I bought a can of CRC MAF Cleaner at AutoZone since I have never cleaned my MAF. Can says to unplug MAF Electrical Connector, insert the straw (which it did not come with) spray a few squirts, etc.

Does anyone have any do's/don't that I need to be aware of?

How does the little clip on the connector release? Is it necessary to unplug?

Do you spray the entire screen or what?

I do see a couple of little ports or something on one side, do I spray down in there?

It also says to spray the connector, is that what you guys do?

As you can see, I know little about the MAF except that it is somewhat fragile and expensive. All help is appreciated.

I had also seen something about an O-ring on the MAF tubing connection, but mine does not have one present. Should it?

I plead total MAF ignorance.

 

Take it out of the truck completely, spray everything you can see, let it air dry, put it back.
Spray from both ends.
The trick it is cannot have power to it (unplug it) and it must be dry before giving it power.

 

O-ring would be a plus. These are hot wire sensors, two wires, heat one, measure difference between them to detect air flow. So very small coverage of grime throws them out of range. Just pull up on the little latch wire on the connector, it is sorta "U" shaped.

 

MAKE SURE YOUR MAF IS COLD not hot after a run to the auto parts store..let it cool down for about 30 min

 

As the fine gentlemen stated above, definitely unplug and remove, only clean the maf when it is cool.

The plug is a simple "squeeze" clip. just squeeze the bottom of the plug to the top (finger on top and thumb on bottom) and depress the captivating wire. It will release from securing tabs allowing you to remove the plug from maf housing.

Definitley a good idea to replace the Large O-ring on the filter box side of the maf. over time it will develop a flat spot and not seal all that well.

Remove the screen (carefully) by prying up and out the retaining ring. Use a fine point tool. Clean the screen when it is off the maf so you don't blow dirt collected on the screen into the sensing wire port. Also the screens can become brittle at this age so handle it very carefully so the mesh does not come free of the outer ring.

The port is the only and most important part of the maf to carefully spray the cleaner into. Naturally you can wipe down the large bore of the maf too but the sensor is all that truly matters. Best tip I can offer is do not insert the straw INTO the port as you can damage the sensing and heating wires by accidentally touching them. AND you don't need to blast the ever living crap out of it either. You are merely trying to remove a bit of grime from a delicate wire.

If you hold the maf vertically with the intake end facing up you can simply spray down into the small sensor bore and allow residue / excess drain out. Allow to dry.

I assume you still have the OE maf? the SAGEM 20 AM.....black plastic housing...

MAF or Electrical cleaner is best. there is acetone, toluene and other solvents in brake cleaner, degreasers, starting fluids and such which can potentially cause damage over time.

 

Thank you guys very much for all the great information you fine gentlemen have provided. I am much more confident now that I am properly armed to accomplish this.

I had been hesitant to tackle it knowing it was very sensitive and could be easily damaged. I wll go ahead and proceed this morning before I even start up the engine, since the unit will definitely be cold from sitting overnight. It's in the high 40's this morning and the high for today is only 50 degrees.

This should be a tremendous help to how my engine runs. I appreciate all the precise details from all of you. Have a great day gentlemen.

 

Gentlemen,

I am so happy now. I went ahead this morning and removed the MAF itself from the vehicle and took it in my garage for a close up look and cleaning.

I have one of those magnifying lamps, the old school ones with a circular light around a nice magnifying lense that my wifes grandfather or uncle had bought back in the 60's and never opened. It's like what we used to use for working on printed circuit boards many years ago.

I carefully examined the unit. The only thing I would add to Cosmo's fine detailed instructions is to clarify that the wire screen is removed by carefully prying up the outer black plastic ring that retains the screen.
Mine was in there pretty snug, but I was able to work it out thereby releasing the screen. Upon first look, I was pondering just how to get the screen out without damaging it, then I realized the ring was retaining the screen. The screen in mine was also pretty well blackened with something. I guess it had never ever been cleaned from the appearance.

I had spread paper towels on the work bench to keep from contaminating the MAF. I sprayed as directed, a few quick short burst, and quite a bit of black residue flushed out of the unit. I repeated this a few times and it finally ran clear. So I allowed it dry thoroughly as I cleaned the interior of the air tube that connects it to the intake and sprayed the connectors good as well.

Each of the two connectors had one wire that was showing the copper strands where the insulation had pulled back about 1/8 inch, so I carefully taped over both while they were loose to try to help them stay clean. Mine had no large O-ring present by the air box end. I will have to try and get one.

After cleaning and reinstalling, I also changed the spark plug wire on #8 cylinder as I had a p308 code as well as P1176 and P1316. On my way to an appointment, I stopped at Advanced Auto and cleared the codes once again.

I kept an eye on the dash as I drove along, previous to cleaning the MAF, the CEL would come back on after just a few minutes of driving. Well, the light has stayed off and the truck is running better than ever.

If I had known it was that simple as well as that critical to the engine running smoothly, I would have done this a long time ago. I have been fighting a rich mix condition for quite a while now. Hopefully that issue is finally resolved.

Any of you Discovery Owners that have not yet cleaned your MAF, I strongly encourage you to do so. If that is not part of the Sticky on New To You Discovery Owners, it definitely should be. This is the first one I had ever dealt with.

I want to thank all of you FINE GENTLEMEN for your inputs, especially that fine fellow from the swampy sandbar known as Florida, the one, the only COSMO.

Today was a GREAT ROVER DAY.

Just one question, P1176, exactly was correction are they referring to?

I want to try and understand more of the functionality behind these codes and that P1176 had plagued me for quite a while.

 

re: I want to thank all of you FINE GENTLEMEN for your inputs

Who are you and what have you done with Danny Lee?


See land rover repair tips experiences and advice at jahornby.webhop.org, it means the system is trying to correct but can't, may also be related to fuel filter, truck running lean.

 

Actually, my appointment was with my therapist, I got a refill on my meds, and I have been trying to be a more pleasant person lately.

Also having the truck run better and no CEL made my day one of the best I have had in a long time.

Now if I can just manage to get away for a while and do some golfing and fishing and wheeling, I might start to really enjoy life once again and not be so miserable, but i am still a good old redneck cracker at heart.

Whooo Hoooo, REDNECK in a ROVER without a CHECK ENGINE LIGHT. AND IT RUNS SO MUCH SMOOTHER AND EVEN MORE POWERFUL THAN IT EVER HAS BEFORE.

 

Damn you Danny, now I need to buy MAF cleaner and clean mine just for poops and giggles.
My truck runs fine but it has been about 50,000 miles since I last cleaned it.