Jobodizo
Well-Known Member
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Let me start out by saying this post is in no way meant to bash on Edelbrock. Tony and Nick (tech support and @Edelbrock Tech) were incredibly supportive through troubleshooting my issues and Edelbrock reimbursed me for my rental after we figured everything out. I am also incredibly happy with the quality of the supercharger assembly, the fit/feel/finish of the kit, the ease of assembly, the intercooler temperatures, and most definitely the POWER now that I have it running.
All that being said, I had just about every gremlin that I could have experienced mess with me post-install. Because there’s not a lot of technical information about E-Force in the forums aside from what @Kona 18 has posted, I thought I’d start this post to document issues and how they can be fixed. I have had 3 individuals separately contact me with similar issues after they found my “help me” posts to find out how I resolved everything, and I know I personally would have been less freaked out if I would’ve seen writeups while I was searching for fixes. Here goes:
Issue 1: No reading or triple dots for IAT in the center display screen. May or may not be accompanied by a P0113 CEL.
Likely Resolution: The harness that interfaces between the MAF sensor and the IAT runner relocation harness is probably bad. Tony told me they reverse-engineered the side that acts like the replacement MAF plug and there have been some issues with secure fitment. Try wiggling this connection to the IAT harness and see if you can get a reading. Also check for pins that have been pushed back out of the connector. If need be, Edelbrock will likely want to overnight you a replacement harness. Personally, I have no intention of ever removing the system so I just cut the plug off and soldered the extension harness into the engine harness (Tony’s recommendation).
Issue 2: Wrench light and limp mode, likely accompanied by a P0223 CEL.
Likely Resolution: Similar to issue 1, it is likely the extension harness from the factory throttle body harness to the throttle body has a bad connection. Again, the likely culprit is the reverse-engineered side that replicates the throttle body. If need be, Edelbrock will likely want to overnight you a replacement harness. I have not soldered in the extension yet (have about 2k miles now on the second one) but I plan on doing this one as well once I get out of the rainy season.
Issue 3: Coolant puddle under the car when ambient is below freezing and the overflow tank seems to always want to level off at the “low” marking.
Likely Resolution: The spring clamps that seal the two hoses to the overflow tank are borderline for compression with the amount of expansion/contraction that the blow-molded plastic sees in “4 season” climates. If you haven’t installed the system yet, use screw clamps instead. If you have, slide the spring clamps to the end of the nipples and add screw clamps.
This one is the BIGGEST ISSUE I FACED. The worst part about it is that it APPEARS to be intermittent, but likely you are only seeing it if you’re trying to start the car in 45*F or below weather. This will also only be an issue for people on the Edelbrock tune. I spent DAYS on this one because Christmas in KY seesawed around the 45*F mark…
Issue 4: The dash IAT reading is something like -73*F, you experience EXTREMELY hard starts with clouds of rich smoke, possibly also accompanied by a P0113 CEL. It generally only happens below ~45*F, and if you bring the car up to temp then restart the issue appears to go away. Best part: if you’re datalogging IAT with the provided SCT X4 the IATs are accurate.
Likely Resolution: This has something to do with the interaction between the Edelbrock tune and the plastic IAT sensor. Something about the combination does not play nice. At one point @ugstang17 theorized that the resistance goes towards its max value at colder temps, and the ECU is seeing close to its full 5V output in the IAT loop therefore causing a problem. Roush and Whipple use the same sensor and I haven’t heard of them having a similar issue, but their kits wire it differently. Also, @Kona 18 has been running his kit about as long as me with a custom tune and hasn’t had a single issue with his kit…but he’s also in Texas. Read into this what you will, because I’m not an electrical guy. In the end, after multiple datalogs and involvement from both their tune and engineering departments, Edelbrock provided me with a brass IAT sensor and a tune update and the issue disappeared. Obviously Edelbrock is aware of these issues now, as I annoyed Tony and Nick relentlessly for the ~6 weeks my car was down working through all of this. I do not know if their new complete kits are shipping with the brass sensor or not. If you experience this issue, I’d call and ask for Tony and he should get you squared away.
!!!VERY IMPORTANT!!!
If you have to replace the plastic IAT sensor, be mindful of the fact that it comes pre-coated with thread locker. If you break it off, there is really no way to drill/tap it without removing the entire assembly to keep things from falling down the runners. Go very slowly and apply small amounts of force while supporting the end of the wrench so that you're not creating additional shear forces. I found that using small amounts of brake cleaner on the threads dissolves the locker without weakening the sensor. Small squirt, wipe off locker, small turn, repeat a billion times. Seriously, you do not want to remove the whole thing to tap a 3/8" hole on the back of the blower.
