as to prevent WD-40 from leaking through. I smeared a little Permatex (hardening) sealer on the face of the EGR valve flange and put it back on. For some strange reason, it seems to run a little smoother. I did notice the factory gasket didn't look too good. Perhaps the Permatex sealed up a possible vacuum leak....dunno!?

Kevin

 

Hi Kevin, thanks for your input. The vacum leak is an interesting thing, mine has on occasion had a high idle when acting up. Now my truck is doing it again. It is real obvious when it is hot out and the ac is on. There seems to be no low end power. Real noticeable under NORMAL driving, especially around 2000 rpms. It just does not want to go.
The cover does not show any signs of actually melting, I did check the brackets and so did the tech at the dealership and they are fine. The cover is just very warped now. He also had me drive around with the airtemp sensor unpluged and there was no difference. Just made the light come on. I am extremely frustrated with this thing and will probably never buy a ford again. I love my truck, but this is just ridiculous. My ac has gone out, my power mirror does not work, the cd player in the dash sometimes won't work and it does not run right. Whats next?

 

Terry,

Your comment: "...it just doesn't want to go" reminded me of the symptom I had when returning from the camping trip. I had it floored and it was accelerating about 1 mph every 5 seconds. Do you think the engines overheat to the point that half of the cylinders shut down?
Does anyone know how this safety feature works...does it automatically reset itself and permit the other cylinders to start working again once the temperature drops???

 

The overheating was the first thing I thought it was, especially with the melting cover. The temp gauge never moved. The dealer swears that it is accurate. I do not know. I think that if it was shutting down due to overheating that the engine lights would all come on. Also the computer would record an overheat and mine has none. My truck sounds normal when it srews up. I am pretty sure it is something electrical, but what? If the engine overheated and went into safe mode, I am sure it would be very obvious and we would certainly know it. I am back to the dealer today as soon as my truck acts up again, and I am sure that it will at luch time. Let ya know what happens.
Terry

 

Terry,

I think it's temp related too. Do you have the smaller radiator (1.02")?
When it runs lousy, can you manually check the coolant temperature with a thermometer? I know the temp gauges are simply activated by a switch. There's many threads on this issue. I just reviewed the Ford Manual CD and there are numerous electrical components that could cause the lack of power. Some of the main (and common) problems are the EGR Valve, EGR Differential Pressure Sensor, Knock Sensor, MAF Sensor. I would think that the crappy gas we have here in SoCal and the ambient temps and the cooling system that the Knock Sensor may be kicking in and retarding the timing.
Have you noticed any pinging?

Kevin

 

Good thoughts, the tech claimed he manually checked the engine temp and the hottest he could get was 214. I had the larger radiator installed before I bought it. The truck ran great after the 2 times they replaced the pdfe sensor. Then it screws up agian, have tried different gas and super unleaded. They also unplugged the mas airflow senor, idle was messed up, but still no power. ?????? Warm temps appear top make it more noticeble.
Terry

 

Ruling out the possibility of engine overheating, I would then focus on the IAC sensor...located downstream of the MAF in the intake. I know that some people either extended the IAC to an area behind the grille (forward of the inner engine compartment) or routed it through the left front tire wheel well.....claims that solved their problem. It would be nice to have the sensor sensing 70 degrees all the time...just haven't figured out how to do that yet

Addendum:
I forgot to ask...Did they replace the EGR valve too?

 

No, they have yet to replace the egr valve. I think they should, I also double checked the part nbr to make sure it is the correct one. When I unplugged my air temp sensor, it made no difference, I wonder what the default setting is on them.