amrit

I was havin' some problems with the car and got a diagnostices check done on it. i got back 4 error codes, 2 for the o2 sensor and 2 for the maf sensor. however the codes were cleared and i continued to use the car until the problem came back up again just a few days after. got the diagnostics check done again and this time only the error codes for the maf sensor came up.

so i was told that i need to change the maf sensor. however i changed my sensor (which is supposed to be faulty) with my friend's sensor and the car was still givin' problems and his sensor works just fine.

so it can't be the maf sensor. what could cause this problem? could it be electrical?

KrayzieFox

It's the rice that the mouse left you ...

zerocover

O2 sensor if your sure its not the maf. Theres alot of things that could go wrong but hopefully its something simple
The O2 is what the maf is refrenced agaist.

amrit

ok but i noticed that when i get the problem with the car and i take out the plug wires connected to the coil packs and plug them back in, it starts and works fine. the problem was with a rough idle and if i try drivin' the car with that rough idle, there's absolutely NO POWER!!!

but like i said, all i do is, disconnect the plug wires from the coil packs (i don't take off the entire plug wires which is also connected to the spark plug, just the part connected to the coil packs), start the car, and obviously it won't start, then plug them back in and it works great!

would it be faulty plug wires or even faulty spark plugs?

slowprotege03

try cleaning your maf sensor with electronic parts cleaner but be very gentle not to damage it. Having a dirty(oil coated maf) is common with k and n equipped cars if it is coated with too much oil.

macdaddyslomo

get rid of those denso spark plugs too....just get some NGK's

amrit

how do i clean it without damagin' it? the thing about the oil thing though, is that i haven't cleaned my filter to over oil it. i cleaned it recently thoug, about a week now and i know i didn't over oil it.

and denso spark plugs are no good?

Da P-Funk!

i would clean the MAF wire with a Q-Tip[tm] soaked in carb cleaner. Wipe dry with another Q-Tip.
Be Gentle!

amrit

I haven't cleaned the MAF yet but I got a really good mechanic to check it out for me. My first mechanic told me that it was the cam sensor and the current sensor. I didn't quite belive him because he todl me it would cost $2500 for the parts and he ould get them for me for $1800. anyways it sounded like a scam so I didn't give into it. the other mechanic i checked (a highly recommended mechanic) told me that it was the crank sensor and the cam sensor without doin' any diagnostics check on the car. he alos told me that there is no such thing as a current sensor in these cars. anyways, these parts would only cost me $600 to change out as opposed to the $1800 that the other guy told me!

Ken@ProtegeGarage

i can get you all these parts for less than you are being quoted. let me know what you need and i will help you out. be VERY careful when cleaning the MAF. they are very easily rendered useless by human meddling.

snap-on

U.S. vehicles have an extended warranty on the MAF.

Ken is right on target when he warns of contact with the wire inside the sensor. The wire that gauges the air flow is very small and one touch can render it useless.
Another tip would be to check the quality of the air filter you are using. The wire in all MAF's must read the correct resistance as the car drives and one strand of filter media can produce a faulty reading. This can result in varied CEL codes i.e. P0171/174. I would also caution those with CAI's not to over oil the filters as residue will produce the same results.

amrit

thanks for the offer ken, but seein' that i'm from trinidad it may be beter if i get the parts here. shipping and duties may be a killing!

i haven't touched the MAF sensor, but i was told that i need to change out the crank and cam sensors which i will be doin' this week. by the way, they're actually gonna cost me $900 for the 2 sensors and about $400 to install. a total of $1300 in TT currency i.e. which is roughly $220 US dollars. man i could definitely used that money to get my tein springs! oh well...

Da P-Funk!

amrit-
Does it make sense to you that both sensors failed at the same time? That he troubleshot without a diagnostics?

If all this is true - do the timing belt and water pump at the same time...

amrit

well the things is, my mileage is sorta high. it's at 124000 and over so is it only possible that it's gone bad by now. i also mentioned to him that i should change the timin' belt because of the mileage, didn't know about the water pump.

the only thing i ever changed in the car, engine wise, are the plug wires, spark plugs, battery and the air filter.

snap-on

These sensors are simply magnets. They rarely fail.

I'm sure Ken will tell you he sells very few of these parts.

Have you had the chance to read and codes on this vehicle yet? There is no sense in throwing good money at this issue. I'm not sure if you have 124km's or miles. Either way I would suspect the MAF way before the crank and cam sensors.