SES light - 97 LT1

[FlyingDutchman]

Drove the car few blocks down the road, parked it, came back maybe 15mins later to go back. got a bit throttle happy (maybe like 3.5-4k) and let off and my SES light came on ... ??? im goin to an autozone to get a readout


any idea? i checked the gas cap, and it didn't hiss or anything ... bad cap?

[S.J.SLEEPER]

post up the code & should be able to help with the cause

[sweetbmxrider]

codeeeeee

[FlyingDutchman]

will do tmr after class @ 11


both pepboys/autozone do scans correct?

[FlyingDutchman]

Went to a local Advanced Auto, guy gave me the scan tool (nice guy haha) and i came up with 2 codes both P0161 (the second had a pd superscript ??? ) According to the interweb this is what i came up with


What does that mean?

It basically means the PCM detected either an excessive current draw, or an open or short in the circuit powering the oxygen sensor's heater circuit. This is in reference to the Heated Oxygen Sensor (2) located rear of catalytic converter (Bank 2).

Symptoms

There will likely be no obvious symptoms other than MIL illumination.

Causes

A code P0161 may mean that one or more of the following has happened:

HO2S heater power circuit open
HO2S heater ground circuit open
HO2S signal tracking (due to oil or moisture in the connector)
HO2S is damaged or has failed PCM has failed
Possible Solutions

Replace HO2 Sensor
Repair open or short in power circuit
Repair open or short in ground circuit
Repair damaged connector due to tracking



So i erased the code for now, see if it pops back up. drove back (4 miles) and brought up the rpm's, light didnt come back yet.

[sweetbmxrider]

99.99999% of the time its the o2 sensor. that code pertains to bank 2, sensor 2 which is your rear o2 behind the passenger cat. you can replace it, get a sim, or tune it out. it simply reads the exhaust and makes sure the cat is still doing something.

[FlyingDutchman]

Hmm ill keep an eye on it see if it comes back. there was no lack in pwr or thr response so is there any point to it?

[sweetbmxrider]

like i said, it simply monitors the cat to ensure it is working. you will have to do some steady highway driving around 50-55mph to reset that monitor then to see if the code appears.

[FlyingDutchman]

Came back today, went like 0.5 miles down the road. I havnt kept track of the mileage since the last reset. I went to advanced they charge like $110 for the downstream sensor (although a buddy there can give me it for cost). Is a O2 sim worth it? I have the stock manifolds/y/cats but that could change in the future... or should I just get an OEM replacement?

Thanks!

[sweetbmxrider]

its up to you. you can tune the rear o2 out and pass inspection, plug in a sim and pass inspection, or replace it and pass inspection. really depends on your future plans with the car and whether or not it will include real working cats.

[JerzLT1]

i would just get it tuned out so you never have to worry about replacing any rear O2s again