I ran into the MAF sensor problem yesterday. I was freakin out cuz it felt like it was something dealing with my tranny, thats how bad it was. BUt anywayz, i was spazzin out mainly because it was the weekend and i couldnt get my hands on a new/used MAF. So i thought, maybe if i just cleaned it...Not sure if anyone has posted info on this before. If someone did, oh well, its getting reposted now for the benefit of everyone.

I bought this:

Lemme tell you..This stuff is straight up AMAZING. And it isnt a temporary fix. I spoke to my Nissan Service Manager who just so happens to live 2 houses down from me about the MAF and how often it needs to be replaced. He told me the MAF is designed to last the life of the car. People replace them because they end up cleaning the MAF with some kind of caruburetor/injector cleaner or throttle body cleaner, which permanently damages the MAF.

This product suggests use everytime u change your airfilter. I cant agree more with this statement. Those filters, whether K&N or whathaveyou, does not filter 100%. Dirt, debris, condensation...It all builds up as the filter wears out/needs to be recharged (K&N). So its logical for it to be cleaned everytime the filters cleaned.

Basically, the problem with my car was solved, it actually runs good as heck. OH and to test it out, me and my bro raced (02 maxima automatic vs Acura TL- Type S.) I won by about a half car length.

Before buying a new MAF try this product. Its only $6..Will not hurt you to buy it. Can almost guarantee it will work great and save you tons of cash.

I like your MAF test procedure.

thanks. I suggest going to buy a can of this stuff, just to have it on hand..Oh and even though your not having any probs with you MAF, change your filter, and spray down your MAF. Guarantee you'll feel a difference, as our MAF slowly, very slowly, deteriorate..quickly deteriorates with K&N filters that have been re-oiled

No MAF failures still happen, there is a reason Nissan had to release an "updated" maf for the 02's


I am sure this product works but I dont think it will prevent all failures.

IBirish.....



The last thread about this stuff got locked because it turned into a flame fest.

OK. Maybe it needs to be restated as such: This stuff is perfect for MAFs that DIDNT throw a trouble code..As far as a flame fest, dudes can say what they want. I personally vouch for this stuff. It worked for me. As for why it wouldnt work for anybody else with similar issues is beyond me. Bottom line, i recommend it, and the Service Manager from Executive Nissan gave me the low down on it.

But that's the thing, alot of them dont even throw a code. My buddies just died randomly and had to get a new one.

I am sure this works but just not the same for everyone.

I'm getting ready to put in a new K&N air filter. Complete n00b to most car maintenance. It sounds like this wouldn't hurt if I applied it before installing the new filter.
My question is "How to" related:
Do I simply spray the contents into the opening once I remove the filter?
Do I have the car running when I do this? How much do I spray?

Thanks for the info.

a dirty MAF is different from a failed MAF

this cleaner wont fix a failed MAF (or even prevent it from failing)

Exactly what did your buddies car do, cause im gettin a slight hesitation sometimes. its just once in awhile tho.

It had a lil hesitation but nothing he complained about, then the car just turned off as he was driving lol.

humm, ya mine is nothing to complain about, but I think its hurting my performance.

Was his a 5.5 gen?

ok, now about this MAF deteriorating... i replaced my MAF about 4 months ago when i put on my stillen intake.. and 2 weeks ago i just cleaned and re-oiled the intake filter.. how often do these things fail after you clean your filter? i heard they can fail if you oil it too much, and because of that i was careful not to do so.. but im concerned.. is my MAF gonna mess up cause i cleaned and re-oiled my filter? will that MAF cleaner fix the problem if that happens?

Interestingly enough My MAF just died. Completely DOA in an instant, put the car strait into limp home mode, Well after pulling codes and getting a High air meter input code I pulled the MAF and noticed the wire was quite dirty so I got some cleaner and cleaned it... GUESS WHAT! It's still dead, So I now have a 01 MAF coming from NissanParts.cc

So yes MAF's do die and cleaning a dead one accomplishes nothing.

Guess that's what I get for running a short ram intake on a 6N200 MAF. It sucks too that I'm going to be in limp home mode for the next few days until the replacement arrives

What type of filter where you using???

,...

pretty much what i was going to say untill i read that...

A generic pre oiled type, That I haven't even cleaned yet. When it gets dirty I plan on replacing it with something better. Any suggestions?

Way to go noob

Keep up the smarta$$ comments and you're going to have a great time on the org.

LOL when joining a new forum I find it's best to jump in with both feet rather than tiptoeing around

I just did the clean up on my MAF it helped for about a week, so i know it needs to be replaced...yea CRC makes some wonderful products another things that works for the MAF if you can't find the MAF cleaner is the QC electrical circuit cleaner from CRC thats what i used

geez, you would think people would realize that this is just a preventive maintenance thing, it's not like you can resurrect a freakin MAF by spraying this stuff on there. common sense people. stuff just breaks sometimes...surprise, surprise. but if you can prolong what you got then might as well right?

