Cheap Air Flow Meter - am I wasting my money??

T

touring_style

Member
 Hampshire
My 2.2i brings up the engine light when its been run on a long journey. (interestingly only on the return journey, never on the way out no matter how far I seem to be going).

Fault codes on INPA say 2882 / 2883; fuel preparation banks 1 AND 2.

Cos its both banks and pre inlet I'm thinking there's a good chance it could be the air flow meter??

Am I wasting my money on one of these cheapo eBay specials;

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/142039043573

Has anyone had any experience with one this cheap?

I can't be 100% sure the air flow meter is at fault so don't want to commit mega bucks on a new OEM part.
 
Yes, could tell you quite a few stories of cheap air flow meters causing other fault codes etc, really is a false economy.
 
touring_style said:
My 2.2i brings up the engine light when its been run on a long journey. (interestingly only on the return journey, never on the way out no matter how far I seem to be going).

Fault codes on INPA say 2882 / 2883; fuel preparation banks 1 AND 2.

Cos its both banks and pre inlet I'm thinking there's a good chance it could be the air flow meter??

Am I wasting my money on one of these cheapo eBay specials;

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/142039043573

Has anyone had any experience with one this cheap?

I can't be 100% sure the air flow meter is at fault so don't want to commit mega bucks on a new OEM part.
Click to expand...


Check out the part numbers on this one:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/142129547785?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

It's my advert, OE part removed from my working car. Can discount without fees!
 
Im in the trade and have been asked so many times to fit cheapo air flow meters/MAP sensors, O2 sensors, and NONE (yes none) have been any good whatsoever.

You get what you pay for. Trust me on this.

Andy.
 
I usually take the car for a run, log some live data on airflow (g/s at certain engine speeds on certain roads), remove air flow meter, clean it using throttle body cleaner (even carb cleaner - wont do any harm), make sure its thoroughly dry (NEVER put it back wet) and repeat the same route as before and compare readings to what was there before.

I did a peugeot 807 diesel a few months ago that had seriously low power going up hills. I logged the airflow at idle only, then cleaned the MAF (using EGR cleaner actually) then redid the test. Airflow was up 10% at idle alone. Was a completely different car after. customer was highly pleased, cos it only cost him £20 !

Andy.
 
Another thought here............look at short term fuel trim and long term fuel trim whist driving. It its around 0 on both at idle, but gets more and more +ve or -ve the higher the revs, it highly likely it is a MAF issue. This may explain the light coming on the return journey. Gives the ECU enough time to compensate for long term fuel trim.
If the stft and ltft add up to about 25 at any rev range, this is usually the point the money light comes on.

May be worth getting a scan tool on this before any good money is spent.
Andy.
 
handy_andy_100 said:
touring_style said:
My 2.2i brings up the engine light when its been run on a long journey. (interestingly only on the return journey, never on the way out no matter how far I seem to be going).

Fault codes on INPA say 2882 / 2883; fuel preparation banks 1 AND 2.

Cos its both banks and pre inlet I'm thinking there's a good chance it could be the air flow meter??

Am I wasting my money on one of these cheapo eBay specials;

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/142039043573

Has anyone had any experience with one this cheap?

I can't be 100% sure the air flow meter is at fault so don't want to commit mega bucks on a new OEM part.
Click to expand...


Check out the part numbers on this one:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/142129547785?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

It's my advert, OE part removed from my working car. Can discount without fees!
Click to expand...

Thanks so much for highlighting this to me - having checked that one's only suitable for 3.0i models unfortunately. Good luck with the sale though, its a good price for a genuine part.
 
andyfanshawe said:
Another thought here............look at short term fuel trim and long term fuel trim whist driving. It its around 0 on both at idle, but gets more and more +ve or -ve the higher the revs, it highly likely it is a MAF issue. This may explain the light coming on the return journey. Gives the ECU enough time to compensate for long term fuel trim.
If the stft and ltft add up to about 25 at any rev range, this is usually the point the money light comes on.

May be worth getting a scan tool on this before any good money is spent.
Andy.
Click to expand...

Andy, that advice is great, I'll definitely get onto that.

Are you familiar with INPA by and chance? - do you know if that gives me the ability to monitor the stft and ltft?

BTW I've been following your Z4 project thread, its very interesting reading.
 
Hi. Not familiar with INPA. I use snap on verus for data, but will look into it. Ironically, even a cheap EOBD reader will display stft and ltft. I use an AUTEL 70 quid quickie code reader with live data capability sometimes for ease of use rather than waiting for the verus to fire up.
I also have snap on ethos that are quite cheap now for a quick plug in.

Good luck with your z4!
Andy
 
I've had both good and bad results from cheap airflow meters (ones that broke after a year but also ones that held up 100k miles), so its a bit hit and miss imho. Maybe not suitable if you're hunting for faults.
On the other hand, if you install one and it solves the faults, it was definately the MAF :lol: Better that than buying a new original one and finding out it's something else :wink:
Some new original MAF's are stupid money (dont know what this one costs, but the 3.0 model is one of those), so an aftermarket one might be a good deal if you have no problems with swapping them out yourself.
A used maf might also be a risk. you dont know where its been since it's been uninstalled from the car (for example on the shelf of a greasy dusty workshop can cause serious harm)
 
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