Hey guys, I just recently bit the bullet and upgraded my '00 S4 to the K04's. The job was finished up in the shop yesterday afternoon and when the mechanic took it out for a test drive, he said it was running rich (smoke in the exhaust) and sluggish, he attributed it to the MAF not being able to adequately handle the increased demand from the new turbos/larger inlet pipes. Once he disconnected the MAF and the car ran much better, but when I drove it, the car was quick, but I did not feel the typical "get pinned to the seat" turbo boost I am accustomed to with the K03's.

So two questions come to mind. First, do you guys think the mechanic is right when he says I need to upgrade the MAF to support the new turbos? Second, would the lack of boost and pressure release I felt during my test drive be a result of having the MAF disconnected?

BTW, I am running a Stage 1 APR chip, but everything else is stock...

Any help or insight would be much appreciated.

 

Maf can cause a rich condition, also I have heard when you disconnect the maf the car is running in somewhat of a "safe" mode. I'm not exactly sure but I do know the programming for stage 1 chips are designed to operated in a k03's effiency range. So I wouldn't expect to see any huge performance gains until you upgrade the rest of the fuel and sofetware package to accompany the new k04

 

Iam getting readey to do the same thing what did you find out was the problim

 

You should get some kind of a piggyback that will take away the MAF and just run a straight intake pipe! You will defiantly have the tune the car for the new A/F and Boost that the car is now making if you want the full potential.

Adam

 

Did you check for any stored codes? My bet is the MAF is dirty, did you also add a K&N filter?

Did you get the APR update for the K04's with the 5b FPR?

The car should run fine the way it is, but the MAF needs to be tested, with it unhooked you are running off the MAP sensor, so there is a little lag, & less throttle response.

 

I did the same thing you did..... i just ended up changing the chip to Giac stage 3- and i needed to change the bosch maf to a hitachi maf, plus the spark plugs then it ran like a champ!!... but you can go with the Rs4 maf with all the goodies too.... to bad i could afford the fuel upgrade to get the more performance out of it......