o2 Sensor replacement cost

hi FR,

I am replacing the same oxygen sensor on my 2001 V6 30V Passat (ATQ engine) today or tomorrow. The error codes that I had were only the

17530 and 17548 which indicates a bad heating circuit. One thing that I wonder about your car is how you could simultaneosly have both the heating circuit and the sensor circuit go bad together. Did the harness wire get sheared off? With the information you gave it seems clear that a new sensor will make those codes go away. My guess is that the labor will take 30min to 1 hour ( It will take me longer since I have not done this before).

I paid $136.73 for the sensor from Overnightautoparts.com (no affiliation) for the exact match Bosch sensor with color-coded connector. On my car, this sensor is coming out the side of the Catalytic convertor on the bottom of the car so it could not be easier to access. I bought a regular open-end 22mm wrench for the job. The connectors are clearly visible at the back, left, top edge of the engine compartment. There is a green, brown and black connector that are all the same style. The bad one is the brown connector in the middle (on my 2001). I expect it to be a little difficult to break the old sensor out of the car and it will be a little hassle to route the wire harness but overall it could be a relatively easy job.

regards, Mark

I understand that logic, but in my case the heater circuit has been 'crapped out' for a couple of months and it is still the only code that has been raised. I have my own code reader so I can easily check this. Naturally, the disclaimer being that this is the case on 'my car' and your results may vary.

CanadianCray wrote:

Thanks both for the reply. sound like the solution is right but the dealer quote might be too high.

FR

Ask your dealer if they are aware of the tech bulletin that just came out for some cat faults. It involves a ECU flash on 2000-2001 V6 Passats. It's free if under 8year/80,000miles. 450 would be high here on the east coast.

What is the mileage on this Passat? I thought that some components that affect emissions have a longer warranty.... maybe 7 years and 70,000 miles.

later, dave (One out of many daves)

Oh yeah I forgot is it the front or rear o2 sensor. If its the front it should be covered by emissions warranty. If the back its not.

Printout from dealer says rear o2 sensor.

The milage is 31k, warranty for 7/70 is for most everything EXCEP o2 sensors, according to the waranty booklet.

I work for a Mercedes Benz Dealer as a Tech & I can tell you all Emissions warranties are the same cause they are regulated by the government. Front O2 sensors have to be covered because they have a direct effect on fuel mixture where as the rear o2 sensor is only there to check if the catalytic convertor is working properly & has no effect on emissions.

VW doesn't warranty front O2 sensors. At least in my state.

Oh yeah it may be diff. from US to Canada

"Federal law requires emissions components on 1995 and newer vehicles be covered by warranty for two years or 24,000 miles, whichever occurs first. Most manufacturers provide extended warranties beyond what is required by law. Federal law also requires that your vehicle's OBDII computer and catalytic converter be covered by an eight-year/80,000 mile warranty. Refer to your owner's manual for complete coverage information." . I have had several people get a free Cat. Conv. and one even received a new

02 sensor for their VWs. a 2001 GTi (46K) just got her cat. conv. replaced this year after she failed the emission test due to a check engine light fault. I am not sure she got another 02 sensor. Years ago (not exactly sure when but after 1998 IIRC) a 92 GTi (very low mileage) got his cat. conv AND 02 sensor changed at the dealer for free. He was grateful. ;-)

later, dave (One out of many daves) chicago

On my 2001 V6 30V Passat engine (ATQ engine) the 'rear' O2 sensors are _before_ the catalytic convertors (mounted into the inlet end of the CAT). This is not how they are pictured in my Bentley CD manual but this is where they are on my car. I do not understand why they are not behind the CATs as indicated.

btw, I attempted to replace my sensor including the entire harness this weekend and the harness routing was too difficult for me. I was able to get the old sensor out of the CAT but I had to put it back in due to the harness being connected at several inaccessible points. I am going to gather my soldering tools and some heat-shrink tube and splice the new sensor under the car. Had I known this would happen, I could have ordered the 'generic' sensor (without the OEM plug) and saved about $65!

Them two big things under your car aren't the cats! Somewhere about 2000 the cats were moved at the flange just behind the exhaust manifolds. The closer to the engine the cats are the faster they come online(heat up) to control emission. Your Bentley may still show the older cats which were under the car just below the transmission.

The rear o2 sensors have to be behind the cats. You are not looking at the correct parts. If they are infront of the cats they serve no purpose. The cats are farther to the front.

Wow! they look _exactly_ like cats. Thanks for the info, Woodchuck.

It makes sense though; I could not figure out how the 'rear' O2 sensors could possibly be in front of them. So I guess the tooling is being re-used and these parts are actually some kind of resonator, or perhaps have no intentional purpose.

btw, My wife gave me the idea to leave the bad sensor's harness in place so that I do not have to unhook the tie-down straps. I will attempt to hook my new sensor's harness to the original harness which should be easier than breaking the old harness loose and trying to tie it down again. the only problem I have is with the two connections on top of the transmission... and possible the one where the wire changes from horizontal to vertical to go up the firewall. anyway, I hope this info can help someone in the future.

Mark

Woodchuck wrote: