Check engine light and power loss following air filter cleaning

[T.O.Snake]

Took out my airaid non-oiled filter yesterday and cleaned it as per the instructions (sprayed with cleaner, flushed with cool water from the inside, allowed to dry overnight and all day today). Reinstalled it tonight and started up the car, which after a few seconds died. Started again and drove down the street, only to have the dash lights come on (engine and wrench lights), and the car felt "underpowered". Turned it off and started again, but lights came on again, and anything above moderate throttle had the engine immediately cutting power.

I took precautions when I took the filter off (i.e. tied a plastic bag over the intake opening with an elastic as it was going to sit while the filter dried overnight). Took the bag off obviously before reinstalling the filter and I'm quite sure no debris (loose plastic from the bag , receipts, etc were in the bag to get sucked in).

Of note: I have had the "oil change required" message appearing on my dash for some time now. I am using amsoil synthetic, which can be run for longer than stock oil from all the advice I've been given. The car doesn't see a ton of miles (probably has about 6-7k since swapping the oil almost a year ago), but I was planning on changing it out in the next week or two.

Is there any chance that what I experienced tonight could be related to the oil issue (i.e. the car thinking I've way exceeded the recommended oil change interval?) Would the engine computer cut power for such a reason?

Seems coincidental as it suddenly happened right after taking off the filter, but I have no idea why pulling/cleaning a filter would produce this effect. Any impressions would be greatly appreciated.

The car is very lightly modified - it has a very "gentle" tune which was done by a very reputable shop, and it was after I got a midpipe with highflow cats and didn't want the check engine light to appear as a result. The car has run flawlessly until now.

 

[Tight Lines]

Make sure the MAF is still plugged in and make sure you didn't touch the MAF.

 

[T.O.Snake]

Make sure the MAF is still plugged in and make sure you didn't touch the MAF.

I'll check tomorrow (too dark outside now), but I was very careful not to touch anything other than the filter, so I can't imagine how that would've happened.

Any other thoughts? Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[Stri8ed]

Im not saying you did this, but just in case ill tell you... i had a buddy stuff a towel inside the filter while it was drying.. he didnt take it out when he reinstalled. When he started the car it idled rough and then died. Check engine light and wrench came on.

Whenever i remove the filter and reinstall, i recheck all the clamps up to the TB. Sometimes they work loose and when you remove the filter they can slip off further causing a leak. Recheck all the clamps even if you didnt touch them.

You can also try disconnecting the battery for 30 min and reconnecting.

 

[T.O.Snake]

Im not saying you did this, but just in case ill tell you... i had a buddy stuff a towel inside the filter while it was drying.. he didnt take it out when he reinstalled. When he started the car it idled rough and then died. Check engine light and wrench came on.

Whenever i remove the filter and reinstall, i recheck all the clamps up to the TB. Sometimes they work loose and when you remove the filter they can slip off further causing a leak. Recheck all the clamps even if you didnt touch them.

You can also try disconnecting the battery for 30 min and reconnecting.

Yeah, as I said, I tied a bag over the intake once the filter was off just to ensure nothing got in the opening, but I took it off before reinstalling, and I'm quite sure there was nothing loose inside the bag that could've gotten in. Just out of curiosity, though, IF something did get in (something like a paper receipt) - and again, I truly don't think this occurred - would there be any easy way to remove such an object?

That said, I will check the MAF connections, and unclamp/reclamp the filter again tomorrow (although it's a simple step that I can't see how I could've possibly screwed up - done it with no issues before). If none of those work, I'll try the battery idea.

Thanks for the suggestions so far. Anyone else?

 

[1320 Junkie]

Check all the vaccum lines on the inlet etc....blow the maf out with air...gently if using compressed air. Blow off the filter too with air. Make sue the filter is completely seated and the rubber isn't pinched or folded over causing a air leak....good luck

 

[Shelbysteve]

Disconnect maf , un hook positive cable, let all set for 1 hour. Hook all back up after sitting time. Before starting car, turn key on and off 3 times, then start car and let idle for a few moments. Drive car and see if that takes care of issue. If this does not fix it, drive at low idle to tuner or to dealer an have them clear codes.

This info is from a SVT engineer, friend of mine.

Yeah, as I said, I tied a bag over the intake once the filter was off just to ensure nothing got in the opening, but I took it off before reinstalling, and I'm quite sure there was nothing loose inside the bag that could've gotten in. Just out of curiosity, though, IF something did get in (something like a paper receipt) - and again, I truly don't think this occurred - would there be any easy way to remove such an object?

That said, I will check the MAF connections, and unclamp/reclamp the filter again tomorrow (although it's a simple step that I can't see how I could've possibly screwed up - done it with no issues before). If none of those work, I'll try the battery idea.

Thanks for the suggestions so far. Anyone else?

 

[T.O.Snake]

Disconnect maf , un hook positive cable, let all set for 1 hour. Hook all back up after sitting time. Before starting car, turn key on and off 3 times, then start car and let idle for a few moments. Drive car and see if that takes care of issue. If this does not fix it, drive at low idle to tuner or to dealer an have them clear codes.

This info is from a SVT engineer, friend of mine.

Bingo! Followed that procedure and the car is running fine now with no lights.

Still don't fully understand why that would happen from simply removing the air filter, but regardless, thanks to you, your friend, and everyone else who responded to this thread. :beer:

 

[Shelbysteve]

He said it has something to do with the air flow of the filter after it is cleaned. The computer learns the dirty filter, then freaks out after the cleaned filter. I have no idea, but sure glad it worked.


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Bingo! Followed that procedure and the car is running fine now with no lights.

Still don't fully understand why that would happen from simply removing the air filter, but regardless, thanks to you, your friend, and everyone else who responded to this thread. :beer: