Cannot remove O2 sensor *

[Ameer Antar]

For me, the $15-20 for the sensor is nothing, especially compared to all the other yearly maintinence you have to pay for. About the universal type vs. OEM terminal, for me the choice is obvious. The sensors themselves are the same and made by Bosch, so there's no difference in quality. Regarding splicing, I don't see an issue. Of course you never want to splice the green wire b/c this is part of the car's harness, but rather the old sensor's black wire. In my car, the PO had bought the OEM terminal type which has quite a bit of extra length (as if they expect mechanics to splice it). So the terminal is actually OEM, and all you need to do is make a simple crimp (and heatshrink for a pro install) to connect the old sensor's wire to the new one's. I personally reserve the term "hacking wires" only for cutting the vehicle's harness which should never be done. I always like mods that can be removed to bring the car back to original. In this case, there's only one wire to cut (the sensor's, not the vehicle's) and you can easily just unplug the old sensor wire and replace w/ a full cost OEM type if you really wanted to...no damage done to the car. And since a big company like Bosch sells both types, they also must feel that it's not a big deal to splice, otherwise they could easily claim that it is bad for the cars and end up making more money on the OEM sensors. Just my 2 cents.

-Ameer

---Original Message---
Date: Sat, 29 Nov 2003 08:57:40 -0600
From: "Livolsi, Stephane" <Stephane.Livolsi at investorsgroup.com>
Subject: RE: Cannot remove O2 sensor *
To: "Audi Quattro List" <quattro at audifans.com>
Message-ID: <A9CCC2FEA3353D4B9BB3D1DC8939777002167FB2 at igamail3.iga.bz>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii

I have to agree with all of Ameer's points except one...

Relative is....well....relative...

Unless you are willing to go non-OEM and hack some wires, the O2 sensor
for a 5k can't really be called cheap.

Also, Cat, when I did the sensor on my 87 5ktq and the 88 5ktqa, I found
it best to set aside some time and remove the aircleaner, and the big
metal pipe from the fuel dist to the turbo.  It just helps to have as
much room as possible.
On the 86 5ktq, I also had to cut the wires and use a regular socket.
The problem is that once you do that, you are committed and theres no
going back.  That O2 sensor MUST come out because there is not enough
wire to splice the connector back on.

HTH some and good luck.  It is worth the effort as I had much better
running and driveability on both my cars.

Stephane

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Ameer Antar [mailto:antar at comcast.net] 
> Sent: November 28, 2003 10:46 PM
> To: quattro at audifans.com
> Subject: Re: Cannot remove O2 sensor *
> 
> 
> Hey Cat,
> I would use something a little better than liquid wrench. I 
> use PB Blaster which is from the local NAPA, but I'm sure if 
> you ask a decent auto parts store, they will get you the good 
> stuff (maybe different name). Spray several times, soaking it 
> as much as you can, then wait a day or a few hours. If it's 
> still stuck, sometimes I end up cutting the wire very close 
> to the metal so I can fit a normal deep socket w/ no cutout. 
> That should give a bit better torque. Impact wrenches are 
> also very good at this stuff b/c of the impacts which make 
> removing bolts 100x easier than even w/ a breaker bar. When 
> putting in the new sensor, make sure it comes w/ silver 
> anti-seize paste on the threads to prevent this from 
> happening again. If not you can also get this at the parts 
> store. Just make sure to use a small amount only on the 
> threads, otherwise it could ruin the sensor if it got inside 
> the tip. Make sure to replace the O2 regularly and this 
> shouldn't happen again. I would never bother t  o test an O2 
> if in doubt on the early cars since they're relatively cheap 
> and a marginal O2 can make a car run poorly. Good luck.
> 
> -Ameer
> 
> ---Original Message---
> Date: Fri, 28 Nov 2003 21:04:39 -0500
> From: Cat <iceisit at earthlink.net>
> Subject: Cannot remove O2 sensor *
> To: quattro at audifans.com
> Message-ID: <v0422080abbedaedee45a@[63.186.168.236]>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
> 
> My husband cannot seem to remove the O2 sensor from the 87 
> Audi 5000. I tried an 8' extension and also liquid wrench.
> 
> Any suggestions?
> 
> Cat
> 
> ~
> 
> ^. .^   ~
> 
>    "Destiny is fate, minus the power of one, divided by 
> intervention." 
> 
> 
> 
> 
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