Oxegyn Sensor MAYHEM!!!

[00s4slvr]

ok guys so i scanned my car recently and found this hidden code:
1 Fault Found:
17539 - Oxygen (Lambda) Sensor: B2 S1: Internal Resistance too High
P1131 - 35-10 - - - Intermittent


So i brought the car into the mechanic and told him to change my o2 sensors and he quoted me $1900 for all 4 sensors!!! I only thought there was 2 sensors 1 on the drivers side and 2 on the passengers side. I called up audi and they told me that there are 2 on each side: 1 before the cat and 1 after the cat on each side.

So i showed audi the code and they told me thats the o2 sensor on the drivers side (left side looking from back of vehicle) before the Cat and was the PITA to change. so i bought the part from them $200.00 and my mechanic said hell do it for $150.

Does this sound right? is this the right o2 sensor for that code?

[mholme]

B2(Driver Side) S1(Primary upstream O2). Yes. That's the right sensor. It's not *that* bad to get to.

[AudiSportB5S4]

check your PM's man, lol.

[00s4slvr]

lol i pmed you back and thanks for all the info!!

[jukesandz]

What the hell? $1900 for four sensors? That's outrageous, let alone they don't need to replace all four at once.

Last year my parents brought in their 4runner for a CEL, they were quoted $1900 for new cats. And that wasn't even the problem. Dealership thieves.

[00s4slvr]

it was a private mechanic who i have been going to for over 2 years now. The audi dealership wanted $1200 for 4 sensors which is cheaper!!

[fixn2xlr8]

it was a private mechanic who i have been going to for over 2 years now. The audi dealership wanted $1200 for 4 sensors which is cheaper!!

Im pretty sure I could get all 4 inside of an hour tops.

[RolledMySTi]

Im pretty sure I could get all 4 inside of an hour tops.

I'm calling bullshit on that. I did mine and there is no way you could get the front 2 in an hour unless you are an anorexic contortionist.

[mholme]

I'm calling bullshit on that. I did mine and there is no way you could get the front 2 in an hour unless you are an anorexic contortionist.

Eh, if you've done it a few times it might be possible...I wouldn't go as far to call B.S. on it but that's a questionably fast time...

[00s4slvr]

stop fighting over the time it takes to install parts and just be happy you can do them. I unfortunately am brain dead when it comes to installing some things.

[gointoscott]

I personally dont think replacing the 02's are that bad at all. need a 22mm 02 socket an bunch of extensions, ratchet, and I put a pipe on the end of the ratchet for more torque to break the 02 loose. once its loose it should screw out with your fingers. At least mine did. the drivers is a little more tricky becuase of things in the way, but again with the extensions its not too hard.

I have pics of how to take 02s out in my write up for replacing piggies

[MacDaddy]

What the hell? $1900 for four sensors? That's outrageous, let alone they don't need to replace all four at once.

Last year my parents brought in their 4runner for a CEL, they were quoted $1900 for new cats. And that wasn't even the problem. Dealership thieves.

Real mechanics are becoming harder and harder to find, most of them now just replace parts untill the problem is fixed. they simply don't know how to diagnose cars anymore, just plug in the computer and do whatever it tells you to.

[Slow4]

I personally dont think replacing the 02's are that bad at all. need a 22mm 02 socket an bunch of extensions, ratchet, and I put a pipe on the end of the ratchet for more torque to break the 02 loose. once its loose it should screw out with your fingers. At least mine did. the drivers is a little more tricky becuase of things in the way, but again with the extensions its not too hard.

I have pics of how to take 02s out in my write up for replacing piggies

Highlighted in bold is a true story.
Highly recommend using his write-up....PLUS since you're "brain-dead when it comes to installing", this will give you a chance to get to know your S.

Once you've started tinkering with your S on your own, you start knowing things about it and learning how it works. Trust me when I say I was car-illiterate but once I did my first DV install, than my brake install, than silicone hose installs, than darintake project, than control arms + CV boots and finally the DP + Exhaust install, I can honestly say that I know 4x as much about my car than I use to.

Try it...

[TPC303]

I just had two 02's and 2 EGT's done for $1500 so I feel your pain

[gmann]

WARRANTY time for front O2's is 1 hr... So that means a trained Audi tech should do the job in ~1 hr. Regular book time is 1.5hrs... So any Joe that works at an indy shop should get it done in ~ 1.5hrs. I'm not saying you can't do ALL FOUR in under one hour, I'm just saying that is very highly unlikely. PS, if you don't know what you're doing DO NOT do the O2's on this car, they're a PITA to get to. Even for a tech (I am one, and I was still bitching about getting them out) You need a special socket, LONG extension and a breaker bar. Plus if you do it wrong you can possibly snap off the O2 in the bung and cause all sorts of headache.

