CQHall

My "Check Engine" light came on today. The dash reads "Engine Electronics". I'm about 1000 miles away from home on vacation. I'm posting from my cell phone, so searching the site is very difficult.

1996 E320
110,000 miles
no symptoms that I've noticed

What are common causes of this?
Can I diagnose this myself?
Autozone?
MB dealer? (not sure if I can get in on short notice)

if anyone is kind enough to reply please also email the response to "cqh11" [at} yahoo . Com. Its really hard to check the site via cell phone.

ohlord

okay as long as that light is not blinking and is just a solid light,stop at any autozone pep boys schucks or if day time go buy the reader at harbor freight tools if the town you are in has one. read the code write it down and pm me or post the code and we can talk you thru it.could be a maf easy repair or just a loose fuel cap.get the code and well get it fixed.
no worries ,mate.
ohlord
"GOT CODES?"

victorylap

ohlord - I'm heading up to Seattle in mid Oct - how's the weather in Oct? I hear a lot about visiting Pikes Mkt is a must!

ohlord

it's an indian summer,nice crisp days cool nights and the as perry como's song "the bluest sky's you've ever seen" no kidding!
Pike place,the seattle underground,the locks,the sound,the mountains,fishing huge salmon ,you may never want to leave.
ohlord

now where is that guy and his code problem,so we can get it fixed and he can rest easy.

CQHall

Mobile, AL

Thanks so much for helping!

ohlord

in the morning
find on your gps
4685 AIRPORT BLVD. 251-343-9884 harbor freight
centec scanner part # 94169-3VGA
OBD II CODE READER WITH CAN
Get it,worth it's weight in gold,you just keep it in your tool kit you take for trips(you do have one don't you?) and then when you run into the need to run codes,check if you are ready for a smog test,help out a neighbor with any car built 96 and later that has a cel on,you are the man,man!
Let me know when you have it and I will give you the quick primer on use.
ohlord
"GOT CODES?"

fju2112

how much do these usually go for, the OBDII readers? is this tool specifically for Mercedes? I know for my wife's VW I want to get a VAG-COM but from what i've heard, that's a proprietary tool for VW/Audi and can be more specific in terms of the actual problem, while OBD is generic for most cars...if that's not true please correct me as I have owned neither a VAG-COM nor an OBDII reader.

ohlord

$39 at harbor freight tools,very few of the obd codes are completely manf specific.All cars for sale here since 96 have the obd port.On the bug we just sold it was under the dash in a panel below the steering wheel.The dealer system allows them to hook up a pc like unit that reads real time data,nice to have but way to much.All you need is the code reader for most CEL issues.Remember the codes are just a guide to what the actual problem is and then checking the possible culprits is your job.
ohlord
"GOT CODES?"

fju2112

awesome...well $39 ain't bad at all. I don't know if harbor freight is around the boston area though, if i can order it online i'll do that pronto. thanks for the response!

CQHall

(I finally found an internet cafe)

ohlord is THE MAN!

This guy is awesome. He was dead-on on all points:
- Found a Harbor Freight 5 miles from my location (I'd never heard of this place before)
- They indeed had the tool (only 1 in stock...LUCKY!). They wanted $50, but they gave it to me for the internet price of $40.
- Walked me through the code retrieval and reset process over the phone FROM MEMORY.
- Instructed me through the MAF removal...again from memory.
- Told me to get CRC MAF cleaner.
- Told me to not let the auto parts store try to give me anything else...and they tried. And I would have accepted had I not been instructed.
- After 6 stores, I found a Pep Boys with the CRC cleaner ($6).

So, here's the talley:
- OBD II reader - $40
- New air filter - $20
- CRC MAF cleaner - $6
Total = $66

I'll do the procedure tonight or in the AM when the car cools off a bit and I'll post results.

ohlord is a great resource. I owe you one, buddy!

ohlord

in w. springfield,Mass.a bit of a drive from bean town,but if you are visiting someone over there get it,or order on line.

foreyes

Good job ohlord!

ohlord

I talked him thru it on the phone,could not see him worrying all night and making the mistake of going to a dealer and having them charge him the going rate of 600-889 bucks for a new maf,10 minutes labor,and the mythological maf reset recalibration using their multi million dollar star diagnostic computer
Dealers make me puke,and I've never even been in one of their shops for work,unless it was under the warranty or a recall item.
ohlord
"GOT CODES?"

4XFORE

You Da Man!!! ohlord for president!

at least now i know who to call when i'm on the road

CQHall

The job is done!

All it took was one Phillips screwdriver and literally 10 minutes (7 of which were waiting for the chemical to dry) from opening the hood till closing it.

Again, thanks so much.

CQHall

UPDATE:

Well, the CEL came on 2 more within the next few days after my last post in September, so I figured the MAF sensor was dead. I found a non-Bosch MAF sensor at this euro specialist in Atlanta. Installed it and after about 3 days the computer "learned" the new sensor. Yaaaay!

Then...

I got really rough idles when I started the car in the morning. Had to let the car warm up before driving...even in the summer.

The CEL would trip whenever it would rain. I guess the humidity or something.

After being frustrated, I installed the original Bosch MAF sensor just to see if it would be better. It works like a charm! I guess the computer just needed to "learn" the cleaned Bosch MAF sensor, which I didn't give it a chance to do.

So, what did I learn?

1) Try cleaning the MAF sensor.
2) Give the computer a few DAYS (not minutes) to "lean" the cleaned MAF sensor.
3) ohlord knows his stuff

ohlord

always buy the bosch insert from germanstar.net or the whole unit.That way you can be sure it is not a 17 buck knock off clone from china that they charged you how much? and it throws a code just because it is raining
Thanks for the update,and the props
ohlord
"GOT CODES?"

gujupimpster89@

ohlord

michakaveli

OhLord.... can you tell if that reader would work with late model Ford's? I'm battling a CEL on my POS Taurus '05.

ohlord

compliant .yes.you can go to harborfreighttools.com and enter 94169 in the parts search and even download the user manual before you buy it so you can learn how to use it.very easy.Plus a book of codes and a cd.
ohlord

michakaveli

Bought it 2 hours ago at a store local to me and it works with my '05 Taurus... Bought it for teh advertised price of $39.99 and they offered a replacement warranty for like $6.00, no brainer....

CQHall

What was the "no brainer"? Buying it for $40 or paying 15% more for a warranty on a tool that has no moving parts that you will likely use 30-40 time ever?

ohlord

feel comfort with the warranties.Me if it's solid state i figure it was burned in at the factory and if it is going to fail it will do so under the regular warranty.Each his own level of worry.

what are the ford codes you pulled?we have a bunch of classic ford owners around that also know their -fix or repair daily-

michakaveli

The no brainer part was the part of the "warranty" that will cover the item in case it is damaged, whether you broke it or not. As long as you have something to bring in you're covered. Take it as you will.....

michakaveli

I pulled a P0300.... misfire.... It only comes on when it sits overnight and cold. I tried cleaning my MAF already with MAF cleaner to no avail and replaced the plugs w/ OEM equivalent units... I'm thinking it's the MAF but it hasn't completely failed, so I'll be clearing the code for a while :-)