Yes, see my thread here:

http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=516638

No its not

So you're telling people do do something you have no idea about...

Also I you posting about something you don't have.

^^ how is it not preventive maintenance, when its recommended to do whenever you clean/change your air filter? or would you rather wait til your car drives like crap and then go nuts trying to get it back to normal? no i haven't used this cause I've never had a prob w/ my car, but I don't see the harm in using this stuff sparingly. is it too much to spend for a can of this stuff or something? please, school me...

As part of routine mantinence that's fine, But to say that airflow sensors only go bad cause of improper cleaning or lack of cleaning is...well.. kinda silly

yeah, that's why i said sometimes things just break...

I've cleaned mine twice in about 4 months (5k mi). Saw a very small increase in MAF % usage.

EXACTLY!!! This is clearly a preventative maintenance thing/problem solver for those who dont have a FAILED MAF sensor. THis is for people who have MAFs that for some reason or another "went out" without a trouble code, due to whatever reason (whether its debris getting onto the sensors or oil from a recharged K&N filter). Bottom line is, No, you cant resurrect a dead MAF sensor with this product. But you can fix a MAF that has been deteriorating due to debris and oil build up on the Sensors.

People kill me when they jump up on a post trashing somebody elses findings. its hilarious that they get pissed because they didnt find it out on their own. This is what the org is for!!!!! To simply spread findings and help everybody else out with problems resolved by YOU!!!

In any case, YES, the CRC MAF cleaner is a preventative measure as well as a FIX to MAFs that have gotten debris and/or oil built up on the sensors, and stopped working because of it. The CRC stuff will fix this issue, ONLY if there has not been a trouble code thrown and if the MAF isnt dead completely (See stickies for how to test MAFs for functionality).The MAF will cause the car to seem like the tranny is F***ed up or like you have a huge power loss.

SO with that said, regardless of whether or not your having trouble with your MAF, buy the damn cleaner and apply it each time your filter is to be changed. This WILL prevent your MAF from dying out down the road, even though according to Tim the nissan service manager, they're built to last the life of the vehicle.

$6.44 is one of the best investments for your car, without a doubt

Make sure u remove the MAF from the intake housing and set it on a towel or cardboard or sumn, so that the runoff from the MAF can flow OUT instead of sitting in the bay of the MAF, as is what would happen if u sprayed the MAF while still in the housing. Plus you do NOT want to use this stuff near energized equipment. Spontaneous combustion is almost guaranteed especially when sprayed near a battery or such.

can't wait to see the comments this garners

I've used Brake Cleaner to "brush up" my MAF, and it seemed to work just fine....

just my .02 cents!

from what i read on the side of the can, cleaning with stuff like that is a very very temporary fix, but also does major damage to the sensors..In other words, it gets rid of the debris and oil on the sensors, but eats up the sensors as time goes on. It doesnt dry and have the same effect as the MAF specific cleaner

Cleaned it 6 months ago, and no probs @ all...(i would also imagine "Electrical parts cleaner(s)" would work well too!)


Anyway, how can you REALLY tell if there's a difference from one to the other?

(besides what the can tells you)---->>>

So is the stuff you're using....


Please specify how you know this?


Ummm...brake cleaner dries very well and very quickly....I dont see where you're coming up with these assumptions......

You clearly have no idea about maxima MAF's. Your maf WILL start to rob your car of power, your maf WILL go out and there is NOTHING that will keep that from happening, not even the magical MAF spray.

If you over oil the air filter; buy a cheap can of electrical contact cleaner, its the same thing.

OMG stop lying to these people. That is the biggest bunch of I've read on the org in a long time. Like I said before there is NOTHING that will prevent the maf from going out, it either will or it wont.
The only thing the "magical" maf spray will do is get the oil off of it if you over oil the filter.

Obviously YOU dont know much about MAFs. Everyones MAF WONT go out at some point. There are still some people on here that have 160k+ miles on their maxes and havent had to replace their MAFs. now you say the only thing the "magical" maf spray will do is get the oil off of it if you over oil the filter....Hmmm...Now you sorta just confirmed what i said. If u dont use the spray the oil and debris will collect on the sensors, and eventually destroy the maf. if its not tended to, you will eventually get a trouble code thrown, which is when the maf has failed. Now, if you go back to what i said earlier, i never said this stuff will fix a broken/failed maf. But it will prevent it from dying out prematurely and fix mafs that didnt throw codes.

What your basically telling me is: "Dont change your oil man, the engines going to go anyway! THERE IS NOTHING you can do to prevent the engine from going out"

As i said before, Think Twice before buying a new MAF...Its not necessarily dead if it didnt throw a trouble code so dont go out buying a new one when you can just clean it with this stuff

I keep an extra one in my toolbox

BTW, I use rubbing alcohol and a qtip to clean my maf...