Faulty 02 Sensors - TECHNICAL UPDATE!! (pg.5)

S

StevenH72

Veteran
So, the Z has gone into Vines Guildford today to diagnose and resolve, to no great surprise, a faulty 02 sensor.

In fact, both sensors are showing fault codes, but Vines have advised that a faulty pre-cat sensor can throw out the post-cat sensor and as such, will change only one to begin with and take it from there.

quote from BMW, incl diagnosis, parts, fitting and VAT = ~£500.....that's a bloody expensive little sensor. Phoned around a few specialists and not a huge amount cheaper (part is £220 incl VAT and a fiddly job apparently, 3 hours labour) and by the time petrol is factored in, I won't make much of a saving at all.

It staggers me that for such a common fault there is no goodwill from BMW.

Hopefully it is just one, or I could be in for a £800-1000 bill just to replace the 02 sensors...still it's the only fault I've had in my first year of ownership and is still cheaper than a warranty :wink:
 
Vines of Gatwick charged me £250 for a sensor replacement a month back, but I don't know which one though or if there is a difference in price.
 
Yeh, according to dealer, the post CAT sensor is easier to fit so only a £300 job (apparently).

...longer wait to fit Aero skirts now though :(
 
What's the symptoms of these going?

Having some sort of issue with mine at the moment and had nailed it down to the idle control however if this is another common issue perhaps it could be related?

Thanks
 
StevenH72, not directly related but I remember when there was a prob with the Fiesta (generally reliable and been lovely), and the garage I went to talked about O2 sensor and that was a situation where it didn't sort the prob and I had to go back to get another part changed (possibly the other O2 sensor, not sure as years ago). They also said the spiel about the error code from computer rubbish - it said this code so we should change it. I was a bit frustrated at the time also. Hope you get to the bottom of yours. :). Just wanted to say know what you're going through. Though sounds expensive in comparison. :?
 
ShineyT said:
What's the symptoms of these going?

Having some sort of issue with mine at the moment and had nailed it down to the idle control however if this is another common issue perhaps it could be related?

Thanks
Click to expand...
Yellow warning light on dash and poor/rough idle and low speed response.
 
goon said:
ShineyT said:
What's the symptoms of these going?

Having some sort of issue with mine at the moment and had nailed it down to the idle control however if this is another common issue perhaps it could be related?

Thanks
Click to expand...
Yellow warning light on dash and poor/rough idle and low speed response.
Click to expand...

That's my understanding.

The light has been on for a couple of weeks (waiting for a slot with BMW, although it's not my DD). At first the idle was a bit rough when cold, but for the past week or so the car has been driving perfectly and pulling as strong as ever. The only symptom is the yellow Exhaust Emissions Value light on the dash being illuminated.

When I posted about the issue the general consensus was that it could be O2 Sensors, Coil Pack, Idle Control or maybe TPS....The 02 sensor issue is so common I'm not surprised that it was the eventual outcome (hopefully).
 
Ouch, pricey for some sensors!

The ///M service/fault cost calculation must be something like:

///M costs = ((normal car + 50% complexity/labour) + 50% price for M tax)
 
these things suck to repair, the joke is, with alittle time and effort you can DIY most things for seriously cheap outlay..... its really worth trying , 02 sensors for example, you can really go wrong.... just takes time and effort, however this is one mod on your back at least that need patience, but very do-able.
 
I could have done this for you and im not too far from Guildford. If the post sensor goes down let me know and i will give the sensor to you for the price i can get it for with my discount also.
 
StevenH72 said:
goon said:
ShineyT said:
What's the symptoms of these going?

Having some sort of issue with mine at the moment and had nailed it down to the idle control however if this is another common issue perhaps it could be related?

Thanks
Click to expand...
Yellow warning light on dash and poor/rough idle and low speed response.
Click to expand...

That's my understanding.

The light has been on for a couple of weeks (waiting for a slot with BMW, although it's not my DD). At first the idle was a bit rough when cold, but for the past week or so the car has been driving perfectly and pulling as strong as ever. The only symptom is the yellow Exhaust Emissions Value light on the dash being illuminated.

When I posted about the issue the general consensus was that it could be O2 Sensors, Coil Pack, Idle Control or maybe TPS....The 02 sensor issue is so common I'm not surprised that it was the eventual outcome (hopefully).
Click to expand...

Well have all of that except the light.

Sometimes it would be easier if it would throw up a light as it points towards certain problems! Reluctant to start replacing parts incase I end up not fixing the issue haha.
 
I've just had one done under warranty for £291. It's the third since I've owned the car. The first two went in quick succession when the car had mid 20's mileage.
 
original guvnor said:
I've just had one done under warranty for £291. It's the third since I've owned the car. The first two went in quick succession when the car had mid 20's mileage.
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Just seems odd that they fail with such regularity. Do E46 M3's suffer the same fate? Late Z3M's?

My car is around 29k mileage at present so not out of the ordinary in comparison.

Seems to be a big cost difference between the pre and post cat sensors. To be fair my £500 includes £75 for diagnosis, so £425 to replace the sensor....that's with 20% labour discount and incl VAT
 
No idea, would have to look at the invoice.

It was fairly new for Bing, I drove a mile with it :D
 
I'll see if I can dig out the paperwork for mine. They were all done under warranty (either AUC or Insured) so they haven't actually cost me anything.
 
StevenH72 said:
pvr said:
23800 in my case (yes, a week before I sold it :D )
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Was that pre or post cat? Do you have any idea what the repair cost? I'm sure Bing is glad to have a new shiny one :driving:
Click to expand...

I was delighted. PVR is a good chap really, just likes to pretend he's not. Though I'm now worried about cats :cry:
 
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