[00s4slvr]

well i got the part for 150 from a friend and my mechanic did it for $100. So the headache is gone.

[diaftia]

I just ordered two upstream o2 sensors for my car from partsrex.com. Saw the recommendation in another thread. It was $125 Shipped for 2 sensors that are direct plug. Here is to hoping all goes well! Hope it does because I just scanned my wifes car and her front two are giving the same errors. So if this goes well I will be getting two more.

[rouellettea4]

I'm not even that mechanically inclined, learning but still, and I have done both primary O2 sensors, @ about 15 minutes each. I'm skinny and lanky but seriously, it's not hard at all.

[blmlozz]

Real mechanics are becoming harder and harder to find, most of them now just replace parts untill the problem is fixed. they simply don't know how to diagnose cars anymore, just plug in the computer and do whatever it tells you to.

Yeah, but most of it isn't their fault, cars have so much more electronics in them and they change slightly every model year too, so unless you're an electrician it's alot harder to diagnose problems versus a decade or two ago when things were simplier

[ThirdStrike]

it was a private mechanic who i have been going to for over 2 years now. The audi dealership wanted $1200 for 4 sensors which is cheaper!!

sometimes mechanics look at the tight spaces on s4's and get scared.
its really not hard.. i suggest trying to DIY
*edit* u already paid for someone to do it..

[nizmosx]

you can get o2 sensors off in less than an hour IF YOUR NOT RUNNING THE DOWNPIPE HEAT SHIELDS.. it would be a half hour job =)

[ThirdStrike]

i swear
fuck
those
shields

[nateS4]

^^I left mine on when I did my piggies. I probably should have taken them out since the precat isn't there to create the heat . Hindsight is always 20 20.

[s4Xcelence13]

if your running two new pre cat o2s but none post cat.. will that screw with your car rather than the MAF, like performance wise?

[ThirdStrike]

if your running two new pre cat o2s but none post cat.. will that screw with your car rather than the MAF, like performance wise?

nope
i have no cats and my sensors have been zip tied to my transmission for about 2 months. (i remove my midsection pipes for the track-vband ftw)
only thing is cel.. but im used to seeing that

[s4Xcelence13]

haha so am i... i had them zip tied before, then i just took them off all together... i think im just going to bust out that LED so it looks normal lol

[ThirdStrike]

haha so am i... i had them zip tied before, then i just took them off all together... i think im just going to bust out that LED so it looks normal lol

i hope youre joking :shakeshead:

[s4Xcelence13]

lol i am, im not ready to spend another 300 on a new cluster... i think ill survive with a yellow dot or two.

[IamEzraM]

ok guys so i scanned my car recently and found this hidden code:
1 Fault Found:
17539 - Oxygen (Lambda) Sensor: B2 S1: Internal Resistance too High
P1131 - 35-10 - - - Intermittent


So i brought the car into the mechanic and told him to change my o2 sensors and he quoted me $1900 for all 4 sensors!!! I only thought there was 2 sensors 1 on the drivers side and 2 on the passengers side. I called up audi and they told me that there are 2 on each side: 1 before the cat and 1 after the cat on each side.

So i showed audi the code and they told me thats the o2 sensor on the drivers side (left side looking from back of vehicle) before the Cat and was the PITA to change. so i bought the part from them $200.00 and my mechanic said hell do it for $150.

Does this sound right? is this the right o2 sensor for that code?

The code came back as intermittent, why didn't you clear it and check it again after 2-300 miles ? I had these codes back in January, probably 8,000 miles ago, cleared them and they haven't been back since.

16514 - Oxygen (Lambda) Sensor B1 S1: Malfunction in Circuit
P0130 - 35-10 - - - Intermittent
16534 - Oxygen (Lambda) Sensor B2 S1: Malfunction in Circuit
P0150 - 35-10 - - - Intermittent

[00s4slvr]

everytime i would clear it, i drive 10 miles and if would just come right back. Now i cleared it and it hasnt came back after i had the one changed.

[MacDaddy]

Yeah, but most of it isn't their fault, cars have so much more electronics in them and they change slightly every model year too, so unless you're an electrician it's alot harder to diagnose problems versus a decade or two ago when things were simplier

thats a lame excuse i see being harked regularly in the trade magazines, all the mechanics i know never have the problems mentioned in the magazines. Theres a reason i chose to be friends with some techs and not all.

As far as the electronics, they make it easier, it gives you a a starting point; pre-obd cars give you nothing. the downfall is the system is not sophisticated enough to tell you if its the sensor itself, the wires going to it, or a simple vacuum leak from the hose going into it. for whatever reason its now common place for a tech to just replace that part, or parts until its fixed instead of manually diagnosing the peripherals around whatever they are working on first.

Technology changes, symptoms stay the same, a S4 with a misfire due to a filed coil and a 1988 mazda b2200 with a bad lead do the exact same thing.