O2 sensor replacement

[Trent P.]

I'm coming up on my 96,000 mile tune-up, and my wrench said something about replacing the Bosch O2 sensor with a Bosch "universal sensor." He said it would save me about $100 and would do the same thing. (He said if it was his car, that's what he would do.) Anybody have any idea on exactly what he's talking about?

P.S. - I'm not having any problems with my O2 sensor, it's just one of the things Porsche recommends replacing.

[Don Plumley]

There are a number of threads on this.

Basically, the difference between a "Porsche" specific O2 sensor and the Bosch universal sensor (or even Ford versions) is the connector. The mechanic wants to sell you the generic O2 sensor and splice the wires.

Two schools of thought on this: Sensor is a sensor, if you splice the cable/connector properly, no sweat; or Is it worth the $x "in case" anything goes wrong? For the DIY crowd, it's not a hard thing to do, but it does void the warranty.

It's very nice that the wrench has offered you a cost-effective way of doing this. If they warrant the service and the part, it seems to me you have little to lose.

BTW, the sensor is good for about 60K miles, I would not replace it unless it was bad - you can tell this by idle problems, measuring the output of the sensor or by temporarily disconnecting the sensor to check engine operation.