Ford: mustang question

I am in North Carolina and have a nephew visiting from Maryland. He has a
2000 mustang coupe, 6 cyl, 3.8. Says for several weeks the check engine
light has stayed on. Ford dealer in his area charges to much for diagnostic,
auto zone ran test saying air flow sensor needs replaced. Question is, is
this expensive, can he replace this himself. Also, is there a way to reset
light to make it go off. Car runs fine, no problems, just annoying that
light stays on constantly. Appreciate any info.

The air flow sensor (aka MAF meter) has two elements in it that heat up
and cool down based on the air flowing through the meter. The
resistance of these elements change with their temperature. They will
get a fine coat of dirt on them over time and will typically cause the
meter to read less air than actually gets drawn through it. This in
turn can cause detonation (pinging) and might cause computer codes to be
tripped. It is easy and cheap to clean the elements. Get a few Q-Tips
and a can of brake cleaner. It is important to use brake cleaner as it
leaves no residue behind after it drys. Spray the elements liberally
with the cleaner from both sides. Then soak the Q-Tip end with cleaner
and VERY GENTLY rub the elements. Try not to leave any cotton fibers on
the elements. Then hose them down again with the cleaner from both
sides and reinstall the MAF. BTW, the MAF meter is located between the
throttle body and the air filter box. I can't tell you how many times
mechanics will just throw away a perfectly good MAF and charge $300 for
a new one when 10 minutes, a couple of Q-Tips and a $2 can of brake
cleaner would have fixed the problem. While you're cleaning the MAF
disconnect the battery for 20-30 minutes. This clears all the fuel trim
data it has stored based on input from the dirty MAF sensor. It will
need to re-learn this data again with input from the cleaned MAF.

Jerry wrote: 

Jerry,

Listen to Michael. That was a good post.

John


"Michael Johnson, PE" <com> wrote in message
news:com... 
a 
diagnostic, 
is 
reset 

Thanks for the reply. You explained where this sensor is located, but not
being familiar with Ford engines, is there any place on the web that would
show a diagram of this, exactly what it looks like. Thanks again

Here's a link for a Mustang with a V-8 engine but it should be about the
same procedure for a V-6.
http://www.bullittarchive.com/Maintenance/maf/ They removed the element
from the MAF housing. This works too and might be easier than what I
described. You'll need a Torx socket though.

Jerry wrote: 

Thanks a lot. 6 cyl is little different, but know what I'm looking for.
Appreciate all the help. Nephew is not familiar with newsgroups. and he is
amazed at info available. Thanks

If he is into Mustangs you should let him know about the Mustang news
group rec.autos.makers.ford.mustang There's allot of good knowledgeable
people there that can give him good advice.

Jerry wrote: 

Look for the device with wires plugged into it. Just follow the air duct
back from the filter housing and you'll find it.
John

"Jerry" <rr.com> wrote in message
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