A faulty oxygen sensor can reduce your fuel economy significantly; so much so that you’ll notice it. The oxygen sensor is also called the O2 sensor, and this part lasts about 30,000 miles in older cars and up to 100,000 miles in newer cars. McCurley’s Shell can determine if your O2 sensor is malfunctioning and replace it if it is. Aside from a reduction in your gas mileage, you will also notice the following.
Check Engine Warning
A very common reason for a check engine warning is a malfunctioning O2 sensor. In fact, the check engine light may be the only indication that your oxygen sensor is going bad. Studies prove that the check engine light catches engine problems that aren’t otherwise noticed, including the O2 sensor.
Rotten Egg Exhaust Odors
You might also smell rotten eggs in your vehicle’s exhaust if the O2 sensor is failing. This is because it is overloading the catalytic converter with hydrocarbons indirectly. This clogs the converter and causes it to fail. Once it does, you end up with the unpleasant odor in your exhaust and engine bay.
Black Engine Exhaust
What overloads the catalytic converter with hydrocarbons is an excess fuel burn. The dying O2 sensor can indirectly affect the balance of fuel and air in the combustion chamber. When there’s too much fuel in the chamber, you end up with excess exhaust. The color of the exhaust is black.
High Vehicle Emissions
Excess hydrocarbons can also raise your vehicle’s emissions above the regulated standards. Unfortunately, this means that your car, truck, or utility vehicle will fail its next emissions test. You must replace the malfunctioning oxygen sensor first in order for your vehicle to pass the test.
Performance Problems
Finally, a skewed O2 sensor will create engine performance problems. This can be due to the excess fuel in the combustion chamber or excess air. The former will cause your engine to surge, i.e., pick up speed erratically while you are driving your automobile. Too much air will create problems for your vehicle’s acceleration and speed maintenance. Your engine will sputter and struggle to perform.
Call McCurley’s Shell in Atlanta, GA, today if your automobile is experiencing any of the problems discussed above. It’s possible that your oxygen sensor is going bad. We will run a diagnostic test to determine the health of the oxygen sensor. If it needs to be replaced, we will replace it. If the problem is something else, don’t worry. We can fix that, too.
