jdwk

I have a Halltech intake, Vette-Air scoop, and a homemade "beehive" to block the engine bay air from the filter.

I have to take my air box off to mount the transponder on my car at the track, and the weather stripping I used around the edges of the air box kept falling off. So last weekend I took the box out to glue the stripping down and had it out for the past week.

On Monday I dropped my rear diff to replace what I thought was leaking seals. Turns out, it wasn't leaking, just overfilled. A waste of 10 hours and $200 in shop fees (I rented a lift).

I at least replaced the fluids and put on the JOC suspension package while I was at it.

Well, I dicked up my alignment by removing the lower control arms in the rear and not marking the camber bolts, and on my way to Firestone this morning, my CEL came on.

When I got home I hooked up my bluetooth OBDII and the CEL is P0100, MAF/VAF Malfunction.

What are the odds I tear apart the rear and the suspension and then I get a CEL completely unrelated?

I remember reading and even responding to a post about someone getting MAF trouble codes with the Vette Air scoop installed. Something about too much turbulence. I've had the scoop on the car for five years or so, and never had a problem, but most of that time has been with my air box on.

So maybe the box has kept me out of trouble all these years. I finished gluing the weather stripping today and put the box back in, but haven't yet driven it around to see if the code goes away.

It should go away on its own, but if not, I'll clear it and see if it pops back up. Drivability does not seem to be affected.

Halltech

Likely just a bad MAF sensor. Any codes? What are they? That will tell you the exact source of the problem.

FrankTank

I would double check and make sure you have everything hooked up and installed correctly in the intake. I have heard of the Vette Air scoop making the MAF freak out because the air turbulance blows right on the Stock filter itself...but I have not heard that happen with the Halltech filter, and thats probably because the halltech filter has the rubber piece on the bottom of it to diffuse some of the air around to the sides of the filter.

Any other codes?

jdwk

Nope just P0100, Mass or Volume Air Flow Circuit Malfunction.

I drove around for a while after putting the box back on and the CEL did not go away.
So I got impatient and cleared it.

After about 15 miles it popped back on.

If something was disconnected or the MAF was bad, you would think it would come on right away.

I really don't want to buy a new MAF as I am sure those are pretty pricey. I have some MAF cleaner, maybe some oil seeped through the Halltech although I am pretty careful about that and it's been almost six months since I last cleaned and re-oiled the filter.

jdwk

Ok I just realized I did make a change. I put the filter on the upper lip. I had always put it on the lower lip and most of the time it would fall down completely, which I am sure pretty much blocked the Vette-air. I never thought that if I set the filter up on the upper lip, that the hood would close properly. Well, another halltech owner at the track last weekend showed me that in fact the hood does close and the filter stays in place, granted a little smashed.

So it could very well be the turbulence of the vette-air causing the problem.

I can drop the filter back down and see if the CEL goes away, but I feel like there should be a way to not block the scoop and not cause a CEL.

jdwk

No other Vette-Air and Halltech owners out there? I am wondering if a fin or fins would help "laminar" the airflow.

jdwk

Sorry to keep bumping this, but I know there are other owners out there that have run into this problem, I just haven't been able to find their posts.

JoesC5

I don't have the halltech but I do have the Vette-Air with the stock LS7 air breather. It sounds like you discovered the problem when you raised the filter, allowing more air flow through the Vette-Air. From those I've spoken to with the Vette-Air/Halltech combo, they don't normally have a problem. When I first installed my Vette-Air and discovered the air turbulence screwed over the MAF, I made a home made diffuser plate 3" X 10". It solved most of the problem but I still had some surging, tho very light. The second design diffuser was 3.5" X 18" and I sealed the leading edge to the bumper beam with slit vacuum tubing. I had to scallop the rear of the diffuser to match the contours of the shroud, but left ~1/4"-3/8" at each end of the trailing edge to allow some air flow. Most of the air flow is from the sides of the Vette-Air now, and I haven't had a single problem since. I have not tried the Beehive yet, so I don't know how it would affect the air flow around my air breather.

jdwk

Did you ever get a CEL, or just surging?