Issue 5: Surging, off idle stumble, bad gas mileage, and no decel with pedal lift.
Likely Resolution: Issue directly linked to the Edelbrock tune. So, I said I wasn’t bashing Edelbrock, but I have to mention this: Their tune department is unresponsive, stubborn, and short with their customers. This issue was completely tune related. I called their tune department to discuss, and I received essentially a “nobody else has complained” response. Now, I know people will read this and say “all manufacturers have really safe and slow tunes because of their warranties,” and for the most part I would agree. But…I test drove a ’15 Roush Stage 3 before I bought this kit. I was considering simply trading my car for the better residual value of the Roush vs. spending money on this kit. The Roush did not have any of these drivability issues, it was just less powerful than it could have been. I eventually had the car dyno tuned and my tuner (Lee Blankenship) told me that the torque tables were all messed up which was causing the vast majority of my drivability problems. Long and short, you’re probably better off buying the kit without the tune included. The possible exception to this would be their new modular inlet with the bazillion mm throttle body, which I understand is being tuned by Lund.
Issue 6: Odd, jerky (almost hesitation but not quite) transition to boost.
Likely Resolution: Edelbrock puts a small nitrogen capsule into the hose that actuates the boost bypass valve. It’s on the side of the hose closest to the valve. Thanks to @kona18 for pointing me to it. This one is a double-edged sword. Having the capsule there causes the bypass valve to close more slowly than it normally would, providing a gradual increase in boost. This makes the whole system give less of a jolt to your drivetrain and gives your tires a better fighting chance to hook up. It’s also probably required to keep the Edelbrock warranty. The downside of course is the transition into boost and how it feels. I eventually removed mine because it actually felt like there was something wrong with the car and I was constantly looking at my knock readout and fuel trims for problems…but I also don’t get a warranty because my car is too old. Take from this what you will.
The end of my story: I went ahead and paid the $500 for a custom dyno tune and there are now no drivability issues. On a very conservative tune I’m making 583whp and 557wtq, I went from 16 to 21mpg average (same commute), and the car drives like stock until I mash the pedal. Dyno printout below with runs both from the Edelbrock tune and the custom tune. (Yes, I know, no slicks for me until I upgrade the clutch!)
Sorry for the length of the post, but hopefully with it I can help somebody if they ever experience one or all of the issues I went through.
All that being said, I had just about every gremlin that I could have experienced mess with me post-install. Because there’s not a lot of technical information about E-Force in the forums aside from what @Kona 18 has posted, I thought I’d start this post to document issues and how they can be fixed. I have had 3 individuals separately contact me with similar issues after they found my “help me” posts to find out how I resolved everything, and I know I personally would have been less freaked out if I would’ve seen writeups while I was searching for fixes. Here goes:
Issue 1: No reading or triple dots for IAT in the center display screen. May or may not be accompanied by a P0113 CEL.
Likely Resolution: The harness that interfaces between the MAF sensor and the IAT runner relocation harness is probably bad. Tony told me they reverse-engineered the side that acts like the replacement MAF plug and there have been some issues with secure fitment. Try wiggling this connection to the IAT harness and see if you can get a reading. Also check for pins that have been pushed back out of the connector. If need be, Edelbrock will likely want to overnight you a replacement harness. Personally, I have no intention of ever removing the system so I just cut the plug off and soldered the extension harness into the engine harness (Tony’s recommendation).
Issue 2: Wrench light and limp mode, likely accompanied by a P0223 CEL.
Likely Resolution: Similar to issue 1, it is likely the extension harness from the factory throttle body harness to the throttle body has a bad connection. Again, the likely culprit is the reverse-engineered side that replicates the throttle body. If need be, Edelbrock will likely want to overnight you a replacement harness. I have not soldered in the extension yet (have about 2k miles now on the second one) but I plan on doing this one as well once I get out of the rainy season.
Issue 3: Coolant puddle under the car when ambient is below freezing and the overflow tank seems to always want to level off at the “low” marking.
Likely Resolution: The spring clamps that seal the two hoses to the overflow tank are borderline for compression with the amount of expansion/contraction that the blow-molded plastic sees in “4 season” climates. If you haven’t installed the system yet, use screw clamps instead. If you have, slide the spring clamps to the end of the nipples and add screw clamps.
