My wife's car is still acting all wonky, exactly the same as mine acted before I changed the engine coolant temperature sensor (which worked like a charm).

I am going to do the same thing to her car, but I hate the gap in prices between OEM Subaru sensors and something like an AC Delco sensor. I usually stick completely OEM, but I was wondering- Would this particular part would cause any issues being after market?

Knowing the year, engine, and miles might help someone have an opinion..

 

But I usually go OEM for sensors. Heck I usually even buy OEM O2 sensors.

Knowing the year, engine, and miles might help someone have an opinion..

 

But I usually go OEM for sensors. Heck I usually even buy OEM O2 sensors.

 

1995 Legacy LS. EJ22.

Knowing the year, engine, and miles might help someone have an opinion..

 

But I usually go OEM for sensors. Heck I usually even buy OEM O2 sensors.

 

Oh... and around 177,000 miles. Right around when I changed mine.

Go name brand aftermarket on this part.

Go name brand aftermarket on this part.

+1 someone must not like you or installed your old failing one into the other vehicle! those things very rarely fail. they fail so rarely i'd install a used one....or new aftermarket, definitely wouldn't buy new from Subaru. i've never actually seen one fail, i don't even recall hardly ever seeing it on the online Subaru forums.

 

that would be really weird to have two of them fail.

^

I disagree, in the CTS being failed, I have come across more than a handful of them, when they fail, it causes sluggish performance, especially when the car is warming up, and they are more obvious is cold weather times. It causes slight hesitation while accelerating from a stop, say onto a highway. Failed ones also cause mileage mpg drop.

 

They do fail. they do not throw codes when they do.

Yes they do fail, as many posts here can confirm. Not only in subarus, but all across the auto models. It is just a thermistor, nothing special.

I had mine go bad on '96 Legacy. It did end up giving a code, something like temperature insufficient for closed loop operation.

 

This is one of those areas where the Haynes manual is DEAD wrong. It says to wrap teflon tape around the sensor threads. But that is incorrect. This sensor has straight, not tapered threads, and uses a sealing washer.

nice hit, good to know. s

this is the one in the one in the crossover pipe right?

isn't this the one that's next to the temp gauge sender but with an xtra wire?

 

Pretty sure it's not an 'uncommon' failure as many times as I've read about it.

 

 

also, anyone know if post 2002 cars still have this sensor?

Edited November 29, 201114 yr by 1 Lucky Texan

Yes it's down in there a little bit

 

 

also, anyone know if post 2002 cars still have this sensor?

I would imagine yes, the ECU uses it for several reasons, one as an input to controlling the fans, also it is used in fuel metering calculations.

Yes it's down in there a little bit

 

 

 

I would imagine yes, the ECU uses it for several reasons, one as an input to controlling the fans, also it is used in fuel metering calculations.

 

Haha, that's the picture I used to FINALLY find that SOB when I replaced it on my car a couple of years ago! That thing was a pain to just *look* for.

 

Anyway, yeah... I know for a fact that they go bad. I still have what's remaining of the one I replaced in my car. It basically just turned into a wire. It was destroyed.

 

Also- I got the part from Subaru, brand new, for 23 bucks. Same price as online, just no shipping costs. I'll also get it on the same day.

 

 

 

But yeah...... anyone who has ever had a car with a bad ECTS in the past knows the pain of these things going bad. It's just horrible trying to drive the car. I can't wait to swap it out.

Do you have a CEL or any errorcodes in the system?

 

Haha, that's the picture I used to FINALLY find that SOB when I replaced it on my car a couple of years ago! That thing was a pain to just *look* for.

 

Anyway, yeah... I know for a fact that they go bad. I still have what's remaining of the one I replaced in my car. It basically just turned into a wire. It was destroyed.

 

Also- I got the part from Subaru, brand new, for 23 bucks. Same price as online, just no shipping costs. I'll also get it on the same day.

 

 

 

But yeah...... anyone who has ever had a car with a bad ECTS in the past knows the pain of these things going bad. It's just horrible trying to drive the car. I can't wait to swap it out.