What kind of oxygen sensor is in catalytic converter?
The oxygen sensor upstream of the catalytic converter will normally be referred to as Bank 2 O2 Sensor 1 (B2O2S1) and the downstream oxygen sensor will be Bank 2 O2 Sensor 2 (B2O2S2). Zirconia oxygen sensors are the most common type of sensor found in cars.
What is Bank 2 in catalytic converter system?
In response to the amount of oxygen found in the exhaust, the oxygen sensors output a voltage which can be read with a multi-meter, oscilloscope, or scan tool. The oxygen sensor upstream of the catalytic converter will normally be referred to as Bank 2 O2 Sensor 1 (B2O2S1) and the downstream oxygen sensor will be Bank 2 O2 Sensor 2 (B2O2S2).
How does the catalytic converter work on the exhaust?
The oxygen sensors sample your car’s exhaust before and after the catalytic converter. In response to the amount of oxygen found in the exhaust, the oxygen sensors output a voltage which can be read with a multi-meter, oscilloscope, or scan tool.
How can I improve the efficiency of my catalytic converter?
1. Connect the scan tool 2. Set the scan tool to monitor the upstream and downstream O2 sensors and the short and long term fuel trims 3. With the car running, introduce propane into the air intake (all your O2 sensors should respond with a high steady voltage)
What does the sensor on the catalytic converter do?
The downstream oxygen sensor, on the other hand, should show very little movement. It’s testing the catalytic converter to see if it’s storing oxygen during rich events and then using the oxygen during lean events.
When does a catalytic converter need to be replaced?
If the downstream O2 sensor activity mirrors the upstream O2 sensor, the converter is dead and needs to be replaced. On V6 and V8 applications with dual cat exhausts, you’ll have upstream O2 sensor readings for each side of the engine and downstream O2 sensor readings for each converter.
Can a lazy oxygen sensor cause a catalytic converter problem?
You may need to fix other engine problems in order to solve your catalytic converter problem. A lazy oxygen sensor might falsely indicate a catalytic converter problem, yet not set a DTC for itself. A technician can determine if the sensor is responding as it should.
Why is my catalytic converter reading lean 0.1v?
An exhaust system leak really screws up the P0420 testing routing. An exhaust leak near the upstream sensor can cause the downstream sensor to read a steady lean condition. The ECM would interpret that as a bad catalytic converter. In that case, your OBDII scanner should be reading a lean 0.1v reading from the downstream sensor.