Hot IAT

[RangerRich104x4]

My 2010 Ranger Sport 4X4 4.0 liter is a dog when it gets hot out. When it's cool outside motor runs great but as soon as it gets hot the power drops off.

How do I keep this thing cooler ?

Already have a Airraid cold air intake, but didn't make much difference

 

[Shran]

Those "cold air" intakes are usually "hot air" intakes in reality..................... junk, and a waste of money. The factory style pull air from outside the vehicle, AKA cold air, and other aftermarket intakes pull air from under the hood - HOT air. Just be cause it says "cold air intake" doesn't mean that it actually is.

When's the last time you replaced your air filter/fuel filter/spark plugs? CEL on/any codes present?

 

[RonD]

Pretty much normal for most engines/vehicles

14.7:1 air fuel ratio is a WEIGHT Ratio
14.7 pounds of air to 1 pound of gasoline
14.7 grams of air to 1 gram of gasoline

The reason a 5 liter engine has more power than a 4 liter engine is because it can pull in more air so can burn more gasoline to release more power

"Hot air rises"
Why?

Because hot air is LIGHTER, weighs less than cooler air
The point of a Cold Air Intake is to pull in the coolest air possible so computer can add the most gasoline to release the most power

As air gets warmer it gets lighter so power will ALWAYS go down
Adding more gasoline just gets a flooded engine not more power
Adding cooler or more air will allow more gasoline to be added and more power released, just physics

Thats the way a bigger cam or turbo charger adds more power, engine gets MORE AIR so more gasoline can be burned and more energy released, at the 14.7:1 WEIGHT ratio

The 4.0l SOHC engine runs 9.7:1 compression ratio so can not run Regular 87 octane fuel as is
So Ford added a Knock sensor so it can
As air gets warmer the knock sensor has to change spark timing more so power is reduced
You can try 91 octane, or even 89, and see if power comes back during the summer months


Just FYI, Rangers have had Cold Air Intakes since 1986 and the first fuel injected engines
200% air flow thru stock air filter, and at least 150% flow thru air tube from filter box to intake
It pulled air from behind the grill into the bottom of the filter box
I have watched quite a few tests for 3rd party CAIs on several brands of cars and trucks, including Rangers, and they usually either have no effect on power or show less power, never saw any increased power


Car makers sell performance, so if something like a Cold Air Intake helps performance they will added it
Since the 1960s all engines have had performance "headers", scavenging exhaust manifolds, because they added performance
Intake designs with "mini-boost" also since the 1960s
No car maker "detunes" their engines, even for emissions, although the 1970's were an exception, lol

Point is a lot of the "bolt on" parts are sold because they "sound good" and usually won't hurt anything, but if a "bolt on" part was a good idea then the car maker would have already added it

 

[Blmpkn]

x3 for ditching the hot air intake.

 

[RangerRich104x4]

It's a Air raid kit with its own air box, but I'm going to put the O.E air box back and see how it affects my intake air temperatures

 

[rusty ol ranger]

It's a Air raid kit with its own air box, but I'm going to put the O.E air box back and see how it affects my intake air temperatures

Despite what ads tell you...generally the factory intake is the best intake.

 

[Blmpkn]

It's a Air raid kit with its own air box, but I'm going to put the O.E air box back and see how it affects my intake air temperatures

Unless the box is sealed like factory and snorkels air from outside of the engine bay it's going to be drawing in hotter air than the factory unit, especially stopped & at low speed. Not only does hot air have less power potential in it than cold air... but the ecu will also pull timing the hotter your IAT's get.. further reducing power.

 

[sgtsandman]

I agree with the above. Ditch the aftermarket intake. Give it a little time to see how the truck performs. Then start playing with fuel octane levels and making sure everything is in the best working order it can be.

Keep in mind, switching fuel octane levels is going to take more than one tank for the computer system to adjust. So if you are going to try 89 octane, do it for a few tanks before you make a determination and switch to something else.

Little things can make a difference. So, other than the tune up and preventative maintenance, take it one step at a time so you can see what is making a difference and what isn’t.

It’s very similar to loading the parts cannon to fix a maintenance problem. You throw a bunch of parts at a problem and it gets fixed, you have no idea what fixed the problem.

 

[RangerRich104x4]

AirRaid gone, factory box back in. Will be monitoring Intake Air Temps and report back here with my findings

Thanks guys

 

[Snoranger]

FYI: pretty much every vehicle will lose a noticeable amount of power when it gets hot out. That’s just how it works. (Even top fuel cars get an overdrive ratio change when the air gets hotter to try to make the same power… and they’re making 10K + HP.)

 

[RangerRich104x4]

Much better with the factory box back in. The so called cold air intake actually sucks in more hot air than cold.

It hasn't been that hot here recently but I have noticed that in traffic the IAT stay WAY cooler and when I start moving the temps drop quickly