P2280
Air Flow Restriction / Air Leak Between Air Filter and MAF
- Severity
- Medium
- Driving
- Drivable — book it in
The module has detected an air leak between the air filter and the mass airflow sensor. That location matters: it has narrowed down where to look, which is the hard part of finding a vacuum leak. Air entering the engine that the module has not accounted for makes the mixture lean, and the module adds fuel to compensate until it runs out of adjustment.
Possible causes
- CommonBlocked or neglected air filter
- CommonAir filter box not seated or its clips undone after a service
- CommonSplit or disconnected intake duct
- PossibleDebris drawn into the intake
- PossibleAftermarket air filter fitted without the correct housing
What you might notice
- Rough or hunting idle
- Hesitation or a flat spot under acceleration
- Fuel trim readings positive - the module adding fuel
- Worse fuel economy
- Whistling or hissing from the engine bay
- Check engine light on
What to check, in order
- Check the air filter and that its housing is properly closed. A box left unclipped after a service is the most common cause here and takes seconds to check.
- Air entering before the mass airflow sensor is measured normally - the problem is a restriction, so a blocked filter is as likely as a leak.
- Watch fuel trim on the live data screen. Strongly positive trim at idle that returns to normal at higher engine speed is the classic signature of a vacuum leak, because the leak matters less when the throttle is open.
- Check the PCV system. A perished or disconnected breather hose is a leak, and it is one of the most commonly overlooked.
- Do not replace the mass airflow sensor on this code. The sensor is measuring correctly - air is getting past it.
Read this code from your own car
Plug an ELM327 adapter into the OBD-II port under the dashboard. Pin16 reads every stored, pending and permanent code, explains each one like this page does — offline, with no account — and shows what the car recorded when the fault was set.
Where this code sits
P00xxP01xxP02xxP03xxP04xxP05xxP06xxP07xxP08xxP09xxP0AxxP0BxxP0CxxP0DxxP0ExxP0FxxP10xxP11xxP12xxP13xxP14xxP15xxP16xxP17xxP18xxP19xxP1AxxP1BxxP1CxxP1DxxP1ExxP1FxxP20xxP21xxP22xxP23xxP24xxP25xxP26xxP27xxP28xxP29xxP2AxxP2BxxP2CxxP2DxxP2ExxP2FxxP30xxP31xxP32xxP33xxP34xxP35xxP36xxP37xxP38xxP39xxP3AxxP3BxxP3CxxP3DxxP3ExxP3Fxx
Fuel and air metering - injector circuits
P2200P2201P2202P2203P2204P2205P2206P2207P2208P2209P2210P2211P2212P2213P2214P2215P2216P2217P2218P2219P2220P2221P2222P2223P2224P2225P2226P2227P2228P2229P2230P2231P2232P2233P2234P2235P2236P2237P2238P2239P2240P2241P2242P2243P2244P2245P2246P2247P2248P2249P2250P2251P2252P2253P2254P2255P2256P2257P2258P2259P2260P2261P2262P2263P2264P2265P2266P2267P2268P2269P2270P2271P2272P2273P2274P2275P2276P2277P2278P2279P2280P2281P2282P2283P2284P2285P2286P2287P2288P2289P2290P2291P2292P2293P2294P2295P2296P2297P2298P2299