This one is the BIGGEST ISSUE I FACED. The worst part about it is that it APPEARS to be intermittent, but likely you are only seeing it if you’re trying to start the car in 45*F or below weather. This will also only be an issue for people on the Edelbrock tune. I spent DAYS on this one because Christmas in KY seesawed around the 45*F mark…
Issue 4: The dash IAT reading is something like -73*F, you experience EXTREMELY hard starts with clouds of rich smoke, possibly also accompanied by a P0113 CEL. It generally only happens below ~45*F, and if you bring the car up to temp then restart the issue appears to go away. Best part: if you’re datalogging IAT with the provided SCT X4 the IATs are accurate.
Likely Resolution: This has something to do with the interaction between the Edelbrock tune and the plastic IAT sensor. Something about the combination does not play nice. At one point @ugstang17 theorized that the resistance goes towards its max value at colder temps, and the ECU is seeing close to its full 5V output in the IAT loop therefore causing a problem. Roush and Whipple use the same sensor and I haven’t heard of them having a similar issue, but their kits wire it differently. Also, @Kona 18 has been running his kit about as long as me with a custom tune and hasn’t had a single issue with his kit…but he’s also in Texas. Read into this what you will, because I’m not an electrical guy. In the end, after multiple datalogs and involvement from both their tune and engineering departments, Edelbrock provided me with a brass IAT sensor and a tune update and the issue disappeared. Obviously Edelbrock is aware of these issues now, as I annoyed Tony and Nick relentlessly for the ~6 weeks my car was down working through all of this. I do not know if their new complete kits are shipping with the brass sensor or not. If you experience this issue, I’d call and ask for Tony and he should get you squared away.
!!!VERY IMPORTANT!!!
If you have to replace the plastic IAT sensor, be mindful of the fact that it comes pre-coated with thread locker. If you break it off, there is really no way to drill/tap it without removing the entire assembly to keep things from falling down the runners. Go very slowly and apply small amounts of force while supporting the end of the wrench so that you're not creating additional shear forces. I found that using small amounts of brake cleaner on the threads dissolves the locker without weakening the sensor. Small squirt, wipe off locker, small turn, repeat a billion times. Seriously, you do not want to remove the whole thing to tap a 3/8" hole on the back of the blower.
Issue 5: Surging, off idle stumble, bad gas mileage, and no decel with pedal lift.
Likely Resolution: Issue directly linked to the Edelbrock tune. So, I said I wasn’t bashing Edelbrock, but I have to mention this: Their tune department is unresponsive, stubborn, and short with their customers. This issue was completely tune related. I called their tune department to discuss, and I received essentially a “nobody else has complained” response. Now, I know people will read this and say “all manufacturers have really safe and slow tunes because of their warranties,” and for the most part I would agree. But…I test drove a ’15 Roush Stage 3 before I bought this kit. I was considering simply trading my car for the better residual value of the Roush vs. spending money on this kit. The Roush did not have any of these drivability issues, it was just less powerful than it could have been. I eventually had the car dyno tuned and my tuner (Lee Blankenship) told me that the torque tables were all messed up which was causing the vast majority of my drivability problems. Long and short, you’re probably better off buying the kit without the tune included. The possible exception to this would be their new modular inlet with the bazillion mm throttle body, which I understand is being tuned by Lund.
Issue 6: Odd, jerky (almost hesitation but not quite) transition to boost.
Likely Resolution: Edelbrock puts a small nitrogen capsule into the hose that actuates the boost bypass valve. It’s on the side of the hose closest to the valve. Thanks to @kona18 for pointing me to it. This one is a double-edged sword. Having the capsule there causes the bypass valve to close more slowly than it normally would, providing a gradual increase in boost. This makes the whole system give less of a jolt to your drivetrain and gives your tires a better fighting chance to hook up. It’s also probably required to keep the Edelbrock warranty. The downside of course is the transition into boost and how it feels. I eventually removed mine because it actually felt like there was something wrong with the car and I was constantly looking at my knock readout and fuel trims for problems…but I also don’t get a warranty because my car is too old. Take from this what you will.
The end of my story: I went ahead and paid the $500 for a custom dyno tune and there are now no drivability issues. On a very conservative tune I’m making 583whp and 557wtq, I went from 16 to 21mpg average (same commute), and the car drives like stock until I mash the pedal. Dyno printout below with runs both from the Edelbrock tune and the custom tune. (Yes, I know, no slicks for me until I upgrade the clutch!)
Sorry for the length of the post, but hopefully with it I can help somebody if they ever experience one or all of the issues I went through.
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