well, since i cant afford a new o2 sensor and havent found any in the yards yet and i dont have the electrical test equipment to test the one that is apparently bad, i will have to let this problem go for awhile...is there any harm in this?

It'll make the car run rich, and could eventually clog the catalytic converter I believe.

 

 

A generic bosch sensor will work just fine, and be much cheaper than an OEM one. Only difference is that with the generic one, you need to cut and splice the connector on it from the one currently in the car. I think they only cost about 25ish.

Starkiller,

 

What car are we talking about

 

Glenn,

82 SubaruHummer

01 Forester

 

"the check's in the mail"

its an 89 spi wgn....and i just replaced the o2 sensor a couple of months ago with a bosch so it would pass emissions....car is getting good mileage, around 31 mpg so its not running rich yet has some stumbling and hesitation though at accleration and going up hills...see previous post about this problem

bumpo

Alan, I have some doubt that that replacement Bosch sensor would be bad enough to cause CEL error codes, yet good enough to not kill your mileage. Is it possible that you are seeing an old code? (As in, did you clear old codes since your e-testing?)

 

If I remember correctly, the O2 sensor code occurs when the ECU detects its "reference voltage" (5V) or 0V (out of range values). (Info provided by another board member in another, older thread.) This would imply something really bad happened to the O2 sensor.

 

My guess as to what would happen is that the ECU would go "open loop" and use default mixture settings, which is probably richer. I doubt that plugging up of the catcon would occur, at least not unless it went super rich and for a significant period of time.

no, not an old code...light came on during the trip back from tacoma...got home and plug the green connectors together, light went off, unplugged them, light came back on with a 32 code...

Perhaps it may just be a bad connection to the sensor causing this. I would check the wiring for a problem. The sensor could have had a premature failure though. Does it have a warranty?

that was cheaper if you get a universal one that you need to splice in. it was like $12

If you have an ohmmeter, I'd check the grounding for the O2 sensor.

 

To get the best reading, disconnect the ground terminal from the battery and measure the resistance to the O2 sensor.

 

Could be the resistance is higher than it should be, causing the ECU to have trouble reading the correct voltage from it.

 

I'd venture to guess if the resistance is higher than 1ohm, you should look into running another ground line to it.

dont have any kind of electrical test stuff at all...no warranty as far as i know..