I have an interesting problem.

History:
Car, 20.5K miles.
Installed megan header @ 3k.
Installed PM exhaust at 5-6k.
Installed CC s-pipe @ 17k.
uninstalled megan header, stock header on @ 17k, 2 days later.
no problems.
installed injen CAI @ 19,500.

Everything has been going fine... no CELs, car pulls smoothly (and very quietly!)... but a few days ago, I start getting a rattle when the engine is under load at low RPM. I figure it's the intake rubbing somewhere, and not worry about it, since it is a sporadic occurence.

The rattling gets slightly worse, but still no cause for concern. Fast forward to last night.... as I'm parking the car, the car's idle goes haywire. Repeatedly bounces from 300-500 rpm, very low, nearly sputtering out... to about 1100 rpm. I stop the engine, then fire it back up. Everything appears fine.

This morning, everything appeared normal... very little sputtering... until I got about halfway to work. There, it sputters pretty bad, and throws a CEL.... When I get to work, I pop the hood and check under the car, figuring it is a disconnected O2 sensor...

Come to find out, the exhaust manifold heatshield has rattled off ! It has rattled enough to dislodge the 2 bolts securing it on top, and was RESTING on the A/F sensor wire. This apparently either pulled it slightly out of socket, and/or caused a small wear mark in the electrical line itself. I'm thinking that it wore a small hole in the line, and the metal heatshield was totally screwing with the sensor readings.

I don't think it could be anything else. Perhaps a vacuum leak from the CAI install, but that would have given me problems before now. The MAF's fine. I will pull the code tonight with my scan tool.

So any suggestions ? I'm hoping electrical tape will work!

 

Sounds like it either wore or burned a hole in the wire.

 

yeah, as long as the wire it self isn't damaged electrical tape should to the trick

 

Also, let us know the code for sure, that should give us a sign

 

I couldn't find the code scanner.

The hole in the sensor wire is quite small, a bit of elec. tape did te trick. Used the ol' battery method b/c i'm sure the bad readings were screwing with the fuel maps...

the drive home from work was PAINFUL... Lots of huge gaps in power... like staying in gear and stabbing the throttle... but it has since been resolved.

Let this thread be a warning... the heatshields aren't immune from rattling off, even if you think you've bolted them down tight. Perhaps i used a very slightly smaller bolt than supposed to, but it was still a freak occurance in my book.