Four Words Which Can Complicate Your Day

Posted on 16 September 2011 by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

How about these:

Bank 1 Oxygen Sensor.

Grrrrrrr

About Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Fr. Z is the guy who runs this blog. o{]:¬)
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26 Responses to Four Words Which Can Complicate Your Day

  1. HyacinthClare says:
    16 September 2011 at 2:07 pm

    Car trouble? Had to look that one up…

  2. APX says:
    16 September 2011 at 2:22 pm

    Do you drive a GM by any chance? My dad’s truck is hit and miss for starting on the first try without leaving it sit for awhile, and insists that it’s one of the oxygen sensors. Very annoying.

  3. Alan Aversa says:
    16 September 2011 at 2:51 pm

    It probably runs better without the sensor anyways… [No, in fact.]

  4. Fr. John Zuhlsdorf says:
    16 September 2011 at 2:53 pm

    Nope… can’t fix this one myself.

    Grrrrr

    Where did I put that donation button code? o{]:¬)

    The 02 sensors on my old car are pretty hard to get at. I hope that is the only problem. And I just replaced my 8 year old tires!

    Oh well… after my time/effort/money post the other day, I must keep in mind that this maintenance is still cheaper than a car payment.

  6. yatzer says:
    16 September 2011 at 3:26 pm

    O2 sensor? Never heard of it. But then I just had to replace my 15-year-old vehicle, so maybe they didn’t have them then. Something else to go wrong. (grump)

  7. Fr. John Zuhlsdorf says:
    16 September 2011 at 3:28 pm

    yatzer: My (American made) car is older than yours. I assure you: oxygen sensors were around. And they are in an awkward place.

  8. UncleBlobb says:
    16 September 2011 at 4:06 pm

    @Fr. Z.: You will just have to drive the Bugatti instead.

  9. Fr. John Zuhlsdorf says:
    16 September 2011 at 4:10 pm

    UncleBlobb: Even more oxygen sensors!

     

  10. MikeM says:
    16 September 2011 at 5:22 pm

    That happened to me last year. Sorry to hear about the inconvenience/expense, Father!

  11. frjim4321 says:
    16 September 2011 at 5:42 pm

    If it’s anything like the mass air flow sensor in my Bonneville I sympathize.

  12. APX says:
    16 September 2011 at 5:57 pm

    @frjim4321

    If it’s anything like the mass air flow sensor in my Bonneville I sympathize.

    I once owned a Buick Regal. Never. Again. While I miss the 3.8L engine, I don’t miss all the headaches it gave me.

    As someone who has gone through seven cars, if you ever do decide to replace your car I highly recommend either a Honda or a Toyota, but mostly a Honda. I put my cars through Hell, and my Hondas seem to be the most reliable, followed by my Toyota. GM makes good trucks, but all the GM cars I’ve owned have given me headaches.

  13. jlduskey says:
    16 September 2011 at 6:02 pm

    These four words are easier to understand if you take them two at a time.
    Oxygen sensor is a device I bought to keep track of my mother’s oxygen, which is necessary since I have her at home with me, on a ventilator, and need to be sure she is getting the right percentage of oxygen. I bought an oxygen sensor on ebay for under $100.00 and am very satisfied with it.
    Regarding Bank One, I don’t know. They were a prominent bank at one time, but I believe they were merged into some larger bank and the trademark “Bank One” is no longer used. But I believe baseball fans in Phoenix have fond memories of a ball park with that name, aka the BOB.

  14. poohbear says:
    16 September 2011 at 6:44 pm

    My condolences. I just had this happen a few months ago. Not nice.

  16. Jerry says:
    16 September 2011 at 7:32 pm

    @jlduskey – the device you describe sounds like a pulse oximeter, which is actually a light absorption sensor, not an oxygen sensor (it determines the oxygen saturation of hemoglobin based on the relative absorption of two different wavelengths of light emitted by the probe).

  17. pm125 says:
    16 September 2011 at 7:52 pm

    … they don’t build ‘em like they used to …
    15 yrs., new tires, new sensors, so an urge to keep it; going into the syndrome of more possible, probable misery is not a good situation when you have other priorities.
    To detach, you could begin looking at 4 yr. old things that might fit the tires.

  18. RichardT says:
    16 September 2011 at 8:56 pm

    Is this the gizmo that sits in the exhaust system, tests whether the fuel is burning cleanly, and so tells the electronics to adjust the air/fuel mix in the injectors? I think it’s also called a lambda probe.

    From memory, the last one I needed was about thirty quid (plus a bit of labour); not a huge problem, except that they have a habit of fusing into the exhaust pipe so that you have to replace a stretch of that as well.

    The alternative is to drive 1960s cars, which don’t have them!

  19. Supertradmum says:
    17 September 2011 at 2:52 am

    Is there a patron saint for automobiles, not just travel, like Ss. Christopher and Raphael?

  20. RichardT says:
    17 September 2011 at 4:55 am

    My patron, St Richard (of Chichester), is patron saint of coachmen, said to be because he drove carts on his family farm. Perhaps he can be updated to cars as well.

    Or what about St Fiacre? He has a type of carriage named after him. [LOL! Very agile!]

  21. Eric says:
    17 September 2011 at 7:05 am

    My van has been starting rough and the check engine light has been coming on. My mechanic is replacing the O2 sensors this week. Hope that fixes it.

    Not as bad as the hub bearing in my wife’s van last week.

    It’s nice to know important people have these problems too. It’s kind of like driving by a mansion and seeing the Roto Rooter truck out front.

  22. Dr. Eric says:
    17 September 2011 at 8:51 am

    Cars are blessed on the Feast of the Holy Prophet Elias in the Byzantine Rite Churches.

  23. frival says:
    17 September 2011 at 9:56 am

    Yes, RichardT is correct – the O2 sensors help regulate the air/fuel mixture based on the exhaust. One of my friends was able to put off replacing his O2 sensors by cleaning the carbon build-up off – sometimes the O2 sensor is just very dirty and not completely broken. Perhaps Father’s mechanic would be willing to attempt this before replacing the sensors. Having just replaced them in my truck I know just how expensive they can be.

  24. albinus1 says:
    17 September 2011 at 1:42 pm

    Ugh! I sympathize. I had to replace an O2 sensor last month; two weeks later I had to replace the alternator. $$$ My car is a 1996 Ford Taurus, and in general it runs very well. It used to belong to my mother, and my parents always take very good care of their cars; but eventually parts wear out. I’ve had it for a bit over three years and have probably put a few thousand dollars into it, but I doubt I could get a used car in such good general shape for the amount that I’ve spend on repairs so far. I figure that eventually I’ll have a new car — one piece at a time. ;-) That is, if it doesn’t rust out first. I live in Texas now, but the car spent its first 12 winters in Ohio.

  25. Laura R. says:
    17 September 2011 at 4:46 pm

    I’ve never even heard of oxygen sensors, but then I’m still driving my 1985 Honda Accord. The upholstery is getting a bit worn, but the car runs beautifully and is so reliable that I haven’t been able to bring myself to give it up.

  26. Fleeb says:
    19 September 2011 at 6:10 am

    Ditch the hi tech car and go with an 82 Ford F-250…it’ll still run after the EMP hits anyway…