a short while ago, i posted a topic about a power loss in my TL-S. normal driving seems fine, but when i punch the gas the car is dramatically slower than it used to be. I checked the actuator... works fine. I took it to the dealer... no problems. so then, I thought maybe i should try cleaning my air filter (AEM CAI) since I haven't cleaned it in 20K+ miles... While i was trying to get to the filter, i pulled back the sponge piece covering my bypass valve and found the bypass valve in two pieces. Thats not how it's supposed to be, is it? It is split exactly in the middle, one half on one side of the intake pipe and the other half on the other intake pipe. I had a friend rub the gas for me... when he floors it, i noticed the rubber(?) piece inside the bypass valve getting sucked in, which creates a hole in my intake. the hissing sound also sounds lighter when i hold the two bypass pieces tightly together. Now, I am assuming that my power loss is caused by this. I did a search about this topic and found one thread... He said the dealer broke his during the transmission swap. not much info though... can someone help me out? Am I totally off? or do I really need a new bypass valve?
I'm also considering getting a new filter instead of cleaning it... what would you recommend? is apexi good? Thanks so much.

 

it's broken...not supposed to be in two pieces

 

since the bypass valve is broken, am i putting my engine at risk by driving it around? is it a big problem if dust gets sucked up or anything like that?

 

the only thing that will happen by having the by-pass valve broken is you will risk sucking up water. Unless you drive through deep puddles... you should be OK. Dust, dirt, and the like will be caught by the filter.

In other words.. you'll be fine

 

what about the fact that there is a hole in the intake pipe? where the bypass is broken? i can see down the inside of the intake pipe through the bypass valve. is that not a problem?

 

broken bypass value &/or pipe means less cold air get into the engine which resulted in a power loss. why not buy a new bypass as it won't cost u much.

 

Agreed... you will probably lose power, and I wouldn't continue to drive around with the broken by-pass. For the short term, you're OK... but I'd get a new one ASAP.....

 

does AEM replace this broken bypass valve under warranty? Does the thing has lifetime warranty or soemthing? Or am i dreaming?

 

I say cut your loses and just use a rubber hose to make the pipe 1 unit again.

 

be glad it didn't break off and get sucked up into your throttle body! edga is right i just put a silicone sleeve on my 2 piece injen, and noticed a big difference bypass is a year old, in excellent condition.

 

I have a brand New Bypass Valve that I never put in...I don't know why, but I just have no use it...Now, this is giving me second thoughts about putting it in ...hmm...

 

You can also go to the Acura-CL site and do a search. There is a TON of anti-bypass valve posts there too. I'm with EricL on this one...untill AEM gets their act together and design a better unit, my CAI will remain bypass valveLESS.

 

seal the deal!

 

My valve only lasted me one year. The rubber seemed to have cracked in several places, it is sitting in my trunk POS.

It reminded me of an old pencil, how the eraser cracked and broke apart when you tried to use it. The rubber needs to be more durable.:flamer:

 

hey kman156, nice injen intake- is that the i piece RD CAI, and how did you put the acura logo on there?

 

Hmmm, sounds to me like the perfect excuse to replace your CAI with the Comptech IceBox!!!

Good luck with getting it taken care of, and getting your TL-S back into tip-top performance shape!

 

I took the advice and replaced the bypass with a silicone hose. The CAI sounds different without the bypass. each time it hits around 5K rpm the engine sounds a LOT louder exactly at that point until the upshift. The car still doesn't feel as powerful though. when you floor it at around 35-40 in auto (which would mean that you're in 4th gear), shouldn't the car shift down to second and take off? I thought it used to... but now it feels like its only going into third. also, when i floor the gas from a stop or a slow roll, i used to feel the car pulling pretty hard. now, it feels like going over water or something, slowly increasing speed. I don't feel the pull at all. are these the kind of problems resetting the ecu will take care of?

 

did u turn off vsa???