mass air flow sensor??? - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

mr2trd · 07-28-2004, 12:54 PM

i took apart a lot of the piping from the air filter to the turbo...and so on, to clean it out cause it looked very dirty. so, i unhooked the MAF sensor (i think that's what it is? the metal box sitting between the air filter and the turbo) from the harness, but i'm unsure about how to hook it back up.

there are two pins on the sensor, so i hooked them up to the two spots on the harness. then i slightly opened the lil door that lets in the air and insert the harness and screwed the thing down.

is this correct? i hope i didn't screw anything up

JekylandHyde · 07-28-2004, 01:00 PM

You are talking about the AFM (air flow meter).

I hate to tell you this, but if you unscrewed the 2 screws on the side of the AFM (where the big cable goes in) you damaged the sensor.

The proper way to take off the big wire is the very thin C-clip that surrounds the plastic at the connector.

I really hope you did not touch the screws on either side of the wire *sigh*

mr2trd · 07-28-2004, 01:04 PM

forreals? aww. shoo, how do i go about fixin this now? shoot man. maybe i should ask others about stuff befor i go and touch it. i guessing this part is essential to the operation of the engine. do i need a new one or what?

Piddy · 07-28-2004, 01:47 PM

Ya... you pretty much screwed up your AFM. I don't understand why Toyota didn't put some sort of fancy screw on there... not just a standard philips head.... that really sucks.

JekylandHyde · 07-28-2004, 02:53 PM

This may help:
http://www.mr2oc.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=39002

mr2trd · 07-29-2004, 01:08 PM

hey thanks. yeh, i'm pretty bummed out about screwing this up. i guess u learn most from experience and mistakes. i'm not gonna try to shell out $550+ for a new one from Toyota, so thanks for the heads up. i'll c if i can get it.

is it essential to have this part to run properly? on a forum on mr2oc.com, someone stated that the car ran O.K. without the AFM hooked up. is this possible? i just want to know whether the 2 should be driven without this part being fixed.

how much would it cost to have a shop repair it?

JekylandHyde · 07-29-2004, 01:34 PM

I would not drive my car (for long) without that part running correctly.

You can buy an HKS VPC that replaces the part, but they are not available new any more. They are $500-$650 on the used market.

I would not trust that thread on mr2oc about driving around with it not connected. That device is the ONLY way your ECU knows how much air is coming into the engine.

KAOS · 07-29-2004, 11:04 PM

yes, i've had to take mine out a few times to install other parts and i've forgotten to plug it back in twice - the car does even start without it connected, so how would one run?

JekylandHyde · 07-30-2004, 10:44 AM

The thread on the other board stated that the PIN for the AFM at the ECU was not connected and the car still ran fine. The implication was that the ECU was not getting a read from the AFM.

I do not know enough about the electric in the ECU to speak intelligently on the subject, but there is no denying the AFM is crucial to proper engine management.

mr2trd · 07-30-2004, 10:55 AM

thanks guys. ok, i won't be running the car, just to be on the safe side. how do you remove the AFM unit properly? jekylandhyde was talking about some sort or clip that holds the harness to the unit. i can't seem to find it. the previous owner had some rubber cement all over the connector (i have no idea what he was trying to do

).

i'm just really skeptical about buying stuff over the net. i hate scam and frauds, and it's something that is prevalant on deals over the internet. but then again, i don't want to pay $550+ for a new from toyota. i wish i could find a cheap one locally so i can check it out first.

Piddy · 07-30-2004, 11:46 AM

I bought about ~$1,000usd worth of parts from a member of this board and never had any problems (including an AFM). If you go over to MR2OC I'm sure you will be able to find a nice used afm for pretty cheap.

mr2trd · 07-30-2004, 11:50 AM

yeh, right now i'm dealing with this guy. looks like it'll end up to be around $120shipped. it's fine with me but i'm still skeptical. i'll jus make the purchase 'cuz i'm desperately wanting to drive the mr2.

Piddy · 07-30-2004, 12:14 PM

Who are you buying from?

Pineapple · 07-30-2004, 12:16 PM

There a few of them on ebay:
AFM on ebay
You can use AFM from same engine (3S-GTE) or even 3S-GE I guess.
Don't buy thing from member with no feedback or -ve feedback.

mr2trd · 07-30-2004, 12:24 PM

i'm dealing dazz. here's the tread.

http://www.mr2oc.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=39002