Warning Light...

[85db]

Had this light come on suddenly on the motorway. I stopped at a service station for a few minutes and found this thread, so i carried on assuming it might be an o2 sensor.. if it is, would it still be ok to drive for the time being? Would it just mean that the fuel mix is a tad rich/lean?? It seems to be running perfectly normally, oil level is fine etc, but the light has stayed on.

[Steve Green]

Good first move! Lets hope its something quick and simple to sort out.

Get it checked soon. It may well be something else and its not worth stabbing in the dark, hoping you resolve the issue.

[Stephster]

Look at the OBDII thread, and see if there is anyone near you who can read the light for you. Don't go to Mr T, as you will be at least £40-£60 worse off !

[Anonymous]

OBD readers are cheap on Ebay, £20 and upwards. Might be worth investing as they work on many other cars. You could save a packet over the years and make yourself popular with your mates.

[Stephster]

True - myself and other owners all got ours off ebay for round about £20... I just plug it into my Pug and the Focus just for the sake of it occasionaly. *runs to try and find a life*.

[mrzwei]

The handbook will say get it to a Toyota dealer as soon as possible so no big deal. IIRC if it starts flashing   s:scared: :scared: s:scared:   then you need to stop like now. As others have said, the answer lies in the code.

[85db]

Thanks for the advice, I looked on that thread and there doesn't appear to be anyone that close so i may as well just buy a reader.. Had a quick look on ebay and there are loads! Are they all pretty much the same? I don't necessarily just want the cheapest one i can find so if anyone has any recommendations on a decent one that would be great...

[dcod]

 m http://www.amazon.co.uk/U380-Diagnose-T ... B001C9ZISW m

This is all you need. I have one and does the job perfectly. You can get it cheaper than Amazon though.

[Stephster]

That's the one I have !

[SimonC_Here]

Thanks for the advice, I looked on that thread and there doesn't appear to be anyone that close so i may as well just buy a reader.. Had a quick look on ebay and there are loads! Are they all pretty much the same? I don't necessarily just want the cheapest one i can find so if anyone has any recommendations on a decent one that would be great...

There are loads of us in Oxfordshire.
I'm in Culham during the day and Harwell at night.
Roger is up in Bicester
Russ is down in Newbury
Jason is over in the west somewhere!  s:) s:)

Where abouts are you?

[85db]

I'm in Banbury but i've now just ordered one from ebay, thanks anyway. Still, it should be useful in the future, hopefully it wont show up anything too bad this time.

[85db]

The scanner has arrived and it has showed up a P0135. According to the manual this is "O2 Sensor Heater Circuit Malfunction (Bank 1 Sensor 1)" - Is that an easy fix?

[Anonymous]

Someone with more knowledge than me will pop up in a mo, but if you need an O2 sensor, Ive got some, £25 incl pnp. Youll also need an O2 socket, usually 3/8 square drive, with a short extension and handle, plus a can of Plugas or similar. The socket, sometimes called a Lambda sensor socket is about a tenner from you lacal motor factor, or ebay.

[Wabbitkilla]

It's not a dangerous code, just needs the sensor replacing.
It won't affect engine performance to any problematic degree for now, but needs replacing.

[Steve Green]

Search a well known auction site for "22mm sensor socket". I dont think I have ever seen one in halfrauds.

Check you have the right sensor for the job, cable length etc, OEM/Denso are reliable, D!cks are cheaper 2nd user.

Let the exhaust cool down, then use lots of Plus Gas (others are available) and take your time, Soak them, then have a coffee and some 'Victoria sponge' (see this thread for a recipie http://www.mr2roc.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=35307)

Go back and give them another soaking and have more Coffee and cake.

Only then try and undo them. Make sure the socket is properly located and then make sure you are not going to skin your knuckles.

Good luck

[dcod]

Let the exhaust cool down, then use lots of Plus Gas (others are available) and take your time, Soak them, then have a coffee and some 'Victoria sponge' (see this thread for a recipie http://www.mr2roc.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=35307)

Go back and give them another soaking and have more Coffee and cake.

  s:lol: :lol: s:lol:  

What other equivalents to Plus Gas are there? WD40? 3-in-1? Havn't been able to find Plus Gas yet (this side of the internet)

[Stephster]

I recommend Wilton quick cake release........  s:P s:P

[Stephster]

On a serious note, other alternaitve is GT85 which you can get from most bike shops.

[Steve Green]

There are several choices but when I was Bakery maintenance engineering we used loads of Rocol Shock release, primarily because it was food safe. Rocol also do their own penetrating oil.
I kept a collection of loads of Rocol products when I left. Its getting close to me having to replace a few. In general I would say they make the best industrial lubricants.

[Anonymous]

WD40? Duck Oil? Any penetrating oil will do the job. Just spray, wait...... spray, wait ...come back tomorrow spray and have a go. Make sure the spanner is all the way on. undo the O2 sensor plug, apply force directly at right angles to the centreline of the sensor. Youd be amazed how much force is lost by pulling off centre.

[85db]

Thanks for all the replies.. and thanks for the cake tips too!  s:D s:D

Check you have the right sensor for the job, cable length etc, OEM/Denso are reliable, D!cks are cheaper 2nd user.

2nd user? So are they just the same as oem ones but used? Would like the easiest ones to fit really. Noticed that some you have to f*** about with the wiring and i'd really rather not have to do that.
If failing at 45000 miles is considered reliable then i wouldn't normally go for second hand but then 25 quid would save me a fair bit of money looking at the the prices of these.

[Anonymous]

 l viewtopic.php?f=9&t=35042&hilit=+sensor l

 l viewtopic.php?f=11&t=19412 l

[Stephster]

Thanks for all the replies.. and thanks for the cake tips too!  s:D s:D

2nd user? So are they just the same as oem ones but used? Would like the easiest ones to fit really. Noticed that some you have to f*** about with the wiring and i'd really rather not have to do that.
If failing at 45000 miles is considered reliable then i wouldn't normally go for second hand but then 25 quid would save me a fair bit of money looking at the the prices of these.

My car has done 140,000 and according to the paperwork that came with her and having just replaced the post cat sensor myself, I can confirm that they fail approx every 45k ! You can pick up a denso sensor for approx £65 new if you shop around. There is also a resistor fix that I have been told about, which costs next to nothing.

[85db]

Just ordered one from amazon usa, in total it worked out at £52.27 which seems very good compared to uk prices, i selected the send as a gift option so hopefully there will be no extra charges.

edit: Looking at it more closely, about £8 of that price is an import fees deposit. If there are import fees and they come to more than £8 i will not be charged any more, but if there are no fees or they are less than £8 they refund the difference. So in theory it could work out even cheaper than £52.27.

[Steve Green]

Take the opportunity to soak all the sensors with 'generic penetrating oil' before the replacement arrives. Do it several times, the more you do the easier it will be on the day you change the sensor.
Just to be safe do all three, its no more real work. It might save more work in the future. When you get the new sensor, remove all of them and refit with a generous quantity of copper grease.