Speedbump Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 Hi, First want to apologize that this is so long, and incoherent, I would like to thank anyone in advance who even bothers to read this whole mess, much less actually responds... Not sure where to start since I know very little about cars but I had a CAI/Tuner mapped for 93 Octane and try to only use Sunoco stations. Recently I was starting to have issues with what felt like transmission, or power loss in pickup and the car sounding a little more noisy then I was used to so I brought it to Ford and nothing was found. I was told that I needed new tires, I ended up getting Bridgestone Potenza all season tires and new front brakes. Also I noticed when I make a sharper right hand turn (both normal and higher speeds) my car started to make kind of a squealing sound like a belt or something, then almost like something was grinding sound. The sound would still stay while the car was not in motion but would go away after I stopped and restarted it. I don’t know if any of this is related to my problems since before the new tires my car seemed to be dropping MPG and power, going as low as 17-18MPG. After the tires I noticed it even more and sometimes it’s as low as 13 MPG. I took it to Ford but they didn’t find anything that day, Ford said they couldn’t find any problems but wanted to take it for a few days to drive and re create the issues I was having with power loss so I wanted to have the breaks done first. The car seems to pull to the left a little but I had my alignment done when I got the tires done, then rechecked when I got the brakes put on, then re rechecked a few days later to see if any of this was caused by tires or brakes. Firestone did the work and they could not find anything wrong with the alignment, tires, brakes or calipers. Since the MPGs were dropping before I had any work done, along with the power loss issue I am ready to go back to Ford again but wanted to know if any of this sounds familiar to anyone?? Few extra details:, a few months before this issues started I was really low on gas and had to use a lukoil, still filled up with 93 but according to the dashboard estimate I got about 430 miles from that tank instead of usually around 340-360, after that I used Sunoco and when my MPG were dropping noticeably I tired Lukoil another time but didn’t improve anything. Not sure if that was a fluke, or something else? I also had to get a new battery recently because the other died after only a little over a year, I was having electrical issues but Ford never found anything. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FusionDiffusion Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 You didn't put in leaded gas as Lukoil, did you? In NJ they accidentally delivered leaded avgas to several Lukoil stations back in early December. You didn't get gas there, did you? Article: http://scotchplains.patch.com/articles/scotch-plains-lukoil-mistakenly-received-aviation-fuel Have you checked your tire pressures recently? 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedbump Posted January 17, 2013 Author Share Posted January 17, 2013 You didn't put in leaded gas as Lukoil, did you? In NJ they accidentally delivered leaded avgas to several Lukoil stations back in early December. You didn't get gas there, did you? Article: http://scotchplains.patch.com/articles/scotch-plains-lukoil-mistakenly-received-aviation-fuel Have you checked your tire pressures recently? wow... I just read this, I used one in Marlton area that is not on this list but still will look into, it seemed that the car ran louder on Lukoil but thought it might have to do something with their blend of 93 being different than Sunocos. Thanks! I do know that last night I filled up and says I’m getting about 230 miles out of a full tank, a few more months at this rate ill either be broke, or out of gas before I leave the station. I know the sport isn’t a hybrid, but it’s also not a SUV. The guy at firestone thought it could be something to do with the air filter being wet and dry but even he said that would throw a code before losing that much gas mileage. I was going to try a tune-up and see if maybe cleaning it out would fix the problem but after getting about a $300 quote I think I’ll let Ford take another gander under warranty for free to see if this would even fix the problem... 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FusionDiffusion Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 A dirty air filter will reduce milage, but you will not get a code for it. So are you using a Steeda CAI or something? You should also consider cleaning the MAF since the CAI will not filter the air as efficiently as the stock filter. 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedbump Posted January 17, 2013 Author Share Posted January 17, 2013 A dirty air filter will reduce milage, but you will not get a code for it. So are you using a Steeda CAI or something? You should also consider cleaning the MAF since the CAI will not filter the air as efficiently as the stock filter. Thanks again for all your help FusionDiffusion!! Sorry, yes I am using a Steeda CAI. The mechanic at Firestone checked the filter and the sensor, didn’t look like there was much oil or anything on it but said it might cause a few lost MPGs, I know new tires sometimes cause a drop also but not the range I have. Right now I am down about 150miles per tank over the last few months while Firestone says my alignment is good, brakes are not too tight or any stuck calipers (I know next to nothing, or how to check anything myself… ) Ford has checked the transmission twice since I had the power loss issues, sometimes the RPM didn’t even seem to move that much when I would punch the gas, like there was a delay or something. Is it possible there is an issue with the tune itself? Or maybe if Ford tried to re flash the engine in some manner without saying anything when checking on the transmission? I ordered from Steeda with my make, model and vin and had someone who knew what they were doing run it even though it was a very simple process. The problem now is I can’t find where the tuner is so I can set it back to factory before going back to Ford. Hope to be able to go through my whole house over the weekend since I know its somewhere in my house but want to wait until I find it in case this is the root of my problem or have Ford to tell me the tune voids the warranty… 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FusionDiffusion Posted January 17, 2013 Share Posted January 17, 2013 If the filter looks dirty, you need to clean it. Read your instructions, but I think you just wash it in the sink and then re-oil it. I also recommended going back to the factory tune for a while until you get things figured out and back to normal. Going back to factory I think you have to put the reducing sleeve back into the CAI so the MAF registers correctly (see instructions). Also, your problem with the transmission and the "delay" is probably due to a bad throttle body. The throttle is moved to control torque during shifting, so if the TB is slow to respond your shifts will feel abrupt or late. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speedbump Posted January 17, 2013 Author Share Posted January 17, 2013 If the filter looks dirty, you need to clean it. Read your instructions, but I think you just wash it in the sink and then re-oil it. I also recommended going back to the factory tune for a while until you get things figured out and back to normal. Going back to factory I think you have to put the reducing sleeve back into the CAI so the MAF registers correctly (see instructions). Also, your problem with the transmission and the "delay" is probably due to a bad throttle body. The throttle is moved to control torque during shifting, so if the TB is slow to respond your shifts will feel abrupt or late. Thanks so much for everything FusionDiffusion!! :beerchug: I am going to try everything suggested, will try and clean the filter tonight since that looks like a job I can do myself without messing up, hope to find the tuner before the weekend and will have the sleeve put back in before taking back to Ford. Hope to have a good update by Monday! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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