[Emry]

I took out the MAF yesterday and cleaned it. Today I'm getting 16486 fault code:

Possible Causes

Wiring and/or Connector(s) from/to Mass Air Flow Sensor (MAF/G70) faulty
Mass Air Flow Sensor (MAF/G70) faulty

Possible Solutions

Check Wiring and/or Connector(s) from/to Mass Air Flow Sensor (MAF/G70)
Check/Replace Mass Air Flow Sensor (MAF/G70)


Is there any chance the MAF has died by just cleaning it?

 

[zak99B5]

In the immortal words of Red Green, "if it ain't broken, you're not tying hard enough."

What did you use to clean it?

Did it get dropped?

How are the wires that lead to it and the connectors?

What reading of g/s do you get? I don't remember the exact figures, but it's supposed to be so many at a certain rpm, depending on horsepower.

 

[Emry]

In the immortal words of Red Green, "if it ain't broken, you're not tying hard enough."
What did you use to clean it?
Did it get dropped?
How are the wires that lead to it and the connectors?
What reading of g/s do you get? I don't remember the exact figures, but it's supposed to be so many at a certain rpm, depending on horsepower.

Yeah I'm with you on that. It was working just fine and I shouldn't have taken it out. I used the MAF cleaner spray and was not dropped. The wires seem OK to me but don't know what to look at in the wires.

I don't have the g/s reading. I can go and test it with VCDS and see what I get.

 

[ylwagon]

Double-check that the connector is on correctly. I had the MAF disconnected for some reason or another, on my 3.0 A4, and a couple of minutes after driving it, the engine started running like crap. I pushed a little harder on the connector and it clicked. MAF code was there too.

 

[scotts13]

Coming from the computer industry, I handle wires very carefully, and usually spray a bit of contact cleaner on them before re-inserting. Translation: you broke the wire or got dirt in the connector.

 

[ylwagon]

That's especially true with the computer industry and electronics in general. The low voltages and high resistance circuits involved just won't develop enough heat to self-clean the contact's contaminants. The contact cleaner leaves a film of an oil to keep air out.

 

[Emry]

Double-check that the connector is on correctly. I had the MAF disconnected for some reason or another, on my 3.0 A4, and a couple of minutes after driving it, the engine started running like crap. I pushed a little harder on the connector and it clicked. MAF code was there too.

That's a good point. I do not recall pushing the harness firmly enough. I will try that and see what happens. I doubt the cleaning would kill the sensor.

 

[Emry]

Translation: you broke the wire or got dirt in the connector.

Which wire do you refer to? You mean the wire inside the harness?

 

[scotts13]

Which wire do you refer to? You mean the wire inside the harness?

Pretty much any wire you touched (GRIN). Specifically, those in the leads to the MAF. Wires can break inside the insulation, the insulation can crack, shorting the wires, pins inside the connector can get pushed out of position...

 

[Emry]

Pretty much any wire you touched (GRIN). Specifically, those in the leads to the MAF. Wires can break inside the insulation, the insulation can crack, shorting the wires, pins inside the connector can get pushed out of position...

As far as I recall I was careful with the wires. But will go and check them again to make sure.

UPDATE: So I looked at the wires carefully and it seemed they were under stress. So I rearranged them again. Then cleared the codes and ran the engine for like 10 minutes. Scanned and so far getting no codes. I wait a bit and see what happens. If the code returns then either the MAF is gone or somehow I have managed to damage the wiring. I can easily replace the MAF but not sure about the wires. Do they come as a separate part?