Changed my MAF, what a difference!!

Over Clocker

Over Clocker

Over Clocker

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So, I had my car in for a service before Christmas, and the BMW peeps said the MAF needed changing. I waited a bit, as I didn't really want to pay the over £200 for it from BM!

So, I found an online supplier of the same Siemens unit, for just over £100, fitted it today, and the car feels completely different!

Smoother up the changes, more grunt low down etc. Can tell it's quicker, the DSC engages with a lighter lead foot!

Nice!
 
How strange. I took mine apart and cleaned it this evening.

It was caked in grease, so I'm hoping it might go some way to curing the nasty flat spot I currently have.
 
My old Ibiza Cupra's performance had gone downhill over a period of time, until one day the revs up high got stuttery. I took it to my local Seat dealer and they couldn't find a fault. Not trusting them I booked it into the local VW/Audi garage and they immediately diagnosed it as a faulty MAF. They picked the car up from my work place and had it delivered back within 4 hours of my initial phone call!

Well the difference it made was amazing! It was like having a new motor. The prior drop in performance had been gradual, so I was sort of thinking 'perhaps I am just getting used to the car?', but no, it really did make a big difference. I was so glad I pursued it and got it changed and I can understand why the OP is so chuffed too :)
 
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Im wondering about cleaning my MAF sensor. I don't notice the car being particularly troublesome, perhaps a bit judderyat very low revs when cold. But, ive read its a very simple job. Worth it, you reckon?
 
Very easy to clean. Remove from airbox assembly, and spray with Isopropyl Alcohol spray - found in a high street electrical retailer. Refit. Done!
 
They go out of spec and some dont always show up on diag.

I've seen BMW Bosch units go out of spec as quicly as 4k miles, and by out of spec, I mean, enough to cause rough idle, smoke, loss of power. A clean helps but only prolongs the inevitable. Sooner or later they'll die and a replacement is necessary.
 
I changed mine on my alfa gtv a few weeks ago and was amazed with the difference. Smooth rev range, no more flat spots. Im certainally not mechanically minded and was pleased to see how easy it was.
Huge differences in prices for the part. Managed to get a bosch one for mine for only £45 delivered.
 
I tested mine this morning and the difference was very noticable. I've done 'placebo mods' before such as induction kits and exhausts on 1.25 fiestas before and known truly there was no real effect. This was a marked improvment. The dead spot is gone, I didn't really notice how much it was stuttering beforehand. There was noticably less smoke on accelleration too.

Yes, you have to be very careful in cleaning them, but if you are, the benefits are worth the risk.

Obviously, this will only improve things if there was a problem to start with!
 
What did you use to clean your MAF?

On occasions I get the common problem other e46 people have reported on bimmerfest/bimmerforums and e46 fanatics where during idle only in cold mornings on occasions the car will stall or there will be flat spots whilst the car is still warming up.

This happens only when the engine is still cold and people have solved it by cleaning their MAF (or camshaft sensor) which I want to do soon so would be handy to know what cleaner you used :)

It's worth noting that there is no fault light and diagnostic tools don't show any fault codes logged according to those who have reported the problem but have solved it completely by either cleaning the MAF sensor or the camshaft intake sensor both of which are easy DIY jobs.

I've also read that some fault codes are logged in a specific area of memory that only a specialist or dealer can read (diag tools cannot access this area) so I'll do the DIY MAF clean after autotechnik do a fault code printout on the 18th just to confirm if there is a code logged through one of these sensors.
 
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Cheers, I have had a look around for replacement MAF sensors and the cheapest I found was £150 for the BOSCH units which IIRC are not very reliable, the Siemens units are the same price but a different part number, seems they are for 6cyl but the connector and unit fit is the same as the Bosch one. Am I right in assuming you could use the better quality Siemens unit in place of the Bosch one if you wanted to or are they "tuned" specifically for certain engines ?

Also what method would you recommend in cleaning the MAF without damaging it ?
 
mark66 said:
My old Ibiza Cupra's performance had gone downhill over a period of time, until one day the revs up high got stuttery. I took it to my local Seat dealer and they couldn't find a fault. Not trusting them I booked it into the local VW/Audi garage and they immediately diagnosed it as a faulty MAF. They picked the car up from my work place and had it delivered back within 4 hours of my initial phone call!
Click to expand...

Could you tell me who the VW/Audi garage are as if they provide good service I would like to have them look at my Leon Cupra.
 
BigglesPiP said:
The hot wire verity are very sensitive to moisture.

It's a heated debate that Oiled Sponge anf K&N type filters are bad for them.
Click to expand...


VX220 Turbo owners wont fit any non standard air filter because they belive it kills the MAF very quickly for the above reason ....
 
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