Hey guys,

Brava 155 VIS HGT Year 99

I think my juddering problem in an earlier post is down to my MAF sensor, as i have unplugged it, and the juddering seems to be cured.

So, i have bought some cleaning solution for it, But cannot get the lil bugger off, i have undone the 2 allen key type bolts holding the base plate, but can not shift the thing out of its hole, is there a specail way of removing it?

Your quick help would be apprecaited as i am now half way through the job.

Also what would "sooty" spark plugs denote, would this of been caused due to the MAF sensor not working correctly?

Also, looking at the ignition set up, i assume that it does not use regular HT leads, are these easy to replace?

My previous car was a Nissan 100NX and it was so much easier to work on lol.

Oh yeah, my fan belt has started slipping too, is this a simple case of adjusting the allen key bolt clockwise/anticlockwise (?) to tighten it up????

Cheers in advance.

Pete

with the 2 screws removed it pulls out of the housing. there is a rubber sealing ring that can make it tight, but a good pull will get it off.

the plugs are sooty because the fueling was incorrect thanks to the false MAf signal (it thought it was getting more air than it really was).

there are no HT leads, there is a seperate coil on top of each spark plug. they are very easy to repalce, but replacement is only neccessary if a coil fails.

the belt tension can be adjusted using the bolt arrowed in the following pic, but you must first loosen the 2 bolts holding the alternator on to the engine.

Jug as usual you are a star, thanks for your quick reply and help, muchly appreciated.

Pete

Hey Jug me again,

Ok i have the sensor off, to check i do have the right thing, its about an inch and a half long, plastic connector at top and a kinda nipple thing at other end with a small hole next to it yea, with the code EM-100 stamped on the plastic end. how am i suppose to get inside it to spray the cleaner?

Also there was a small ammount of liquid in the bottom of the housing which i think is fuel, is that correct.

Thanks again, where would the world be without you

there should be no liquid in the intake pipe, but it could be condensation from water in the air. rub your finer in it and smell. if it is petrol then we have a big problem.

the MAF looks like the following image once removed.


you spray the cleaner into the hole where the arrow marked 1 is pointing. inside that hole you should see what looks like a piece of wire, that is the MAF's hot film element. it is very delicate (its glass). it must be clean to work correctly.

Hmmm. looks like i have removed the wrong thing then as what i have dont look like that, its metal, kinda brass coloured, cylindrical shaped, i removed it from the left hand side of the head (after taking off the plastic rocker cover) between the first 2 cylinders on the left looking from the front of the car.

So where if the MAF sensor located if i have the incorrect thing as i cannot see anything else??

Is it the thing on the air inlet pip with 2 funny looking screws (possibly torque screws?)

Also while i am at it, where the hell are the bolts to loosen so i can adjust my fan belt, am i right in guessing its a get under the car job to locate them?

I am just dumb i know!!

i have no idea what you have removed but it isnt the MAF. the MAF isn't on the engine. it is on the plastic air intake pipe, just after the airbox. it is the only thing on the intake pipe that has a wiring connector on it. the MAF sensor housing is actually part of the air intake pipe, so it looks like this-

jug said:

i have no idea what you have removed but it isnt the MAF. the MAF isn't on the engine. it is on the plastic air intake pipe, just after the airbox. it is the only thing on the intake pipe that has a wiring connector on it. the MAF sensor housing is actually part of the air intake pipe, so it looks like this-

Click to expand...

Cheers Jug, i have no idea what i removed either, something fuel related i think, i have located ithe MAF now, just dont have to right tool to remove the screws after all that!!!!

Thanks mate i do appreciate your help, i dunno these modern engines, too much stuff!!!

So i just have to find the bolts to loosen so i can adjust the fan bekt and i am laughing, well almost

Thanks again

Pete

swickle09 said:

dont have to right tool to remove the screws after all that!!!!

Click to expand...

those screws are "security torx" or "security ribe".

you can use pliers by gripping on the side of the screw head. i used some water pump pliers that look like this.


its fiddly but you can do it.

errr....just get security torx bits and make life easy.

bulldog5046 said:

errr....just get security torx bits and make life easy.

Click to expand...

i had some but i couldn't find them at the time. i know if i buy some more then i'll find my old set the next day, and i hate when that happens. plus they arent cheap.

jug said:

i had some but i couldn't find them at the time. i know if i buy some more then i'll find my old set the next day, and i hate when that happens. plus they arent cheap.

Click to expand...

come on, seriously - lol

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/33-PC-SECURIT...39:1|66:2|65:12|240:1318&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14

i'm not paying a fiver for 32 bits!

Thanks for your help Jug, got it off, cleaned and back on, and guess what...................... yep its still bloody juddering, so i guess its the Lambada Sensor which needs replacing, other than cleaning up the spark plugs (what is best stuff to use to clean them?) i dont know what else it can be.

Cheers

Pete

your MAF sensor must be faulty. if unplugging the MAF made the judderiug stop as you previously said then it must be faulty.

although, if you previously removed the wrong part i guess you also unplugged the wrong part too.

so now we have 2 paths to follow.

first you should try disconnecting the MAF and then driving to see if high rpm power is better and stable.

second we need to find out what you disconnected before, because we know that stopped your problem and that is a great clue. can you provide a pic?

Just for reference mate, are you having the same problem as me?! Same year car too.

https://www.fiatforum.com/bravo-brava/167099-performance-issue.html?p=1787133

Hi, This is the thing i unplugged and removed by mistake.

I will take the car foir a drive with the MAF sensor unplugged in a bit and report back.

What i thought was a slipping cambelt maybe the waterpump, the noise suddenly started yesterday, is this a big/expensive job, or is it easy to self replace?

Thanks

JaffaUK said:

Just for reference mate, are you having the same problem as me?! Same year car too.

https://www.fiatforum.com/bravo-brava/167099-performance-issue.html?p=1787133

Click to expand...

Bloody Fiats eh haha, you managed to sort yours yet? I am about to run mine without the MAF sensor connected, but i cannot help feeling its not that, i think it may be the lamabada sensor, but i await Jugs expert advice to whether that maybe correct after i have been for a drive.

swickle09 said:

Hi, This is the thing i unplugged and removed by mistake.

Click to expand...

not sure tbh, i'll need to do some research.

swickle09 said:

What i thought was a slipping cambelt maybe the waterpump, the noise suddenly started yesterday, is this a big/expensive job, or is it easy to self replace?

Click to expand...

it is easy enough to do yourself, and the belt costs £10.

jug said:

not sure tbh, i'll need to do some research.


it is easy enough to do yourself, and the belt costs £10.

Click to expand...

The thing i unplugged is between the injector rail and the head where the spark plugs are, its on the left hand side between the first and second injectors if that helps, and i think it had fuel in it.

I meant to say fanbelt and not cambelt in last post, i think its the bearings in the waterpump making the noise and not the fan belt, looking on ebay there are no hgt waterpumps, plus looks expensive, ive only had the car a month!!! never had any probs in 2 years with my Nissan, hmmmm why did i change cars lol.