99 still running crappy
 

Cars been running horribly. Stalling ,no power at times. Thought bad gas then, Check Engine light came on. I had it scaned and this is what it said.

P0102

MAF or VAF

Circuit Low Output
I changed the MAF sensor and still the same problem exsists. $138 down the crapper!
I took it back and had code read again and the same codes popped up. The salesman at Advanced Auto called one of his mechanic friends and he told us that the most likely problem is "Vaccum Leaks" I've started looking but, haven't found any yet. Having a rice pipe on there isn't helping to listen for leaks. Have any of you had this problem? Any ideas where to start looking? :? 99 n/a

Right below your rice pipe there are two vacuum connections going to the charcoal canister. Start there and follow all the vacuum lines you can find on the car.

Have you tried putting your MAF screen back in?

I haven't tried putting it back in. I've thuoght about it. I've been runnning without it for a year and a half without any problems of this kind and about 25,000 miles .I may give it a try. It's stalling more going up hills, slowing down for sharp turns. It runs great till it gets up to temp and seems like it's not getting enough fuel and it sounds like it's sucking in more air then normal when it starts acting up. It seems like the more throttle I give it the worse it gets. A 1/2 mile down the road it will start running better again but, doesn't seem to have the power it used to.

Do any of you think that with the rice pipe and screen removed it might be running too lean? I've been running with this set up for a while but, the engine is getting alot more air over stock. Before these late problems started, I'd get in the gas hard on a green light and it would go flat.Not often! Normaly there's tire smoke but, sometimes it was like it was trying to catch it's breath.
I do have a bigger problem now.I'm just wondering if this isn't hurting my performace and fuel milage.
The rice pipe and removing the screen seemed to give it alittile better throttle reponse, most of the time. This is cleary not the cause of my current problem but, is it helping?
I would love some advice .
I'm on a budget and I still owe almost $7000 on this car. It's been a great car up to this point. Just hit 100,000 miles. :evil:

Should I take it to the pros?

What's your fuel pressure at the rail? I had a similar situation in my 99 (not as bad) and it ended up being my fuel pump wasn't able to keep up. Replaced it with a new GM one and I'm good as new.

At the rail I was only getting 38 lbs. of pressure.

Plus, I suggest ditching those Bosch wires. They're junk.

I agree with ditching the Bosch wires. And with checking fuel pressure at the rail. However, I'm still concerned with the MAF code. Need to know if the connector at the sensor even has a reference voltage. You may have a bad wire somewhere.

A good spot to check for vacuum leaks is between the maxifuse relay center and windshield wiper motor. That black box that looks like an extension of the maxifuse cover is actually a vaccum manifold. There are two vacuum connections underneath that are barely visible.

What type should I use?

I took it to a pro (garage) He replaced a pig tail on the wiring harness that goes to the MAF sensor since I had just repaced the sensor. $151 for sensor plus $68 core charge from Advance Auto. $107 for the pig tail. $326 and car's still a TURD! I took the car back and the garage put on another MAF sensor but, this time used a factory OEM. AC Delco sensor and problem was solved. Bill was $239 :cry: $565 dollars later and my Bonnies running like a raped ape.
The garage told me to take the crap MAF sensor back to Advance Auto but, without a core to turn in I might not get a full refund.
Lesson learned!!!!! Buy OEM parts when it comes to electronic stuff.