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Since I bought my '94 Aspire a year ago, I have been disappointed with the way the engine ran.
Though there was no missing, the idle was not at all smooth. It seemed that each injector was putting out a different amount of fuel for each cylinder and the result was very uneven.
I poured a lot of Seafoam and other injector cleaners into my tank in that year. Changed the plugs which helped a little, but the performance of the engine compared to that of my '90 Festiva was poor. In addition, the mileage varied from 36 to 38 MPG which was a big disappointment since I was getting 42 MPG with my Festiva as I drove it to the salvage yard a year ago.
A couple of weeks ago at AutoZone I stood looking at the chemical section, reading small print, when I noticed a spray can labeled, "Mass Air Flow Sensor Cleaner" made by CRC. I knew that my Aspire had one of those instead of the VAF meter that my Festiva used, so I picked it up and read.
It was that last phrase promising to increase MPG that compelled me to head to the checkout register with can in hand.
Last Thursday, I finally took the time to remove my MAF sensor and clean it. When I looked at the grid of tiny wires inside I noticed that they appeared to be coated with a dull brown substance. As I began to spray I noticed that the brown coating began to dissolve leaving clean, shinny, bare-metal wires. I thought at the time that it looked like the cleaning should improve something, but I had no idea of the extent.
That only became clear when I started my car to drive home. At the first stop to make a U-turn I thought my engine had died and was about to turn the key to restart it, when I realized that there were no error lights on. The engine was running, but so smoothly, evenly and quietly that I could hardly hear it.
Later that day, I was driving on the Interstate and looked down at the speedometer to see that I was driving at a speed 15 miles faster than I had expected. The engine was at 65 MPH as quiet as it had been at idle before the cleaning.
Since then, though I have not had to buy gas, I can see an amazing improvement in mileage just from looking at the odometer and the gas gauge. When I fill up I'll add the results of that to this thread.
I had no idea that any of this was possible. The VAF meter in my Festiva required no attention. So I assumed I could ignore my MAF meter in the same way I had the VAF meter. I have created this thread to alert all Aspire owners that they do so at their peril.
I looked through the Maintenance Schedule that came with my Aspire when it was new. There was no mention of cleaning the MAF sensor anywhere.
I can't end this thread without mentioning something about my Aspire that may, at least in part, explain why its response to this cleaning was so dramatic.
My Aspire showed signs of having been severely neglected before it fell into my hands. In particular, the air cleaner was dirtier than any air cleaner I have ever seen. There is a picture of it in one of my old posts here.
There is a lesson in that as well. I had thought that when a filter became full, the only result was a restricted flow through the filter. Now I realize that, in addition to the restricted flow, the air pressure from the engine pulling air in increases and that extra force pulls particles, that are stopped at normal pressure when the filter is not clogged, through the filter finding their way through the "clogged" filter. At least, that is how I explain how my MAF sensor wires could have gotten so coated with dirt.
If any of you decide to try this on your Aspires, please report in this thread how your experience compares with mine. I think we all would find that interesting.
Though there was no missing, the idle was not at all smooth. It seemed that each injector was putting out a different amount of fuel for each cylinder and the result was very uneven.
I poured a lot of Seafoam and other injector cleaners into my tank in that year. Changed the plugs which helped a little, but the performance of the engine compared to that of my '90 Festiva was poor. In addition, the mileage varied from 36 to 38 MPG which was a big disappointment since I was getting 42 MPG with my Festiva as I drove it to the salvage yard a year ago.
A couple of weeks ago at AutoZone I stood looking at the chemical section, reading small print, when I noticed a spray can labeled, "Mass Air Flow Sensor Cleaner" made by CRC. I knew that my Aspire had one of those instead of the VAF meter that my Festiva used, so I picked it up and read.
- Saftely Cleans & Protects Mass Air Flow Sensors
- Plastic Safe & Leaves No Residue
- Improves Air/Fuel Ratio and Increases MPG
It was that last phrase promising to increase MPG that compelled me to head to the checkout register with can in hand.
Last Thursday, I finally took the time to remove my MAF sensor and clean it. When I looked at the grid of tiny wires inside I noticed that they appeared to be coated with a dull brown substance. As I began to spray I noticed that the brown coating began to dissolve leaving clean, shinny, bare-metal wires. I thought at the time that it looked like the cleaning should improve something, but I had no idea of the extent.
That only became clear when I started my car to drive home. At the first stop to make a U-turn I thought my engine had died and was about to turn the key to restart it, when I realized that there were no error lights on. The engine was running, but so smoothly, evenly and quietly that I could hardly hear it.
Later that day, I was driving on the Interstate and looked down at the speedometer to see that I was driving at a speed 15 miles faster than I had expected. The engine was at 65 MPH as quiet as it had been at idle before the cleaning.
Since then, though I have not had to buy gas, I can see an amazing improvement in mileage just from looking at the odometer and the gas gauge. When I fill up I'll add the results of that to this thread.
I had no idea that any of this was possible. The VAF meter in my Festiva required no attention. So I assumed I could ignore my MAF meter in the same way I had the VAF meter. I have created this thread to alert all Aspire owners that they do so at their peril.
I looked through the Maintenance Schedule that came with my Aspire when it was new. There was no mention of cleaning the MAF sensor anywhere.
I can't end this thread without mentioning something about my Aspire that may, at least in part, explain why its response to this cleaning was so dramatic.
My Aspire showed signs of having been severely neglected before it fell into my hands. In particular, the air cleaner was dirtier than any air cleaner I have ever seen. There is a picture of it in one of my old posts here.
There is a lesson in that as well. I had thought that when a filter became full, the only result was a restricted flow through the filter. Now I realize that, in addition to the restricted flow, the air pressure from the engine pulling air in increases and that extra force pulls particles, that are stopped at normal pressure when the filter is not clogged, through the filter finding their way through the "clogged" filter. At least, that is how I explain how my MAF sensor wires could have gotten so coated with dirt.
If any of you decide to try this on your Aspires, please report in this thread how your experience compares with mine. I think we all would find that interesting.
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