cleaned it with mass air flow cleaner , it will start but stall out , also changed air filter which was very dirty , check all vacuum lines all good ?

You check and make sure that the MAF is plugged up?

Agreed with Durania, make sure you plugged it back in

yes and checked it again, :-\

what prompted the MAF sensor cleaning?

 

there's a big difference between "it had issues before is started this" and "it ran perfectly before i did this".

 

check for vacuum leak?

any check engine lights?

yes i agree running fine, but one thing i did not check was the air filter , which was very dirty , the car would stumble a few time , so decided to clean maf sensor ,now it starts but stalls ,if i stomp the pedle it will run but stall out, no check engine light on

Edited July 18, 201015 yr by 86subaru

This has happened to me more than once on Legacy's.

 

Did you reconnect the stiff maybe 1' diameter hose that's hard to see on the bottom of the airbox (for lack of a better derscription). Heads toward the throttle body in general.

 

I don't do many Foresters But it's easy to forget to reconnect that straight hose and it's hard to see that it's off. Symptoms are exactly as you describe.

will check , sure seems like that to me also , thanks all , very hot out , trying to get to hospital to see mother so it adds to it,

checked all hoses and rechecked no go , work on it tomorrow ,

There is a small air hose coming from below the ducting below the MAFS that will cause the car to stall if not hooked up. This happened to me when I swapped the passenger side plugs. Check it out.

checked all no go , stalls out ,

Check the plugs, wires, coil. Make sure they are all snug. Unplug and replug all the airhoses, paying special attention to the air ducting and the small hose below the MAFS. Also, unplug the MAFS and try without it plugged in. You'll get a check engine light but it will eliminate a computer glitch. Lastly, unplug the negative battery terminal and let the computer reset for 5 min before trying again.

unpluged maf tried to start ,still the same stalls out,

take it apart.. clean it again? put it all back together.. make sure you tighten all the hose clamps and the lines are all secure...

Just gonna throw this out there. You didn't happen to put the MAF in backwards did you?

 

If possible. Can you get us a good shot of the engine bay?

sorry camera is broken, i never removered the maf sensor i sprayed into it , i could see where to spray , changed dirty air filter, also checked other air filter, and changed it, could i have caused damage to the maf sensor?which now needs replacing

I think you should remove it and clean again so you can get a good look at it and make sure you don't leave any residue in it?

I would doubt you have damaged it. If you had it would set a CEL for sure. Try unhooking the negative battery cable for 10 minutes or so and then try to start it.

If you get a CEL after plugging the battery back in you can get it scanned and maybe find out what's causing the trouble.

 

It should start and run with the MAF unplugged. It won't be happy but it should still run.

 

You didn't happen to put the MAF in backwards did you?

I don't think you can. One side has a square flange that bolts to the air filter housing and the other is round and the air hose clamps around it.

You won't get a CEL unless the car runs for a certain amount of time. I have done the stupid and started without the MAF plujgged in and didn't get a CEL.

 

Your MAF is a wire filament type and it may have been damaged a bit prior to cleaning and the apray just finished it off. Take it off and look at the filaments. See if they are broken, if so, then it will have to be replaced.

 

My thinking is, if it was running before the cleaning, then something broke. You have already checked all of the hoses, so that is not the problem and your only other possibility is the MAF itself.

 

I have a couple of them laying around, so let me know if you need one.

 

Mike

I remember a fair number of posts where owners unintentionally destroyed their MAFs by cleaning them. Another group of owners destroyed their MAFs by overoiling their cloth "permanent" air filters. Bottom line, the MAF can be delicate and doesn't like being screwed with. I am posting this so that you don't drive yourself crazy trying to fix a MAF that may be beyond help. Once you've checked everything, go to a junkyard and get a replacement. Once you get a replacement, leave it alone. It it ain't broke, don't fix it, especially with MAFs.

Edited July 21, 201015 yr by The Dude

already unpluged the maf sensor and - side of battey no difference , starts but stalls , no cell , send pm with price and pay-pal again

yes, no junk yards around here with my maf sensor, hardly any subaru;s

where are you in ohio? I thought 99 forester had phase 2 engines. is yours a DOHC 2.5? auto? Im sure a 2.5 OBW MAF will work. I have one on a running engine... the weird thing is that i think the engine will run with the MAF unplugged. Ill check tomorrow...

99 Forester would have a SOHC. You could also maybe get lucky and find a 99 2.5RS, those MAY work.

phase 2=no MAF