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Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 2
Newbie
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OP
Newbie
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 2 |
I have a '96 Contour GL v6 automatic that just flipped 100,000 miles. My CEL is on and has been off and on almost since I got it. First I was told it was a vacuum leak and got it fixed....light came back on after three weeks. Then I was told it was an o2 sensor, but couldn't get an appt. to fix right away and was told it was ok. Now, I'm trying to get it fixed and I need to go through emissions testing and I won't pass with the light on  I paid some idiot mechanic $85 to read the codes, ended up being $145 "for diagnostic" and he couln't figure out what's wrong. I took it to AutoZone, and here are the codes: P0430 P1151 P0171 P0174 I don't have the knowledge to fix it myself, nor the money to pay a lot for someone else. I'm hoping for some input where to start... Thanks, Kristin
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Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 1,788
Hard-core CEG\'er
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Hard-core CEG\'er
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 1,788 |
Originally posted by chasetsun:
I don't have the knowledge to fix it myself, nor the money to pay a lot for someone else.
One of these will be the place to start.
Knowledge can come free via these boards, you'll have to suppply the mechanical skills one way or the other. The alternative would be many hundreds (or thousands) of dollars for parts and labor.
Based on those codes, you likely have three different possible problems (see disclaimer below).
P1151 Faulty upstream sensor on the radiator side. Parts cost - about $65. Difficulty level - about a 1 on a scale of 1 to 5.
P0171 & P0174 Intake vacuum leak. Possibly the PCV valve, hose, injector O-rings, air intake hose, or other vacuum line. More likely the upper and lower intake gaskets are leaking. Parts cost - $50 or less for the gasket sets. Difficulty level 3.5 out of five for a shadetree mechanic. Plan on a full day to replace the intake manifold gaskets for someone who has never done this before.
P0430 Forward catalyst below efficiency threshold. That means the computer's measurement of the performance of the forward pre-cat is sub-par. Possible solutions include checking with the dealer for a reflash of the computer to reduce P0420/P0430 errors, installing MIL eliminators, or some other workaround that forces the computer into thinking the cat is working in a satisfactory manner. Someone recently posted a way install a spacer at the O2 sensor port on the exhaust to achieve the same result as MIL eliminators.
Disclaimer: The opinions are based on general knowledge and experiences. Each symptom should be properly diagnosed before spending any money for parts or repairs.
Further disclaimer: All three of these faults indicate a significant disruption in the air/fuel mixture, the mixture measuring devices, and the post-processing of the exhaust. It is possible that a single fault or pair of faults may be causing all of the diagnostic codes you have reported. (Personally, I'm not optimistic of that). However, established diagnostic protocol is to address the codes one at a time with the very first code output by the scanner addressed first. Once a fault is cleared, the computer is supposed to be reset and another test run to see if any fault codes are still present. The idea is to eliminate multiple codes from a single source.
In the event you take this somewhere, a dealership, for example, I could see a repair estimate approaching $3000 if the service writer feels he/she can take advantage of you. Let's see, new precats - 2 @ 600 each plus 6 hours labor (hey, one's bad, the other can't be far behind, besides, we can igore that pesky TSB about reprogramming the computer to fix this), 2 new O2 sensors at $100 each plus 2 hours labor (same logic) , rebuild upper and lower intake manifold plus replace PCV hose and valve - Say $150 parts plus 5 hours labor... you get the picture.
Hopefully, you have adequate time to get through emissions. Something tells me you only have til the end of this month, though.
Steve
98 Contour SE Sport 2.5 Duratec ATX The wifey's car
89 Taurus SHO - 246K miles
94 SHO ATX - 190K
1997 F-150 5.4L ATX - The Workhorse 150K.
ANY THREAD WITH "OMG" or "WTF" ETC IN THE TITLE WILL BE IGNORED!
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