so merchants basically told me its gonna be about 270 to fix the problem

i went to autozone and they have the downstream part for 90 dollars

so is 180 for maintance good?

or is merchants a bunch of liars

9/3/2005 3:22:31 PM

$90 is normal to slightly high for an O2 sensor

Definitely don't pay someone to install it though - it took me like 5 min per sensor (4 sensors) on the 540.

What kind of car is this?

9/3/2005 3:26:10 PM

ill do it for $50 but I cant clear your code. autozone should be able to clear it for free after though.


what they are charging you for is the diagnostic read/clear and the labor to remove and replace the sensor itself, to awnser your question, 180 is high.

BUT, as I think I told you before, if the cat is the problem this will not fix it.

9/3/2005 3:35:00 PM

oh sorry i ddint explain good enough

its a 98 honda accord 4 cyl lx

what pissed me off is that it cost 86 dollars to hook it up to the diagnostic just to find out which o2 sensor it was

then they were like its gonna be all together 360 or so to do it

i was like ummm i dont have that money i just wanted the diagnostic so i would know whats wrong

he was like ohhh well then you only owe 86.90

9/3/2005 3:41:22 PM

see, what they charged you $86 for was the EXACT same thing you had done for free at autozone

what you should have done was had the catalytic converter tested (like I told you)

9/3/2005 4:09:28 PM

well i went back to autozone and the guy said that the machine can not get specific so that i would have to go to merchants cause they have a better computer diagnostic thing

the guy at autozone was like it would suck if you fixed the wrong o2 sensor, i would go to merchants

are catalytic converter tests free?

either way if you could change it for cheaper than what merchants said i would pay you

9/3/2005 4:14:18 PM

all you need is a wrench.

9/3/2005 4:30:06 PM

at advance auto they showed it on tv

i need like 3 kinds of lube and something else too along with the wrench

9/3/2005 4:38:47 PM

Nothing to it. Some antiseize compound (which I keep in my toolbox) and a 7/8 box end wrench or special O2 sensor socket (which I have 2 of).

Some of the universal ones require wire splicing, which is not a big deal.

9/3/2005 5:09:11 PM

You might be able to save some money buying the o2 sensor online. I dont know much about honda's, so i could just be talkin out my ass, but parts for my vw are often significantly less online than they are at local places.

9/3/2005 5:13:17 PM

testing the catalytic converter has NOTHING to do with autozone or merchants or any computer- its a pressure test. a pinhole is drilled before and after the cat and if the pressure difference exceeds a certian amount then it isnt flowing enough- aka its stopped up and likely its efficency is below threshold, and it needs to be replaced. afterwards the holes are welded up. any muffler shop should be able to do this cheap.


If you are now hell-bent on getting the downstream O2 done (which may be the cause, I dont know) I dont mind splicing the wires to install a universal one if I am handling the parts procurement. Id rather not do that though, so the easiest thing to do is for you to just buy the OE style, and pay me $50 to get under your car and do it.

see, if the catalytic converter stops doing its job, then the readings from the downstream and upstream 02 sensors get VERY similar, if not the same. also, if the downstream 02 sensor dies, its readout defaults to reflect the reading from the upstream 02. so even with a full readout scantool you wouldnt really be able to tell what was going on. the bottom line is, you have to make a guess and throw some money at it. if you want the 02 sensor done, let me or zxappeal know. if you want to get the cat tested/replaced, go to either bob's muffler shop or henry's muffler shop. check this thread for details:
http://www.thewolfweb.com/message_topic.aspx?topic=346536

9/3/2005 6:21:16 PM

wow dude, thanks a lot

ok i'll def hit you up in a couple days and let you know either way

9/3/2005 8:25:47 PM

Thanks for the plug, Joel.

9/3/2005 8:48:50 PM

Quote :

"Thanks for the plug, Joel."

there is a pun in there somewhere

9/3/2005 10:16:42 PM