So im an idiot, which im sure some of you have figured out by now. But i was working under my car and i was like "hey i wonder what the o2 sensor looks like. So of course i had to take it out. So making a story short, i stripped the threads when i was putting it back in, the threads are stripped on the o2 sensor itself, not the y pipe. So anyway i can make this o2 sensor work, or did i just screw myself into buying a new one?

 

:
probably just need to buy a new one.
unless you want to permanently install the old one (I don't recommend that.

 

How bad is it to drive without my o2 sensor on? I drove my car around the neighborhood to see how it ran, and it worked just as good, it actually seemed to run faster ( dont know if that was just in my mind or not), as it did when the sensor was in there, it just made a loud noise where the air was coming out of the small hole...

 

it made more power possibly because the o2 was bad to begin with, which can if left way too long ruin the cat, which will rob power.

 

So actually by replacing it i will gain some more power?? I love to hear those words, provided i understood correctly.

Also off topic here, i checked the compression on all of my cylinders and they all read the same and were within the normal pressure range, so could the bad o2 be causing some smoke at the start up of my car?

Also, can i drive my car for a day with the o2 sensor out and be okay?

 

The sensors on your car were meant to be there. Period. The powertrain will feel different without them, maybe even better. But you'll pay in the long run if you don't have them installed and functioning properly. Whatever you do, don't drive around with a significant exhaust leak that close to your engine any longer than you have, too. If worse comes to worse and you're too broke to buy a new sensor... use a brass plug from a good parts store.

 

you'll probably get pretty crappy gas mileage if you remove the O2 sensor

you could try getting a die to clean up the threads, but it might be too late for that if they're really stripped. Not sure the size and pitch, but I'm sure you could call warpspeedperformance and they'd tell you since they have to put a bung on their Ypipes. I'm thinking it might be 10x1.25 or something like that - it's been a while since I had it out.

 

Curious - any "simpler"[besides heating with blowtorch] way to check an O2 sensor without replacing it? I hear it's a better idea to get a OEM one, then one you splice in from autozone... but where would be the least expensive place to buy it? (I know there's a nissan in texas that everyone likes..)?

 

Well i plan on buying a new one tomorrow afternoon, i just didnt know if it woud be okay for me to drive like 5 miles to school and then 5 miles home including the auto shop.

 

you'll be fine.

 

You can drive without the o2 it just will hurt the fuel economy in the short term, long term it can cause valve burn.

the o2 is fairly cheap here : www.internetautomart.com in the tune up section

 

How long would it take you to get one to my house if i ordered one from you? Because its like 25 dollars more if i get one in town, but i would have it today.

 

probably tuesday/ wednesday

 

I think im just going to buy one at autozone, because the noise where the air is coming out of the little o2 sensor hole is driving me crazy, and it smells bad too.

 

can't say I blame you.
just make sure you get a direct fit

 

WTF? Is it ignorant week in this section?

Q. What does an oxygen sensor do?

A. The oxygen sensor sends a signal to the engine computer based on the amount of oxygen in the exhaust gas. This signal is used by the engine ECU to fine-tune the mixture to the optimum level for maximum catalyst efficiency and longevity. A worn-out oxygen sensor can cause excessive gasoline consumption, elevated exhaust emissions, accelerated catalytic converter damage failures and cause engine performance problems such as surging and hesitating.

 

Jeff I was only talkin about his 10 mile drive. Not a road trip. That's why I said he'll be fine.