Make sure you get an OEM o2 sensor.

 

I did a bit of highway driving up in the mountains and I'm sure the going down part really helps my mileage plus I haven't had to use 4wd in a while and I got 17.5mpg out of this last tank which is high for me.

 

I'm going to take a closer look at things tonight. I got a new paper filter and am going to ditch the K&N, reclean the MAF and try to remove the o2 sensor. Anyone ever see one that was bad...what do I look for? I found replacements on Rockauto.com for between $80 and $250.

 

You can tell by looking if the sensor is clogged. Seafoam is advertised as O2 sensor safe. I have never heard of it fouling sensors. It's a good idea to check and clean the plugs but many will tell you thats not necessary either.
A new O2 sensor and valve adjustment made a big difference in milage with my Honda Civic.

 

It's hard to tell by looking at them and saying:"this is bad". Obviously, if the end is missing, or the case is cracked then that's bad, but since they spend their life in hot exhaust, they will discolor under normal conditions.

Here's a pic I found on the net claiming that these look "bad".
http://alflash.narod.ru/RX/Dsc01219.jpg

But actually, the only way to tell is to test them. Here're some words:
http://www.mr2.com/TEXT/O2_Sensor.html



BE CAREFUL - don't be culled into buying a "generic" or "universal" sensor. Like was said above, buy only OEM and make sure you get the right one for your truck. Like I said above you have an A/FR sensor which will be about twice the cost of an O2 sensor.

RockAuto does look like they're selling it (Denso 234-9002) for $30 less than URD. Cool.

 

try seafoam...

 

Um....yeah, already tried seafoam. I stopped by a local parts shop today and they said there's no way to clean the o2 sensor. They also said that there's no way seafoam can clog or ruin or clog the sensor. BS?

 

Are you being sarcastic? LOL!

 

BS to both.

A sensor _can_ get clogged/covered by oil spit that's a normal part of exhaust. If you look up how a sensor works, _all_ of the element that's in the middle needs to be able to react with the exhaust in order to get the most accurate reading. Cleaning that off could (not "will", "could") help. To clean that, soak it in brake cleaner - it's a great grease/grime remover.

And, since you've seen a Seafoam'd engine start after a couple of hours, think about all that stuff flying by the O2 sensor. It's inevitable that some will get on the sensor. See above for what to do about it.


Here's a bottom line... The idea of TRYING to clean the sensor is the difference between spending $3 on a can of brake cleaner versus $90 or $180 bucks on an O2 or A/FR sensor. You've got nothing to lose by trying to clean it. It won't restore the sensor to new (they degrade as a normal part of doing their job) but you may be able to stave off spending bigger bucks.


As a slighty beyatchy aside here... Given the days of time that we've been talking about the viability of cleaning it, you could have tried it already and possibly been back on the road smiling.