Black Smoke and Engine Issues on '07 Fiat Ulysee: Seeking Assistance and Insights

Hey there, Definitely sounds like you're having a tough time with your Ulysee. I used to drive an '04 Fiat Doblo. It actually developed similar issues to yours around 168,000 kms. The engine would stall, sputter during acceleration and the check engine light was constantly on, just like your situation. I suspected the air mass sensor too and I was right about it. This fault comes under the annoying but generally non-serious category. It can cause some stressful driving moments because of the unexpected drop in power, shaky accelerations, not to mention the extra fuel you're burning through, I get that. Eventually, I had to take it to my mechanic, and it turned out to be the Mass Air Flow (MAF) sensor indeed. It seems like these sensors on older models can go haywire. The mechanic cleaned the sensor first to see if it would fix the issues, but we ended up replacing it and resetting the Check Engine light. After the fix, the car drove like she was new again. The power came back, the sputtering stopped and the jerks became a thing of past. Remember, if the MAF sensor is bad, it's gonna mess with the air-gas mixture your engine gets. Hence, the black smoke and shaky performance you're noticing. So, I'd say you're on the right track suspecting the MAF sensor. Hope you get it sorted soon. Good luck! Cheers!

Hey there, Thanks for sharing your experience. It sounds like our issues are uncannily similar, I'll definitely check out the MAF sensor. It's reassuring to know it might not be as serious as I feared. How hard did this hit your wallet, if you don't mind me asking? And have any other issues popped up since then or the old bird's been behaving? Cheers!

Hey. Sure thing, happy to share. In terms of cost, I paid around 415€ to sort out the Mass Air Flow sensor problem. It was a bit of a punch to the wallet, but given the way the car's been running since, I'd say it was worth it. Since my mechanic fixed that defect in the air mass sensor, the old Doblo has been running like a dream. No black smoke, no stalling at idle or those bumpy accelerations. She’s been behaving quite nicely, fingers crossed it stays that way! Cheers!

Hey again, Getting this knowledge from you is genuinely helpful. The price, while a bit steep, does seem worth it if the old Ulysee can get back to its good old health. Your Doblo's smooth running post-MAF gives me hope. I'll ring up my mechanic to check out the MAF sensor and take it from there. Looking forward to it behaving nicely like yours. Thanks a ton I really appreciate it. Cheers!