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O2 sensor issues

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Old Aug 11, 2013 | 12:28 AM
  #1  
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davidjurss
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O2 sensor issues

I have an 06 KR F150 that I've had a CEL on since I bought it. Today I had the dealership mechanic replace the O2 sensors since that's what the codes came up as. Well as he was replacing them, he noticed that there were only 2 sensors on the truck. I know there are supposed to be 4, but neither one of us could find the other 2. We did notice that rather than having exhaust manifolds, I have long tube headers. Could the previous owner have removed the sensors when they installed the headers? I can't get this damn CEL to go away and it's getting annoying!
 
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Old Aug 11, 2013 | 08:57 PM
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Upstream sensors are the Oxygen sensors, the downstream sensors are the catalytic converter monitors. If you've only got two sensors, sounds like the previous owner didn't want to deal with installing sensor bungs into the headers. What codes are stored, what numbers are they?
 
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Old Aug 11, 2013 | 10:11 PM
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P0141,P0161,P2270,P2372 are the codes I keep getting.
 
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Old Aug 12, 2013 | 07:22 PM
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From: Back where I started...
First three are all codes for the downstream sensors, the cat monitors. Not sure about the 2372... The connectors for the downstream sensors should come off the harness around the rear of the transmission on either side of it, but with circuit codes it's a moot point, they're not hooked up more than likely, kinda weird, I'd figure the upstreams would be the missing ones, given the aftermarket manifolds/headers....
 
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Old Aug 15, 2013 | 01:10 AM
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I'm starting to wonder if I might just be better off trying to get someone around here to tune out the rear sensors. I just want the CEL gone already.
 
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Old Aug 15, 2013 | 08:13 AM
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Hello, My bet is that you'll never be able to "tune out" the rear sensors without the data provided by the front sensors. I assume by "tune out" you mean adjust the fuel mixtures such that you don't get any codes.

Don't even try.

Find the connectors which the front sensors plug into and be certain the joker who installed the headers didn't cut them off. Make sure they're clean. Get the correct sensors from RockAuto. Have the two threaded inserts welded into place and be done with it.

If your lucky, there was no "Air Injection System" removed. These systems pipe pumped air into both exhaust manifolds. This would add another set of parameters. Take a look under the hood of someone else's '06 King George and see if there's an air pump.

'Tuning it out" would require lots of mechanic's time on an analyzer, a ton of T & E, a swimming pool full of wasted fuel (and all the immorality which comes along with that) as well as illegality issues. All of that would come with no guarantee of success.

"...a CEL on from the day I bought it", is never good to hear. How much did you pay for this gem? Kira
 
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Old Aug 15, 2013 | 03:52 PM
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I'm talking about a simple tune to remove the rear sensors from the ECM. Shops do it all the time after an off road exhaust system is installed on a fuel injected engine. The correct front sensors and the ECM is reading them, so I don't think they are the issue. The problem is the rear. I can't even find the wires for the rear sensors so I'm pretty sure someone cut them off.
 
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Old Aug 15, 2013 | 05:53 PM
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From: Back where I started...
Originally Posted by davidjurss
I'm talking about a simple tune to remove the rear sensors from the ECM. Shops do it all the time after an off road exhaust system is installed on a fuel injected engine. The correct front sensors and the ECM is reading them, so I don't think they are the issue. The problem is the rear. I can't even find the wires for the rear sensors so I'm pretty sure someone cut them off.
Any tuning to remove the Cat monitors as inputs to the PCM is going to have to be done by a specialty tuning shop, I doubt there's a simple program that will do it (don't do performance tuning, so I may be 100% wrong.) It's not anything that your average scan tool can do, not even the latest at greatest that we have at the dealer, or the hot-shot super-dooper Snap-On tools a few guys I know in the independent world have. Again, I may be wrong about how involved it would be to tune it, but I can't see that doing that versus buying new cat monitors, connectors, & installing them is going to be cheaper, easier, OR quicker.
 
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Old Aug 15, 2013 | 05:59 PM
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I was able to find the connectors still intact near the transmission, but appears I'm either going to have to get MIL eliminator or get wire extensions and have someone weld sensor bungs into the exhaust. I spoke with a few performance shops around here that can write a custom tune to remove the rear sensors from the system, but I have to buy the programmer first. That's easily $400, so I guess I gotta look for a cheaper route. I'm not really trying to get extra performance out of it, just trying to get the light to go out.
 
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Old Aug 15, 2013 | 08:55 PM
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You should be able to have the bungs welded in for a lot less than $400. You may not need to extend the wires. Some of the O2 sensors come with pretty long leads on them.
 
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Old Aug 15, 2013 | 09:10 PM
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I have some new Bosch sensors, and the wire isn't gonna be near long enough to reach past the converter. It has a single converter welded in place right before the muffler, so I guess I'm gonna have to weld in both sensor bungs to the one converter.

On a side note, I've been doing some research on DIY MIL eliminators, and it looks like that would be a LOT easier to do, not to mention cheaper.
 
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