O2 sensor/CEL 1-2-2-1 code -- fix ...

[Bill R.]

other cars too. They all caution against using any conductive grease on o2 connectors for this reason. The oxygen path is through the individual braided wires inside each wires insulation not through the jacket covering the whole thing, They don't need much o2, its only for a comparative reference.

If you use a wire brush, be sure to use a soft brass-bristle brush. A steel brush could go right thru the platimum plating. Also, I think there must be more than 1 style of O2 sensor leads. My old factory one from the e32 has about 4 feet of cable which are nothing more than 4 separate teflon insulated wires, covered with an outer black PVC shrink tube, which lacks about 1/2" from each end. The connector to the engine/chassis wire harness is nothing more than a plastic "Cannon" connector of sorts, with the pins simply crimped onto the ends of the wires.

The new e36 sensor has a short 12" cable which has a white teflon outer jacket sealed at each end of the O2 sensor and the connector. I guess that must be the type that the TIS cautions against using Stablilant 22a. There's no way my older e32 4-footer is a leak path that could clog a reference bleed.

[ryan roopnarine]

If you use a wire brush, be sure to use a soft brass-bristle brush. A steel brush could go right thru the platimum plating. Also, I think there must be more than 1 style of O2 sensor leads.

i don't own a steel wire brush, so i don't think i'll have a problem. just so everyone understands me, i wasn't suggesting that anyone do that to an oxygen sensor that they cared about. my mentioning that it worked on several cars was just me ensuring that replacing an oxygen sensor (on a particular car) would end an oxygen sensor code. m50 throws off the oxygen sensor code for any widdle air leak. my comment about the mpg gain was to reinforce this, as that usually seems to be the telltale that an o2 sensor needed replacing (in addition to the code, of course). not anything i've ever had to do to the e34.