FJ80 3FE Air Flow Meter VAF Stupidity!! (1 Viewer)

[pint]

Everything has been great since I bought my 92 FJ80 earlier this year. I have been catching up all the PM's, cleaning and tightening everything, replacing a few worn parts, etc. Then in an incredibly stupid move today I decided to unscrew and pull the plug on the air flow meter....I was going to "clean it", or so I thought. The problem was I didn't think. Even when I began to pull out the plug and the wires appeared to be "stuck", I just pulled a little harder! The wires are 22 years old...they are probably a little stubborn right? I can't believe I was so stupid! I never do s*** like this. Anyway, I immediately realized I screwed up, quickly plugged the 3 wires back, shoved the plug back in, screwed it down nice and oh boy does the truck now run like crap! I did search a bit, but am not sure I want to tear into this thing? Looks like I can cut the black cover off, hook things back up properly, solder a few bits and maybe be ok?? Any thoughts? Anyone have a spare VAF lying around cheap?

 

[Kernal]

Got any photos of the carnage?

 

[pint]

Not much to look at since the plug is back in...it looks like it should work fine from the outside! I am removing it from the truck and will probably cut the top off so I can see the damage. I don't think I can screw it up much more...I will post some pics once I have something to show.

 

[Otter]

You're not the only one who has done this. Take the black cap off and try to resolder the connections. Then reseal the cap, once you know everything is working. If that doesn't work, you'll need a new one.

 

[FrankTorres]

Here is what it's supposed to look like...

 

[pint]

Fantastic! Thanks for the pic. That will be a big help figuring out what goes where!

 

[jakesiar]

Ahhh, I have done the same thing and ouch! It was one of those, as soon as I did it I realized what I had done. I soldered mine back and it has been fine. I did pick up an OEM from a vehicle being parted out as a backup. They ain't cheap!

 

[tlin]

Been there, done that - welcome to the 3FE AFM Haters Club (kidding...). From hereon, now you know NOT to pull that connection by removing those screws. There's a small clip you simply pull back both sides and then can slide the connector out without harm.

I successfully resoldered and it worked great for at least a couple of months when symptoms returned (verified resistance was off per FSM) - I then had to pick up a used one from someone here and have been running just fine ever since. Take the lid off, resolder but be sure to use a clean, fine tip - there's not much room in there.

Check your CEL codes if symptoms persist. Probably 31 and 24 from memory.

You'll get thru it....

 

[BigAxeJack]

Don't feel too bad, a few if us have also "modified" the VAF's on our '93-'94 models as well. After I got a good used one from CruiserYard I gunked the screw heads with RTV to deter any more Tom-foolery. D'oh!

 

[scuzy]

I screwed mine up too during a snorkel install. Its really a easy and quick fix. You just need a soldering iron and some patience. See my post below for step by step pics (though it is somewhat hard to really see).

https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/real-time-help-needed-slc-ut.808450/#post-9230544

 

[pint]

Here are a few pics with the lid cut off: The first one shows it after I jammed the plug back in. I obviously did some damage and hooked the wires up wrong as well. The second pic is with the plug removed and the third is the plug itself. Do you think I can actually repair this??

 

[dallen341]

Only one way to find out!

 

[pint]

While I'm "in there" should I do anything else? Or maybe just say a prayer and try to repair it?!

 

[Camino]

I did same thing. Had to buy a rebuilt one!

 

[pint]

Hmm...not what I wanted to hear! Hopefully I will have better luck...although I have never soldered in my life!

 

[ppc]

Find someone that has some expertise in soldering. That is not something you want to learn with.

 

[82much]

Whats the best thing to use to seal it back up?

 

[pint]

Well my "soldering exeriment" didn't seem to fix it. It runs a little better, but not like it should. I'm going to try again tonight, but found a number of used units around the country for decent prices...gonna order one in a minute just in case! Plus the truck is going on a 3,000 mile trip in about a month and needs to be reliable. No more working on things if I don't know exactly what they are!! Or drink less beer when working on the truck...

 

[pint]

I decided to remove the VAF and try to solder it again. I just reinstalled and amazingly it seems to be working quite well...the idle is a little higher than before, around 800 vs 650. I don't want to get my hopes up, so I may still order a backup unit. My fingers are crossed.

 

[Parsnip]

Any chance the increased idle is from a new hole in the duct from brittle age + fiddling with it?