T5: the mysteries of MAF

moorgate · Jul 7th, 2018, 12:44

Took the induction apart on the V50 T5 a couple of weeks back. Just out of curiosity really, since I did it in much more extreme circumstances on the V70 D5 and discovered centimetre-thick layers of gloop, air-leaks big enough to run a chainsaw motor, busted intercoolers... so I figured undoing a few jubilee clips couldn't hurt.

And it didn't. I felt like an obsessive-compulsive **** quite a lot, cleaning out essentially fine, hard particles of grit, while wondering what the big metal spider thing inside the intake, beside the air filter, actually does. I used one of those daft tyre sidewall cleaner foams, figuring that it couldn't hurt the plastic and rubber bits of the intake system - and indeed, they came up very nicely de-gunged. Even got the grot off the junilees, to reveal posh shiny stainless steel!

After all that the MAF itself seemed to be an anticlimax. Spritz from the wee bottle of glue-sniffer's doom I got off eBay, quick blast with an air-duster, job's done. Obsession returned when I put it all together though: I noticed there are tiny cutouts in the rubber flexi moulding that leave room for the jubilee clip screw mechanism, and that on my car they had been ignored, tightening up the clip any old place instead. So I put it all back in the right places, neat cutout gripped cleanly by the jubilee, no more grit inside, smooth mating surfaces for the pipes.

Bloody hell! I thought the engine & box were strong before I did this. Now it's got a full-on case of the giant elastic band effect. Shifts are executed *perfectly*, even at max revs. Boost management is bang on. is the MAF really that massively important to both engine *and* autobox?

FunkyMelon · Jul 8th, 2018, 20:21

So what is it you actually cleaned? Just the boost/intake pipework and the MAF?

domhart10 · Jul 9th, 2018, 08:14

MAF is hugely important to how your car will drive. a dull maf or one going out will defenitly reduce your performance, its such a simle clean or replace if problem happens which makes it so good.

moorgate · Jul 9th, 2018, 23:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by FunkyMelon

So what is it you actually cleaned? Just the boost/intake pipework and the MAF?

Correct. Squirty foam and water for the various passive pipes and flexis, and the MAF liquid cleaner for the elements of the sensor mast.

FunkyMelon · Jul 10th, 2018, 07:44

Will have to give that a go. I'd always read not to touch the MAF as most sprays leave a residue that can damage the element but will see how it looks as I do have some proper MAF cleaner.

moorgate · Jul 11th, 2018, 18:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by FunkyMelon

Will have to give that a go. I'd always read not to touch the MAF as most sprays leave a residue that can damage the element but will see how it looks as I do have some proper MAF cleaner.

Far as I can tell, most of the cleaners are neat IPA (Isopropyl Alcohol) and whatever you clean it with can't be worse than what the engine can do. I took my X350 Jag apart at the same time; one side of the wires, sensors etc in the MAF tower on that looked like it had been coated in bitumen. quick spritz, bit of air-drying: job's a good 'un.

volvopilot · Jul 12th, 2018, 07:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by FunkyMelon

Will have to give that a go. I'd always read not to touch the MAF as most sprays leave a residue that can damage the element but will see how it looks as I do have some proper MAF cleaner.

it's just a very thin iron wire isn't it? Bare metal. I can't imagine any cleaner can actually damage that. The most important thing is that the surface is clean.

the MAF housing is usually plastic though, so be careful using things like brake clean on the sensor since it might not harm the MAF, but it will definitely partially solve the plastic bits.

FunkyMelon · Jul 12th, 2018, 10:16

Quote:

Originally Posted by volvopilot

it's just a very thin iron wire isn't it? Bare metal. I can't imagine any cleaner can actually damage that. The most important thing is that the surface is clean.

the MAF housing is usually plastic though, so be careful using things like brake clean on the sensor since it might not harm the MAF, but it will definitely partially solve the plastic bits.

It's more that a lot of solvents can leave a slight residue on the element and can really cause havoc with the operation of the MAF.

Jul 7th, 2018, 12:44	#1
moorgate Senior Member Last Online: Yesterday 22:56 Join Date: Apr 2015 Location: london, ec2	T5: the mysteries of MAF Took the induction apart on the V50 T5 a couple of weeks back. Just out of curiosity really, since I did it in much more extreme circumstances on the V70 D5 and discovered centimetre-thick layers of gloop, air-leaks big enough to run a chainsaw motor, busted intercoolers... so I figured undoing a few jubilee clips couldn't hurt. And it didn't. I felt like an obsessive-compulsive **** quite a lot, cleaning out essentially fine, hard particles of grit, while wondering what the big metal spider thing inside the intake, beside the air filter, actually does. I used one of those daft tyre sidewall cleaner foams, figuring that it couldn't hurt the plastic and rubber bits of the intake system - and indeed, they came up very nicely de-gunged. Even got the grot off the junilees, to reveal posh shiny stainless steel! After all that the MAF itself seemed to be an anticlimax. Spritz from the wee bottle of glue-sniffer's doom I got off eBay, quick blast with an air-duster, job's done. Obsession returned when I put it all together though: I noticed there are tiny cutouts in the rubber flexi moulding that leave room for the jubilee clip screw mechanism, and that on my car they had been ignored, tightening up the clip any old place instead. So I put it all back in the right places, neat cutout gripped cleanly by the jubilee, no more grit inside, smooth mating surfaces for the pipes. Bloody hell! I thought the engine & box were strong before I did this. Now it's got a full-on case of the giant elastic band effect. Shifts are executed perfectly, even at max revs. Boost management is bang on. is the MAF really that massively important to both engine and autobox?

Jul 8th, 2018, 20:21	#2
FunkyMelon Master Member Last Online: Mar 14th, 2024 16:24 Join Date: Apr 2017 Location: South	So what is it you actually cleaned? Just the boost/intake pipework and the MAF? __________________ 2006 Volvo S40 T5 SE Sport

Jul 9th, 2018, 08:14	#3
domhart10 Volvo S40 Last Online: Today 11:50 Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: Chichester	MAF is hugely important to how your car will drive. a dull maf or one going out will defenitly reduce your performance, its such a simle clean or replace if problem happens which makes it so good. __________________ ----------------------------------------- Current: 2009 Volvo S40 T5 Progress Thread: https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/showthread.php?t=271945 Previous Volvo: 2008 S40 SE Lux R Design 2.0D

Jul 10th, 2018, 07:44	#5
FunkyMelon Master Member Last Online: Mar 14th, 2024 16:24 Join Date: Apr 2017 Location: South	Will have to give that a go. I'd always read not to touch the MAF as most sprays leave a residue that can damage the element but will see how it looks as I do have some proper MAF cleaner. __________________ 2006 Volvo S40 T5 SE Sport

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