I HAVE A 95 SE AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT HAS COME ON ABOUT FIVE TIMES IN THE LAST TWO YEARS AND IT ALWAYS SEEMS TO BE A DIFFERENT OXYGEN SENSOR TYPE THING. I DO HAVE HIGH MILES 137000, BUT DOES ANYONE ELSE HAVE THIS PROBLEM, OR KNOW WHAT CAUSES IT OR HOW TO PREVENT IT?

THANKS

HARRYZ

 

(1) It is considered bad form to post will all capitals. It makes readers think YOU ARE SHOUTING. Find your Caps Lock key and learn how to use it.

(2) Oxygen Sensors usually last a long time. They can be "poisoned" by exposure to certain chemicals. These include anti-freeze, anti-sieze, silicon RTV sealants, and leaded gasoline. An engine which burns a lot of oil will cause ash deposits to collect on the sensing tip of the Oxygen Sensors. Evaluate your engine to see if any of these problems could be responsible for the repeated failures.

 

Mine is a 99 and it came on today at 20,625 miles. I don't know why because nothing seemed wrong to me; I made sure that the gas cap is on tight also.

 

The Check Engine Light is evidence that something is wrong. That
"something" may be any number of things, some major and some minor. It
might be nothing more than a loose fuel filler cap. The Engine Control
Module (the computer) detected a problem and turned on the Check Engine
Light. At the same time it stored one or more Diagnostic Trouble Codes.
Get someone to do a DTC readout for you. This is not a big deal, does not
require specialized "dealer only" test equipment, and should take less than
an hour. When you know the stored DTCs, you will have a fair idea of what
repairs are needed.

If you like to do your own "wrenching" you can do the DTC readout for
yourself. Go to your public library and borrow a Chilton's or Haynes
manual for your vehicle. It contains detailed instructions and a table
which "translates" the numerical codes into words. No special tools are
required.

You will also find instructions to do a DTC readout and reset
the Check Engine light at Steve Cutchen's excellent MaxFAQs page:
http://web2.airmail.net/scutchen/max_faq/

The DTC "translations" are found at:
http://web2.airmail.net/scutchen/max_faq/engcodes1.gif
http://web2.airmail.net/scutchen/max_faq/engcodes2.gif