another cai question

mtbikerfox115

Member
:
2006 mazda 3 hatch
hey everyone, i have a quick question about the good ol cai causing a cel.... I called my dealership and talked with one of the reps and i told them i put on a cai, which i thought was causing the cel due to the fact of the amount of air yadayadayada, i asked if there was a way to clear it, and she said if we clear it it will just come back, so there is no real way to clear the cel... i was like wtf is goin on... anyways just wanted some imput on my lil cunundrom, and if there is an actual way to clear the cel, cuz it is annoying me, that lil yellow engine light on the dash.. thanks a lot!
 
Most CAI will cause an initial CEL after installation. All you need to do is reset the ECU with the car off to clear it, then re-start and you should be fine. I totally forgot how to re-set the ECU with the brake pedal method, can someone fill him in?

Oh and by the way, if your car is still under warranty, I'd avoid telling the dealership (or letting them see for that matter) about any engine modifications because they could potentially give you a very hard time with your warranty coverage should anything go wrong.
 
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unplug the negative battery cable for 10mins... then reconnect. If it comes back right away.. you didn't wait long enough.

BEWARE: you might need to jump start your car or it might take a little bit for it to start afterwards. Its no big deal.
 
why would you have to jump start the car. I unplugged the neg cable at least 15 times by now and never had to jump start. Good advice on resetting the ecu, if you haven't done it yet, it could be causing the problem you should also make sure that the wiring harness that leads to your MAF is not attached to the battery box or you may pull your wires out when the engine moves.
 
I did say "you might need to" mine didn't want to fire up the first time around.. but it was probably due to my system draining my battery while my 2 farad cap was charging up.
 
ok so that worked for about 30 minutes.... i was cruisin and had to stop to get some gas, after i was done pumping, hopped in the car turned it on, and low and behold... the cel popped back on.. UGH! could there be any other reason why, or should i just try it again until it goes away for a long time
 
mtbikerfox115 said:
ok so that worked for about 30 minutes.... i was cruisin and had to stop to get some gas, after i was done pumping, hopped in the car turned it on, and low and behold... the cel popped back on.. UGH! could there be any other reason why, or should i just try it again until it goes away for a long time

Double check that your MAF is plugged in, and that there are no vacuum leaks. If all that checks out, reset your ECU again. If the problem persists, you can always just unplug the CEL idiot light if it's bothering you. Or, if you want to do it the right way, go to autozone and use their diagnostics computer and get the code that your ECU is throwing. Bring it here, or to the dealership and somebody can translate it for you.
 
gone_fishin said:
Double check that your MAF is plugged in, and that there are no vacuum leaks. If all that checks out, reset your ECU again. If the problem persists, you can always just unplug the CEL idiot light if it's bothering you. Or, if you want to do it the right way, go to autozone and use their diagnostics computer and get the code that your ECU is throwing. Bring it here, or to the dealership and somebody can translate it for you.


I'd go with option #2 he said above first. How long did you disconnect the negative terminal for?
 
Drake13 said:
I'd go with option #2 he said above first. How long did you disconnect the negative terminal for?


i disconnected it for about 10-15 minutes, it worked for a lil bit then it came back on, bastard cel!
 
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