MAF cleaning?

[Bri's ride]

Ok i think my car is running a little rich and it stumbles a littles in lower RPM's. I think i need to clean my MAF. Can anybody give me a walkthrough on how to do this.

And what i should and shouldn't do, i don't want to screw anything up ya know.
Thanks

[JBeryleC]

Yeah.. this is real easy..

Unplug the MAF wiring harness, its just one clip.
Remove the air box from the MAF, and spray the entire insides of the MAF sensor... stay about 6 inches back with your spray from the actual filiments.. they are very sensitive, and let dry... spray again and let dry. Do not shake or drop the MAF unit.

You'll see the filiment and the temp filiment both turn from their black used color to a shiny new color

Both filiments are inside the MAF housing and are right next to eachother.

DO NOT put back together until completely dry.

Connect the MAF back to the airbox and plug in the wiring harness, and you're done

You'll notice an imediate better idle and smoother operation all around. And if you have an auto, the shifting will be improved.

[surfbeast]

Your MAF is a bit different than the 99 up. It is basically the same though. Just spray some good contact cleaner down the barrel of the maf tube and your good to go.

[JBeryleC]

Originally posted by surfbeast
Your MAF is a bit different than the 99 up. It is basically the same though. Just spray some good contact cleaner down the barrel of the maf tube and your good to go.

I was speaking from experience cleaning the MAF on my '95 T-Bird
<~~~ See other rides

Is it not the same as the 95-98 stang?
I think it is.

Anyhow, close enough if not

[Bri's ride]

Thanks for the advice, this is just "contact cleaner" nothing special
right
Should i clean my IAC as well?

[JBeryleC]

Use carburator cleaner for the MAF
Use brake cleaner for the IAC

Thats what I've been told in the past, and I do this with every oil change, just to keep a solid habit going.

After those are cleaned you should have a very smooth running idle, and because you'll have a more precise a/f ratio you'll notice a little more power too

[Bri's ride]

Thanks for the advise, i will be cleaning the soon. I iwll get back to you guys on weather or not i works.

BTW it your call stutters in the lower RPMS that is more that likely becuase it is running rich right?
Thanks

[Bri's ride]

Cleaning my maf right now, and my k&n while i have it out. Is the big tube coming from the intake tube the iac, and if so am i supposed to spray brake cleaner into the part of the upper plenum were it goes?or should i take it of
thanks

[surfbeast]

I always take mine off but you can probably leave it on. Amazing how much crap comes out!

[xxxBlakexxx]

I was told by a Mustang sport shop that you should ONLY use a cleaner that states that it is safe for the TB on the lable for the IAC and instake system. I assume this is the same for the MAF.

Also, some of the low idle problems might be from mods done on the intake system like cold air. A ford service tech told me this. The car will idle lower with more volume of air comming in and at a lower temp. He stated that at times it will even seem like it might stall.

If you guys are having luck cleaning the MAF, though, I can't argue with success. i am going to give it a try.

Do you think an "intake cleaner" is the correct choice of cleaners for the MAF. Seems like it should be.

[Bri's ride]

Im finally done, car idles better, around 700. still kinda feels slugish before 2k but thats what you get with catless midpipe. i didn't really notice it i guess, must be psychogical. i noticed a little oil in my intake tube,barely any but the PCV is right there so i assume that is ok. all in all i think everything is ok.

Thanks again for the help, you guys rock!

[urstangsmoke]

how often to you guys suggest cleaning these parts?

[xxxBlakexxx]

I cleaned the MAF last night. It did not help at all. I stopped by a Ford service center today for some help and got scolded for cleaning the MAF. I was told to NEVER do this and that people only clean them because of "knuckle heads that use too much oil on the K&Ns". I was warned that cleaners destroy the MAF wires.

I also got some help from the service manager at CJ Pony. He was very helpful.

His comments were:

1 - MAF's rarely need to be cleaned if at all.
2 - IAC's are really not much of a problem on the 4.6's.
3 - Base Idle needs to be reset whenever installing a new TB.

So, I pulled the IAC anyway and cleaned it. They was some carbon in it, but after it was installed there was only marginal improvement if any at all.

To set the base idle, you need to pull the wire on the IAC and start the motor (with all acessories OFF). The car should idle and not stall. If it stalls then slowly adjust the TB open until it will run by itself with the wire disconnected.

The check engine light will come on when you do this so you will need reset the computer. Connect the wire again.

After I did this, my idle rpms continued to "hunt" but only at a higher rpm. So, no dice.

As a last resort, I purchased and installed a new TPS. This made the best improvement. I think the idle is fine now, but I will watch it closely for a while to be sure.