I haven't had any surging, just the CEL.

jdwk

I wonder if I could convince one of the other nearby Vette guys to swap MAFs with me for a couple days to see if it is the MAF.

I pushed the filter back down and drove about 20 miles and the CEL remained, but I may have to clear the code first for it to go away.

bosco 08

I have the Vette -Air, Halltech Killer Bee with the Beehive i also have 1 3/4" Kooks headers coated with cats/X-pipe, 160 stat and a professional dyno tune. My car idles like stock, drives great and runs hard. The only time it ever threw a code was when the air filter dropped off the snorkel from not being tighten properly. It was hard to really see that the filter had moved but it did. It dislodged just enough to cause air to be draw in behind the filter which upset the MAF and caused a code. I reinstalled the filter and tightened it FIRMLY the code went away and no issues in two years.
I wish i could help more good luck.




2008 A6 NPP 2.73

jdwk

Thanks, that's the kind of info I need. My filter is on tight.

I haven't had a chance to clear the code since I popped the filter down, glad to see that the turbulence can cause a code.

Did your code go away on its own or did you have to clear it?

FrankTank

I'm thinking you have a bad MAF but hope that's not the case..did you check all the connections? You said when you moved the filter off the lip the problem went away (from your above post), also guys that are posting that have a tune already.. that feedback does not really do you any good as most likely whomever tuned the car, tuned it so that it will not throw a CEL.

Normally from what I've seen with MAF codes on these intakes is Lean codes (i forget which code numbers) because too much air is getting in the intake system and it freaks the MAF out.. but you have a different code.

Do you still have your stock intake? If so,can you put that back on and see how it works? What about plugging up the Vette Air scoop so the car is back more stock and see if that helps?

I am also wondering when you are closing the hood, if it's pressing down on the intake somehow and tweeking it our bending it that could cause you problems.... or maybe you damaged the maff in the past from slamming the hood down on top of it if it was a tight fit?

jdwk

All sound theories, and I hope I didn't damage it when I closed the hood.

I still have the stock intake, but it hasn't been on the car in five years. I'll give that a try next.

However, I cleared the code last night and put 15 miles on it and it didn't come on back with the filter in the down position. Of course, it could come back at any moment.

My car is e-mail tuned. I borrowed a friends HP tuners module to load the tune

I am going to see if I can get the HP tuners module from my friend in town and see if I can tell what is going on with the MAF signal with the filter propped up.

bosco 08

This was two years ago and my memory isn't what it used to be but iirc i just reinstalled the filter and the code went away on it's own after a short drive.
I also don't recall the exact code number but i looked it up here and it was MAF sensor related.
Good luck.

HuskerBullet

VaraRam; no computer issues, no MAF issues, no emissions issues, no code issues, no......well, you get the idea, just more HP above 70MPH......pretty $%#@^&*%$# simple.

jdwk

OK so I took the MAF out to try some MAF cleaner on it, and there was small very thin pieces of rubber on the screen.

And then a very large piece fell out of the Halltech snorkel.

Here is a picture of the large piece.

This may have something to do with the MAF malfunction since these little pieces of rubber could cause some turbulence. It looks like the rubber was shaved ultra thin off of the Halltech filter from somewhere, like around the opening by the jamming the snorkel into it, but it doesn't appear to be shaved anywhere. Very odd.

DSOMC6

Glue, epoxy etc anwhere near the intake or MAF will trip that code.

jdwk

The code was tripped with the box off the car, so there was no glue on the car when I got the code.

I drove a good 50 miles after cleaning the MAF and removing those pieces of rubber from the screen, but the CEL did not go away. The car drives absolutely fine.

Tomorrow I will hook up HP tuners and then I can monitor the MAF signal, maybe that will tell me something.

Halltech

Just clear the code and it will not return if you have found the MAF problem and fixed it.