hooky13

Hey Guys wondering if someone with the wisdom could help me and or tell me if I am on the right track in my thinking. I just purchased a beautiful 2010 Civic Coupe LX two weeks ago from a reprutable dealership. Its only got 28k miles on it and not a scratch or scuff. Carfax all looked clean been serviced yada yada yad.....

So first thing I wanted to put on it which I did last week was a Cold Air Intake. The intake I purchased is a replica of the injen brand one for my car. They had them on eBay for a pretty good price. I noticed that the cone filter when shipped to me was the kind that was oiled because you could sort of smell it and when looked down i saw some black residue on the inside on the chrome.

SO.... I installed the cold air intake as instructed and the installation went great. Moved the MAF sensor over to the new port on the new pipe and everything. Two days after installing my car threw a code and my CEL came on. I got out my actron code reader and hooked it up. It was showing a "P0171" code which is a "System Too Lean (Bank 1)" Looked up and it said it could be all kinds of things, O2 sensors, vacuum leaks, etc. But when doing further research I found a mechanic stating that this code generally happens to people with aftermarket cold air intakes that have oiled filters because the manufacturer actually over-oils the filters and then when installed that oil residue comes up and hits the MAF which basically doesnt let it do its job. So they recommended replacing the filter and cleaning the MAF and or replacing it.

What I did was go to advance Autoparts and bought the MAF cleaner and gave it a good spray down the other night, let it dry and reinstalled and everything was fine until.....today after work. I noticed my CEL was on again, re-ran my scanner and it was throwing the same exact code (P0171) so now I am sort of lost, could it be I didnt get it cleaned enough, could it be the oil from the filter is still distorting the MAF, or could it be the MAF is damaged beyond cleaning from that filter and i need to buy a new one.

OR.... I wonder if its something else that I havent mentioned. EIther way I am upset because this CEL def wasnt coming on until after the Intake was installed.

If anyone can offer any help I would greatly GREATLY appreciate it, and thanks in advance!

Best Regards

Kyle

clinton_hedrick

Buy a brand-name filter. Ebay intake tubing is ok to use, but usually the filters are junk.

ezone

Most likely the car doesn't like what you have done to it....or the MAF sensor is contaminated (oil, bugs, dirt).
I see very few problems (factory defect issues) at this low mileage, it usually turns out that someone did something to it to cause the code (knowingly or unknowingly).

I suggest that the car is likely still under factory warranty. 3/36 factory warranty in the US...and some parts may have longer coverage in certain areas.

If the dealer is reputable, they might take a quick look since they just sold it (to keep you happy?)



However:

Put back ALL of the original intake parts so nobody can tell you have been jacking with it.

Then I suggest:
Clear the codes, drive it.
IF the same code comes back now, then run to the dealer and see whats up with it, hopefully under warranty.

NOTE:
IF you filled the gas tank with E-85, that will set the same code. Not a warranty matter, you will pay for that mistake.


Thoughts, HTH

hooky13

Thanks for the replies, yea i def think its a case of an over oiled filter that has clogged up the maf sensor. I just took the maf out again "Carefully" and wearing proper protection and gave it a good spray down cleaning again. It will work fine for a few days but so far that same code has came back after like 2 days. And it only started after installing the intake, i had it for over a week before doing the intake and no CEL before that. And with it being so low on miles and all. I have the warranties I thought they were 3 year 30k for bumper to bumper and 6 year 60k for drivetrain?? Is it actually 36k? Hmm... I hope it is I will have to go back to paperwork but I know that they said something like that, that it had cause it still had the factory Honda Warranties.

ezone

Undo what you did. Return it to stock. See what happens.


Here's another hint: Any air leaks in the tubing between the MAF and the engine could set the code. Placement of the sensor and airflow characteristics within the tubing will affect how it works too.
Is the sensor facing the correct direction?

This is all in the owners manual set. RTFM.
Or visit the Honda website. You should do that anyway, update your owner information so you can check/get recall notices and radio codes, etc.

US cars get 3/36 bumper to bumper and 5/60 for powertrain.
California may have different rules. RTFM.

hooky13

Ok awesome the fact that its 36k helps alot cause im at like 29.5k now lol. Thanks again for your help and wisdom. I will keep in touch and let you know how it goes and what happens.

hooky13

yes the sensor is in the right position, the air is flowing into the hot wire rather than on the other side.

ezone

Will depend on the original in-service date. You need to check with your dealer.

hooky13

The date I know for sure is July so I'm good with that its the mileage is what I was worrying about cause I drive a lot for work so I know I'll hit the mileage before I hit the date.