That was a fluke right?

"PowderHound" (PowderHound) 10/21/2016 at 16:26 • Filed to: None

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Yesterday morning was cold, my car was covered in frost kind of cold. I started up my car, kept it in neutral went down my driveway (manual trans, short steep hill of a driveway). Then, my car stalls going downhill. No weird noises it just sort of died out. Started back up and had a CEL. ran great all the way to work and back home where I checked the code. P0102 - mass or volume air flow circuit low input. Erased it. Drove it again today with no issues. anyhing I should be worried about? I’m going on a short weekend trip is the only reason I am even slightly concerned about it but I will just end up bringing a bag of tools with me just in case shit hits the fan. Car is an 03 WRX.

JohnH3ASP > PowderHound 10/21/2016 at 16:30

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Just try not to shit on the fan

DC3 LS, will be perpetually replacing cars until the end of time > PowderHound 10/21/2016 at 16:36

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If it was really cold I’d say it’s a fluke. Temp could’ve messed with the battery or sensor at start up.

I might look into buying that sensor from a store and returning it after the weekend if it doesn’t act up again. That’s kind of overkill though.

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > PowderHound 10/21/2016 at 17:25

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If I am interpreting the code right it sounds like the voltage to the MAF sensor was low, screwing up the reading. I would bet that the car got confused by the signal and just leaned it out until it stalled. I would bet that the cold combined with the load from cranking it dropped the battery voltage. If it continues to give you issues when it is cold you may have to look into a new battery.

PowderHound > TheTurbochargedSquirrel 10/21/2016 at 17:49

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Ah yes, it’s all making sense. Battery is about four years old, so getting up there. I had some misfire and light dimming issues due to poor grounding recently but only cleaned a few of the main ones. Looks like I will be diving deeper before winter hits.

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > PowderHound 10/21/2016 at 18:00

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I think the stalling is more a symptom than the problem. It was probably just cold enough the first time to cause an issue but running the engine got the engine bay just warm enough that it wasn’t an issue the second time. Did it crank slow or anything like that when you restarted it?

Since you mentioned you were chasing grounds I would check the ground on the MAF just to be sure.

PowderHound > TheTurbochargedSquirrel 10/21/2016 at 18:21

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It cranked fairly normal, maybe the slightest hesitation but not anything to be dismayed by. MAF ground should be easy to check, I think? I know there are an absolute ton of grounds throughout the car and the main ones one the inside of the fenders were covered in some oily gunk. Can’t imagine the rest are very good

Junkrat aka Rick Sanchez: Fury Road Edition > PowderHound 10/21/2016 at 18:36

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I agree with the weak battery theory, it’s going to be the weakest link that would be affected by the cold. Did you happen to replace the negative lug that goes to the battery? That was a problem on mine. The inside of the clamp style lug had corroded and wasn’t making consistent connection. I replaced it with a traditional lug that’s made of similar material as the battery terminals so that it would reduce chance of corrosion. I also use that permatex battery spray on all my cars now.

I saw one of your past posts in the sidebar and had the exact same turbo timer in the exact same location on my 02 wagon. Mine was all stock except the turbo timer and a Cusco rear sway bar. They are great cars and miss my old one sometimes.

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > PowderHound 10/21/2016 at 18:37

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Finding the MAF ground would simply be a matter of tracing the wires and making sure they are all securely connected. It probably terminates in a connector on both ends.

PowderHound > Junkrat aka Rick Sanchez: Fury Road Edition 10/21/2016 at 18:55

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Great spot for the turbo timer! I should replace that negative, I have cleaned the terminal a bit but wouldn’t be surprised if it is done for due to how old it is

PowderHound > TheTurbochargedSquirrel 10/21/2016 at 18:57

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Cool. I tried finding a few others a while ago but once they go in to any sort of plastic sheathing I freak out and pretend I’m in over my head.

TheTurbochargedSquirrel > PowderHound 10/21/2016 at 19:03

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I imagine for a MAF it is a connector on the MAF itself and the wires eventually join the others and go to the ECU. The ground itself is probably within the ECU. I would check that everything is in place securely and not getting pinched by anything they are not supposed to and maybe hit the connectors with some contact cleaner. Chances are it is just your battery not getting along with the cold though.