Without a tune no. Even with one the HP gains are minimal and not worth the money. It adds a little sound but is not worth the money.
So, I’ve got an HP tune on my ‘16 Expedition. It was done by Eddie; owner of Elite Performance and Tuning out of Littleton, CO. Before he did his magic I’d already installed the Full Race Freak-O-Boost kit. Ordered their CAI, but it didn’t arrive in time for the appointment.
I let Eddie know the CAI was supposed to be part of the tune, but wasn’t available. He suggested opening the factory air box to simulate a CAI. Ok, why not. The final results of the tune at the rear wheels was 390hp (449hp at flywheel) and 603lbs/ft of torque (691lbs/ft at flywheel). I was pleased with those numbers. When I floored it after the tune… WOW !!! Super “snatchy”; if that’s even a word.
Well, the CAI finally came. Installed it… and it looked good. Except the noise/ drone it made under acceleration. Wasn’t sure if I liked that. Then, the game changer… when I floored it the truck accelerated like a turd!!! It was bad; worst than stock. With that said, I took out the CAI, and put the stock box back in. It reverted back to super “snatchy”. So, can you guess where that CAI kit is? Yup, sitting in the garage in the passenger seat of my ‘90 Jeep YJ project/ storage bin.
So, I know each situation/ application is different. In our situations the need for a CAI isn’t necessarily a good thing. It can be successfully added, but at what monetary costs? “Change this, need that” kinda thing is going to happen. The difference of a tune alone is very noticeable. I’d just go with that.
Lastly, even if the CAI did make the experience enjoyable I am almost positively convinced I would not have gotten over that horrible noise/ drone it made. Didn’t sound good at all.
Oh… that pic of the OEM intercooler shows the nasty oil, water, and combustion remnants all mixed together. That crap was making it back to the manifold IAT sensor. The nastiness would coat that sensor, and resulted in horrible WOT driveability. Hence, the oil catch can on the firewall. The catch can did it’s due diligence until I installed the Freak-O-Beast kit. It came with a TurboSmart BOV. Now the nastiness doesn’t get far enough through the system to make it to the catch can. I’ve not had anything drain from the fan since I installed the FOB kit back in September of last year if my memory serves me right. Wish I had done the catch can before the FOB install. Would’ve saved myself about $400. Oh well… live, and learn. That’s why we have this place to share so others don’t make the same mistakes!!!
Good luck in your venture for more power. Oh, how many miles on your 5.4? Depending on what it is you’re trying to do power wise it might be a good idea to freshen the engine up. I’ve got an ‘04 EB 5.4 2v with 305k miles. My modded one is a ‘16 EL. Headed to FordTechMakuloco near the end of the month to get the timing chain service, and supporting parts upgrade done. Gotta keep it strong to handle that added power so it doesn’t **** itself!!!
