Batlou

So I get my car back from the shop yesterday. I go to start it this morning and it will not idle. I call the shop and they told me to bring it back in. They ran diagnostics on it at a cost of 114.00 which I am alreay pissed about and tell me I need a new MAF sensor. They can do it for me at a cost of 365 for parts plus 54 for labor.

I argued the 114 for a bit and eventually caved and left the place. I got a copy of the codes and I don't see one that says specifically that the MAF is not working properly. I did get a copy of the Report for the diag.

Codes
17544 P1136 Bank 1 Mixture adaptation (add):system too lean

16684 P0300 Random Sporadic: multiple cylinder: misfire detected

17551 P1143 Load Detection: value above uppe limit

16891 PO507 Idle air sporadic: control system: RPM higher than expected

Some of these repeat. Is there somewhere I can lookup these codes? He said "It is likely your MAF"...I am not convinced he is making any more than an educated guess.

I have seen where you can often just clean the MAF and it will work fine. Is this a reasonable assumption?

Lastly, does anyone know of a good reliable online parts store so that I can begin doing this stuff myself?

audi01a6

what year and make and eng??
DAN.

Batlou

2000 V6 30V Quattro

audi01a6

mass from audi rebuilt 198.00,if thats it,
sounds like u might have intake leak also,do u have vag com to ck codes?

Batlou

Are their any alternatives to replacing the sensor? I do not have the vag com but I have considered purchasing one. Can you provide recommendations? I have already spent in the last year 300 in diagnostic fees to have it hooked to a computer.

Joey T

you need to run the codes yourself, and check for vacuum leaks. Then you can log the MAF readings and fully diagnose the issue.

dorsal900

If you didn't have "MAF problems" before and you do now, this indicates to me that they probably did something like accidently broke/disconnected a vacuum hose - this is supported by the "lean mixture" error codes. Note that nine-year-old vacuum hoses sitting in a hot environment are probably cracked under the cloth cover, so I would start by replacing all of them as a matter of course - you can get vacuum hose at any autoparts store, or go nuts with silicone hose (I used 3.5mm ID) and will never have to think about this again. There are also PCV hoses that tend to crack if the shop had to disconnect them for what they were doing. Replacing a $300 part is way, way down the list of potential defects in my mind.

Pay attention to the postings on this board for people's favorite parts suppliers - I use AutohausAZ since they also carry SAAB parts for my other car .

If you are spending that much on diagnostics, you MUST get a VAG Tool. A good source is RossTech.com; if you just want to "get your feet wet", you could get their shareware version for free and buy an OBD-II adapter on Ebay, but for about $200 you can get the real deal with support.

Mr. Mom

for an '01 1.8T

Batlou

Thanks, I am going to pick up some electronic cleaner on the way home and pull the MAF and do a thorough cleaning first. Perhaps also check the wires and make sure they are all connected properly with no visible cracks or leaks.

I just ordered a cable on ebay and will start with the free version of Vag-Com. This should save me some money over time.

I will also check out AutohausAZ.

Thanks

dorsal900

OK, so how was the car running before bringing it in and what was allegedly done? This might provide clues on where to look - we would like to help you.

It's good to check all the vacuum hoses for gross errors, but I will again say that you will not be able to see cracked rubber hoses underneath the braided cloth covering on the hoses that came with the car. On my 1996 2.8 V6 car it took only a few feet of new hose to replace every single hose under the hood. I will guess however that it is something else which is causing that many error codes - pay special attention to the PCV hoses which can be the source of big leaks.

By the way, I think that it's time to find a different shop: that's a pretty hefty charge for plugging in a code scanner and giving you a wild-*** guess (which may be a $500 incorrect guess). After you solve the problem you may want to take it up with them, especially if it's not the MAF but something that they did. If you paid by credit card this could be very easy.