Used Vauxhall Cavalier Air Flow Meter

Only some Cavalier engines use an air flow meter — specifically the fuel-injected petrol engines that use a mass airflow (MAF) sensor as part of their fuel management system, such as certain 2.0i variants in the Mk3 (1988–1995). Carburettor-equipped engines and some simpler injection systems do not use one at all, so whether your car has this part depends entirely on its engine code. Check your V5 or run a VIN check to confirm your engine code before searching.

The Cavalier Mk2 ran from 1981 to 1988 and the Mk3 from 1988 to 1995, and these are fundamentally different generations with different engine families and management systems, so the air flow meter is not a straightforward swap between them. Even where both generations used fuel injection, the sensors, connectors and ECU calibrations differ. Treat these as separate searches and always confirm compatibility with the breaker against your registration and engine code.

Trim level alone does not determine which air flow meter you need — what matters is the engine code fitted to your car, since the same engine could appear across multiple trim levels. That said, the GSi carried a higher-output 2.0i engine with its own specific calibration, so the engine code on a GSi may differ from a standard 2.0i GL even if both are nominally 2.0-litre. Always quote your engine code to the breaker rather than just the trim name.

The Mk3 Cavalier received a facelift in 1992, and while the core engine architecture was largely carried over, ancillary components and sensor specifications can change mid-production even within the same generation. Whether a pre-facelift (1988–1992) sensor crosses over to a post-facelift (1992–1995) car is something you should confirm with the breaker against your exact registration and engine code, rather than assume it fits because the model name is the same.

No — body style has no bearing on the air flow meter, which is determined by the engine and its management system, not the shape of the car. A 2.0i hatchback and a 2.0i estate with the same engine code should use the same sensor. Focus your search on the engine code and fuel type, and ignore body style entirely.

On Cavalier-era systems the air flow meter is generally a direct sensor rather than a module that requires electronic pairing, so plug-and-play is more likely than on modern vehicles — but whether a specific used unit will work correctly with your car's ECU setup is something you should confirm with the breaker, as we cannot state this as fact. Supplying your engine code and registration to the breaker gives them the best chance of matching you a unit that will work without issues.