The MAF is located right next to the air filter with an electrical connection attached to it.
From a side view one can see that there are two torx screws (sixe T25) which we will attend to later.
First one needs to disconnect the electrical wires to the unit; be very careful, the connector is very fragile. I used my straight edge screw driver to lift the plastic clip on the connector...
...and then pull the wires.
Next was opening the air filter housing (gotta pull a little to get it to free).
I loosened the clamp around the downflow part of the MAF housing. In order to remove the MAF unit (still attached to the top of the air filter housing) one needs to pull/wiggle a little to get them separated, just be patient and careful.
Here is a good view of the MAF sensor once removed. Notice the torx screws, yep they are next. There is a rubber seal located within this connection.
Once everything disassembled, here is what I got; in addition there is the rubber seal and air scoop (very easy to remove, just pull a little on both ends). Follow directions on the spray can for the cleaning process and then let the MAF sensor dry for 1-2 hours.
Back in the engine compartment I was left with the following; the lower part of the air filter housing, which was rather dirty indeed...
...so, I cleaned it and the air scoop (shown here after I installed it).
Before I went back to the car, I placed the rubber seal back into place at the opening of the air filter housing. After placing the new air filter onto the lower part of the housing, the challenge (on this model at least) is always installing the top part. It takes a little force to place the unit into its grooves and holes, once again a little patience and lining up the connections exactly goes a long way.
The back part of the housing...
...and the side part of the housing.
Once in place it ought to look something like this.
The label on the MAF unit makes installing it the right way rather easy (not that it would fit the other).
I first pushed the unit a little into place (u will get a little resistance from the rubber seal) until I can start inserting the Torx screws; then tighten the unit into place.
Then reinstall the aft end and tighten the clamp and there you go...
May I add, that by no means am I a listened/professional mechanic. I got tired of dealerships giving me the run around about what needs to be done with the car and with the help of lots of research (most of it from this website regarding my Volvo) have I started working on my own cars (the others being a VW and Jeep). My vehicle has now more than 138,000 miles and as mentioned before, I am just trying to do preventative and sometimes necessary maintenance in order to keep it running good. The cleaning of the MAF sensor is a rather easy thing to do, but I noticed that the car has some very rare subtle/slight hesitations while engaged to the cruise control (not trying to think about the ole ETM debacle on this model; I still have a white sticker with the updated download).
I would like to add one more observation. When I started the car for the first time after the MAF sensor cleaning, I noticed that the idle was fluctuating between 800 and 1200 rpm for about 10 seconds. I have read many accounts from Volvo owners having idling problems and would like to say that maybe a cleaning of the MAF sensor possibly solves some of these issues for certain folks. I meanwhile have driven the car and I blame the 10 seconds of erratic behavior on some liquid left behind on the sensor; no problems since then. We will see on Friday morning, going back up to Indianapolis (250 miles).
If there are any suggestions or corrections on what I should have done better, differently or not at all, please do; I will do this cleaning of the MAF sensor again.
Jan
Seggs