Why is my ESP light on?

[das_kuppler]

hey everyone,

recently my ESP light came on. i hooked my car up to a code reader and got nothing back. the ESP still works as does the ABS. the light goes off sometimes, but it mostly on. any suggestions?


thanks,
Andy

[eliTTe]

I know this is old, but I'll answer it incase anyone can benifit from it... your MAF is probably bad, you can either try cleaning it or replacing it

[das_kuppler]

what does MAF stand for, and where can it be found (i have the service manual, so if you can point me in the general area i can probably find it in there).

thanks for responding

[eliTTe]

MAF is your mass airflow sensor, if you look on your intake right behind the airbox, there is a section of ther intake that has a electrical plug going into it and that is where your MAF is... you can disconnect that section of the intake and inside you will see a plastic piece with a metal strip in the middle of it. Try spraying it with MAF cleaner or carb cleaner, let it dry and you can re connect everything.

after a few days of driving if the light does not go off, the MAF could be completly dead or it could possibly be something else. does your car idle poorly?

[das_kuppler]

when my car is cold sometimes it will idle poorly. bu the ESP light is referring to the electronic stability program. i don't think the MAF would effect that...but i will still check it maybe that's why my car is idling poorly. thank you for your input.

[eliTTe]

Your car should normally idle high when its cold if thats what your refering to... yes the light indicates ESP on/off and slippage, but it is also used as a warning indicator for other things, like things that might not throw a CEL. It could be any number of things but I would start with cleaning your MAF.

[das_kuppler]

that's good to know. when it's cold the rpms go up and down a lot. thanks for your knowledge