P0102 code - cleaned MAF - no help

[23109VC]

I got the P0102 code. several people suggested cleaningi the MAF.

After spending about $50 on cleaner and the torx bolt - i cleaned it. code came right after i drove it for 5 min.

i may try to clear it again..but i don't think the MAF was the problem. when i looked at it, the thing looked shiny / clean.

any other suggestions before I take it to the mechanic?

i thought great... something else that is going to cost me $500+ to fix...

that old saying the cheapest porsche you buy is hte most expensive one to fix - so true. i've had the car 18 months, it had 74k on it, it now has only 78 k..so I put a whopping 4k miles on it and I've spend $3000 in maint and reapirs.

[mikefocke]

– Open circuit
– Short circuit to ground
– Mass air flow sensor

A dealer should have and use the special #9637 tool and a PST2/PWIS to check the first 2. Or they can just plug in a new MAF and drive it for a while.

About the only thing you can still check is that the air cleaner is clean.

You buy a used car...things are going to go wrong..no matter the make/model.

[23109VC]

yeah... i know used cars cost. i'm just whining... after being furloughed at work and eating $1000/month in reduced income...i'm hyper sensitive to car repairs now...

sometimes I start thinking of selling it and just get another when work/the m arket / economy picks back up.

i'll have to fix it n o matter what. off to the mechanic and see what he says. i'll pass on the stealer and take it to myinndie. he is pretty reasonable.

[Spinnaker]

Had the same issue, P0102 code kept coming on even after cleaning the MAF. It came on three times in about a month and a half. Finally decided to change the MAF for a new one. The old one had a P/N 986.606.125.00 so I figured it was pretty old. Might have been the original for all I know. The new one has a .01 suffix.
I've had the car for 2¼ years, a 2000S with 104K on it now. I have put about 6K of miles on it since I got it and about the same ($6K) in repairs. So I'm 3K ahead of you! Similar to you, I got layed off almost a year ago, so now I find the time to do my own repairs if they aren't too demanding.
You can get a new MAF online for about $240-280 depending on model year. You already know how to change it out. The cheapest I've seen it for is $223-234 at ********************************************************************************************. I've purchased from them before and so far no complaints. Got mine from my local P-car/racecar indie shop for the same price and got it in last week, no P0102 code yet. Car accelerates a lot better now, used to have a sagging sensation when you gave it the "passing mode" throttle position. Now that the weather here is starting to warm up, I can test out the "passing mode" more often.
Update: Just saw one on ******************************** for $216.51
http://www.************************************************************/search/product.aspx?sid=mhmrr555uywamv5503ot4c45&partnumber=0280218055

[23109VC]

I called my indie mechanic and he said they can hook up my car to their diagnostic computer. they'd charge me $50 for the diagnostic. He said if the MAF is actually BAD and needs to be replaced, this check would confirm that.

I just wanted to see if you guys concur with what he said. is it possible that you can hook up the car to the computer, and it will be able to read the MAF's data or what the MAF is reporting - and basically tell me if the MAF is the problem or not?

does the diagnostic system have the ability to be that specific or will it just give them some data and i'll get told "maybe" it's the MAF or "we think" it's the MAF..and I"m just back to where I am now and I wasted $50 to get told what I already know. at this point, from what i've read, it sounds like it's "probbly" my MAF gone bad..but who knows.

I can either spend teh $250ish now and just change it myself and see if that fixes it, or "invest" $50 to see..

what would you guys do?

[Spinnaker]

Hindsight is 20/20, and foresight is a crystal ball filled with uncertainty.
If your MAF is still the original, I would think that it maybe due for a replacement, since your car is a 2000 like mine is. From what I have seen on the forum from others, the MAF seems to be a common issue. I don't have any info about whether a diagnostic can determine if the MAF is truly bad or if it is potentially bad.
I just kept resetting the CEL to see what happened, and got the same error code after looking for other causes. The OBDII reader I bought has paid for itself. According to the Bently manual, the P0102 indicates a "lean mixture threshold", which is what I felt during acceleration. Do you experience any of these symptoms? Repairing cars is sometimes a process of elimination. You eliminate everything else that can be the problem until there is only one thing left. Sometimes, you get clues from the experience of others that had the same problem, or use the experience of those that work on them for a living.
I know that financial issues can sway decisions, if I were still employed I would do lots of things differently. Sometimes you just have to roll the dice and live with the results. Do I spend $50, $250, or $300? We can't roll the dice for you. On my car, I rolled the dice and won. Its your turn.....