How Much Does It Cost to Replace the Oxygen Sensor？

There are several sensors in your car and each one of them performs a crucial function for your vehicle. Every sensor plays an equal role to keep the functions of your vehicle smooth. Similarly, an oxygen sensor is a device or an automotive part found in the exhaust system of your car. Oxygen Sensor makes fuel inoculation possible while increasing the efficiency of engine timings. It also works to evaluate and monitor the level of oxygen in your car’s exhaust system.

Being among the most crucial parts of a vehicle, it is important to work on the maintenance of oxygen sensors regularly. Despite going through a proper maintenance procedure, the oxygen sensor is also prone to failure.

The failure is caused due to several reasons, which leads to incurring a cost of a new part followed by the variation in the total replacement cost of the sensor.

The oxygen sensor cost varies based on various factors, such as manufacturer, model of your vehicle, the brand name of the part, and several other aspects discussed in the article ahead. But the typical cost of an oxygen sensor starts from just $40 and hikes up to $350 with some additional charges for the labor. Even if you find it an expensive replacement, you need to take care of it.

Role Of an Oxygen Sensor in A Vehicle

The oxygen sensor is an important part of your car’s housing, it is responsible for measuring the quantity of oxygen present in the gases that exit the engine. An oxygen sensor helps in regulating the engine’s fuel mixture. If the oxygen sensor of your car is healthy it will help you maintain the health of your engine, preventing it from going too rich or lean. It also plays a part to maintain the air-to-fuel ratio in your car.

Types Of an Oxygen Sensor

Cars manufactured before 1996 consisted of a single oxygen sensor. Whereas the models that came after 1996 consisted of two oxygen sensors. The upstream oxygen sensor is located before the catalytic converter in between the CAT and manifold. And the downstream oxygen sensor is fitted after the catalytic converter. There is no specific difference in the functions but the data of both these sensors are kept separate by the Engine Control Unit. It helps to regulate the high functional capacity of your engine.

How Much Is It Going To Cost To Replace An Oxygen Sensor? — Key Factors

If you can sense a bad oxygen sensor in your vehicle, go to your automotive advisor right away! Oxygen Sensor cost is among the most important maintenance costs that a car owner has to bear. The part itself is around $40 to $350, but some factors increase the price. These factors are discussed ahead in the article.

Cost Of Labor

Since the replacement of an oxygen sensor is not a difficult task, the labor for the oxygen sensor costs only around $60 to $120. And the average time spent on this replacement is about one hour.

Model Of the Vehicle

The model of your car plays a vital role in changing the oxygen sensor cost. Vehicles manufactured before 1996 had a single sensor. Hence, the cost of replacement was very low. But later the cars started to have more than one sensor leading to an increase in cost. If one oxygen sensor costs you $250, you can count the total cost of parts by multiplying it by the number of sensors fitted in your car.

Add-On Cost of The Replacement

While replacing the oxygen sensor, there are chances to encounter some miscellaneous costs. Such as the replacement of any other minor part which might include an exhaust gasket.

Maximum Replacement Cost of An Oxygen Sensor

If your car’s oxygen sensor has become bad and you are thinking of getting it changed, scroll below to have an insight into oxygen sensor cost.

The price of an oxygen sensor (only a single sensor) lies somewhere between $40 to $350. The prices differ from each other because of the model of your car, manufacturer, location, etc.

This price increases a bit after adding labor costs to it. The oxygen sensor cost for labor service starts from $60 and goes up to $120. Hence, the maximum cost for oxygen sensor replacement is $470.

Replace The Oxygen Sensor Yourself to Reduce the Cost

The labor cost for oxygen sensor replacement is not too expensive, so it is better if you let the professional handle it. But, in case you are adamant to save your money, you can do it yourself too! You just need the sensor part and some spare time before you start the process!

Before replacing your oxygen sensor make sure that the problem lies there. Once it has been diagnosed, you can get an oxygen sensor in your range from the market and replace it by watching a tutorial online. So, the replacement will just cost you the price of the part.

How To Check If Your Oxygen Sensor Has a Fault?

First things first, go get an OBD scanner. There are various symptoms of a bad sensor, so an OBD scanner will help you locate the right problem. There can be several errors in your car. Hence, an OBD scanner will identify all of them and showcase them with some specific codes that denoted oxygen sensor faults.

To identify the oxygen sensor fault, below are some codes you should keep in mind.

P0150 – P0155

The error codes P0150 - P0155 indicate there is a fault in the upstream oxygen sensor. This problem can be due to the shorting of wires, breakage in the sensor, or simply the sensors being disconnected from the housing. In any of these situations, you will have to get your car’s oxygen sensor replaced.

P0156 – P0167

Errors P0156 – P0167 showcase a fault in downstream oxygen sensors. Again the chances of error are due to shorted wires, broken elements, or the sensor being fitted with wrong heater values.

P0170 – P0175

The error codes P0170 – P0175 portray problems in the fuel mixture and trim in the engine. These codes can indicate errors for both; upstream and mainstream oxygen sensors. So in any situation, these codes indicate a faulty oxygen sensor.

Oxygen Sensor Cost in Different Types of Cars

Oxygen sensor cost is different in every vehicle depending on the model and the company of your car. The later part of the article gives you an estimated insight into the cost of an oxygen sensor for different cars.

Dodge Ram

The aftermarket new oxygen sensor for Dodge Ram costs you around $45 to $60. It is not an expensive replacement so if you feel any sort of problem with your oxygen sensor, go get it changed as soon as possible to avoid further damage to your engine.

Jeep Wrangler

The oxygen sensor for Jeep Wrangler will cost you $65 to $70. It is the price of an aftermarket new oxygen sensor.

Toyota Camry

Despite being a luxurious car, the cost of the oxygen sensor is not too high. The price of the new oxygen sensor for Camry revolves around $55 to $60.

All these prices of oxygen sensors for different vehicles show how inexpensive the replacement of oxygen sensors is.

Can You Drive Your Car with a Faulty Oxygen Sensor?

You can drive with a faulty oxygen sensor but you should not! It is not the right decision to drive your car with any faulty parts. Driving it with a faulty oxygen sensor affects the air and fuel mixture. Hence, this leads to inefficient running. Too lean or too rich engine conditions can lead to overheating.

With time, it leads to more severe damage to your vehicle. It has the potential to damage con-rods, and pistons and in the worst case can break the engine block of the vehicle. Hence, making you pay a high-cost mechanic bill as the engine repair is a costly expense.

Therefore, you should replace your faulty oxygen sensor as soon as possible.

Common Signs of Faulty Oxygen Sensor

There are several signs of a faulty oxygen sensor, but the most common ones include:

• Illuminating check engine light
• Running becomes too lean or too rich
• Lack of engine performance
• Stalling out of a vehicle

• Smoke emission
• Lack of fuel efficiency
• Bumpy ride
• Rough sounds coming from the engine
• Failure of an emission test
• An older vehicle

Takeaway

As you read in the article, an oxygen sensor is a vital sensor of your car that guides the Engine Control Unit to indicate the right quantity of fuel needed by engine cylinders.

Faulty oxygen sensor transfers the wrong information, leading the Engine Control Unit to regulate improper air and fuel mixture. This will further result in an inaccurate running of the engine, leading it to get severely damaged. Keep your vehicle highly maintained by visiting your automotive advisor frequently.

Hopefully, this article helped you in various ways regarding oxygen sensors and guided you to solve all your oxygen sensor issues.

Drive safe!