I recently had a CEL which I took to the dealership where they scanned the following DTC P2445: Secondary Air Injection System Pump Stuck Off. Their assessment is the relay that controls the air pump was stuck on, damaging the air pump. The dealership recommended replacement of the pump and pump relay for $1,500 parts and labor. Dealer has advised that it will be ok to drive, but gas mileage may be reduced.

The car is a 2004, completely stock, with only 1200 miles, and no warranty remaining on non-drivetrain components. After resetting the CEL it has not returned after several days and about 60 miles of driving. I will post if this changes.

If someone could please advise on the following;

Will I be able to live without this repair?
My research to date suggests that the air pump is only used on cold engine conditions to supply extra air to the catalytic converter. This sounds like a non-critical engine component and reduced engine efficiency and performance will not be an issue. Only increased emissions on startup.

If I can pick up the parts myself is this an easy repair? I'm an average hobby mechanic.

How long should it take for the CEL to return? Could this be an intermittent or single event problem?

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

Its easy to replace the pump and relay, but I wouldn't do it until you know if there is actually anything wrong. You can test them first. My relay terminals were just dirty. Get a Helm service manual and a multimeter that can measure DC Volts and Ohms (any meter other than a straight-up ohmmeter will have these).

The secondary air also blows fresh air into the exhaust during deceleration, according to the manual. There is no damage risk to drive without secondary air.

 

just in case someone else is having this problem of code p2445 or p0411... i had this problem come up when i was uninstalling my intake to do some cleaning. i looked and looked forever and then finally got myself a obd2 tester and got a good idea that it was still a hose that i apparently missed. looked some more and it was a hose near the intake manifold that was like 2 inches long that had caused me so much headaches.

obd2 tester is a must for any shady tree mechanic