My car is showing an oxygen sensor code, so I looked up the sensors at Oreilly Auto Parts and discovered that there are several diferent ones. I think my car may have Cali emissions equipment on it which requires certaion sensors accordiong to their site. How can I tell if my car has the cali emissions equipment, is ther nomenclature under the hood identifying as such? Which sensors do I need I know there are two on my car, a pre and and post. The cali emissions spec sensors appear to be expensive.

 

The trouble code will tell you which sensor it is (e.g., primary, secondary, rear, Air/Fuel ratio sensor code, oxygen sensor code). If the car was purchased in California, it probably will have the A/F sensor (more expensive) as the primary sensor.

Open the hood, if it says ULEV on the cylinder cover, it probably is the F23A4 engine and uses the A/F sensor.

 

Good info, let's see if they come back with your question...
WheelBrokerAng

 

Better to read the serial# stamping on the block. First line will say F23A1 or F23A4. I was in a thread within the last year or so with an F23A4 ULEV engine but the valve cover didn't say ULEV. I bet the VC are interchangable.

 

Good point there Jim..Member..check what Jims is saying in the above post.

 

Hi Jim,

There was a twist to the story.

That person originally bought a California ULEV which was taken to another state of residence. However, the engine said F23A1 (non-ULEV) with a ULEV valve cover (which Is contrary to what it normally is). The car had a trouble code P1167 for an air fuel (A/F) ratio sensor (vs. for example a trouble code of P0135 for a regular primary oxygen sensor). She replaced it with a regular oxygen sensor; but, the trouble code persisted. When I checked her VIN, it stated her Accord was a ULEV. In the end, it was founded out that the previous owners raced the car and swapped the engine block to a F23A1 engine (non-ULEV) but kept the ULEV valve cover. But since the ECU was for the ULEV, it required the A/F sensor instead of the regular primary oxygen sensor.

P.S. A lot of the info. was not in that previous thread, as it was in PM. It took a small amount of sleuthing.

 

OH YEAH it was backwards the other way! that kinda triggers the memory...
(my mind's like a steel trap - rusted shut)

Yes, it's the ECU that demands what sensors are used. Not sure what's the best way for edtheace to know whether he's got a ULEV ECU.
Certain OBD-2 error codes only exist for the ULEV engine, like you mentioned, so depending on which error code number, that might tell us.

There were substantial differences in the wiring harness, but I couldn't point out anything specific from memory to ID what it is. Since it's a lot easier to swap valve covers, than to swap the engine, I'd go with the engine nameplate.

 

For edtheace, I say just go with the usual suspects. OBD-II trouble code, engine block number, valve cover.

The OBD-II trouble code will be most indicative of whether his Accord is ULEV or not. Even if the motor was swapped, if the car was originally a ULEV, due to the immobilizer on the 6th gen Accord, it is unlikely that the ECU will be swapped to an ECU that was not for a ULEV. To restate that in other terms, if the ECU was swapped, it needs to be reprogrammed due to the immobilizer, generally at the dealer (or possibly independent Honda specialist with proper Honda software). I don't believe most dealers will be willing to reprogram an ECU for a non-ULEV into a car that originally was a ULEV.

 

I just checked the engine block and it shows F23A1, nothing except V-TEC on the VC. I still need to have the code read again so that I can identify what P code it is showing, which should tell which ECU I have.

 

So that's the non-ULEV engine. Even in California, it was only required that a certain percentage of cars were ULEV.

Still, read the error code & post it here.