MAF Sensor is bad

[hdpt73]

reason i don't want to change it is it's 400+ dollars. my reasoning is if it's not going to hurt the car and just give me bad gas mileage then i can hold off on it. i'm buying a house and getting married very soon so if it's an annoyance thing (the yellow light) then i have more important things to spend my money on right now. but if its going to blow my engine (gas/air mixture) then i'm going to change it asap. engine is smooth as usual. i notice when i disconnect the battery for a few minutes and then reconnect it again, light goes off for a few hundred miles. then it comes back on again later. anyone ever try to get married and still have money left over? is there anywhere i can buy the maf for cheaper?

[Brucelee]

I really don't see an option here. If the MAF is bad (it seems like it is) the engine will not run with the right fuel/air ratio. Either too lean or too rich can cause serious engine damage, from simply fouled plugs to ruined rings and bearings, valves etc.

We are talking serious money in the worst case.

Yes, you can find a local Porsche mechanic who has a better hourly rate and yes you can shop for MAF from web supply, parts stores etc. You won't save a ton but you can save some money.

And before we start bashing Porsche, I just took a Lexus in trade with a bad MAF sensor at 56K miles. Sadly, it happens to the best of them.

Please for your own sake, don't let this go.

[tqtran]

If you have a bad MAF then you could be starting to have bad O2 sensors too.
If you plan to save $$$ by not replacing it then just park it and don't drive it until you can aford to replace it. $400 seems a bit high for a price, I was quoted $300 by my dealer for one a long time ago.

[98blackboxster]

How do you know you have a bad maf? did the dealer read the code? What caused the maf to go bad? Depending on what teh problem is you could just correct the problem on the MAF you have. Is there something on the sensor? Like the oil from a K&N? Debris? I had a problem with mine and if you let the maf set in some rubbing alcohol for a few hours and than let the alcohol evaporate overnight it cleans it pretty well. Of course this is just what has worked for me int he past.