The most important car sensor problems and how to solve them

Signs of damage to the oxygen sensor in the  car:

The oxygen sensor plays an important role in the car,the sensor is part of the emissions control system and feeds data to the­ ECU (Engine control unit). The goal of the sensor is to help the engine run as efficiently as possible and also to produce as few emissions as possible.

There is a certain “ideal” ratio of air and gasoline, and that ratio is 14.7:1 (different fuels have different ideal ratios – the ratio depends on how much hydrogen and carbon are in a given amount of fuel). If there is less air than this ideal ratio, there will be fuel left after combustion. This is called a rich mixture. Rich mixtures are bad because unburned fuels cause pollution. If there is more air than this ideal ratio, this means that there is alot of oxygen. This is called the poor (lean) mixture. The lean mixture tends to produce more nitrogen oxide pollutants and, in some cases, can cause poor performance and even may damage the engine.

The Main job of oxygen sensor is because the amount of oxygen the engine can take in depends on all kinds of things, like engine load, engine temperature, altitude, air temperature, atmospheric pressure, etc.

When the oxygen sensor fails, the computer can no longer sense the air/fuel ratio, so it ends up guessing. Your car performs poor and consuming more fuel than normal.

 Signs of damage to the temperature sensor in the car engine

One of the signs of damage to the temperature sensor in the car engine is the presence of problems in the cooling circuit in the car, specifically in the car cooling fans, as well as the lack of regular rotation, and one of the signs of damage to this sensor is the feeling of a noticeable increase in the rate of fuel consumption in the car, and this is recognized by the occurrence of Delay while the car engine is running.

Signs of damage to the car absolute pressure sensor MAP sensor

This sensor is one of the important sensors in the car, and if the absolute pressure sensor is damaged, you usually notice black smoke coming out of the fuel exhaust outlet, as well as the irregular rotation of the car engine, and if you notice these signs, you must go to a specialized car maintenance center to address this matter. Without any additional damage to the car engine caused by neglecting this problem.

Mass air flow sensor

Signs of damage to the crankshaft sensor in the car

This sensor is one of the most prominent sensors in the car, as it greatly affects the work of the car, and if the crankshaft sensor is damaged, the car engine becomes completely paralyzed as the engine does not work, in which case it must be replaced quickly by heading to the nearest Specialized car maintenance center and fix this problem.

Signs of damage to the throttle opening sensor in the car

The throttle opening sensor in the car is one of the important parts of the car, as it leads to many damages to the car engine if this sensor is damaged, and one of the symptoms of its damage is the lighting of the check engine light on the dashboard, in addition to the emergence of other problems with the car engine due to damage to this sensor in the car. It is the presence of an increase in the speed of the car’s engine revs, or clearly weak traction.  

Sensors with variable signals

knock sensor

It is a sensor for acoustic vibrations (knocks) that is directly connected with the engine. It senses any explosion outside the engine cylinders and sends a signal to the ECU that it uses to correct the angles of the advanced and delayed sparks and to determine the validity of the car engine cylinders and the quality of used fuel such as using a lower octane fuel than required which may cause the engine to run poorly and can damage the engine and emission control system over time.

The knock sensor picks up the vibrations and sound coming from the engine block, converts it into an electronic signal and sends that signal to the engine control unit (ECU). Then the car’s computer check the information and determines whether or not the ignition timing should be changed.

The most common sign of a bad knock sensor is an illuminated check engine light. When the PCM detects a problem with the knock sensor or its circuit, the unit will turn on the check engine light and store the corresponding Diagnostic Trouble Code (DTC) in its memory

A bad knock sensor may not allow the engine to accelerate properly while driving on the highway, and cause the vehicle to lose more fuel. … Once the computer realizes that the knock sensor is not working properly, your car will most likely lose power.

Engine coolant temperature sensor

This sensor is located in the coolant water duct in the engine. It is a thermal resistance whose value changes according to the thermal change and an electrical signal is generated by it that is proportional to the coolant temperature. The engine uses it to determine the cold or hot operating system, and adjusts the amount of fuel that the mind pushes into the engine accordingly and changes the angle of the mug The electric spark to the motor advances and delays with it.

heated oxygen sensor

This sensor is located on the exhaust outlet of the car. It is a chemical sensor with two parts, one inside the exhaust outlet and the other outside. It measures the percentage of oxygen in the exhaust, and it sends a signal to the brain in proportion to it that the brain uses to correct the amount of fuel in order to reduce pollution and improve the performance of the car.

Car speed sensor

This sensor communicates with the tire spindle and generates a signal proportional to the vehicle’s speed that is sent to the brain and uses it to determine the work of the neutral speed valve and also to determine the work of the cooling fans of the radiator .

Air intake sensor

This sensor is located in the duct of air entering the engine, and it is a thermal resistance whose value changes according to the change in temperature. Thus, an electrical signal is generated that is proportional to the temperature of the air entering the engine, which is sent to the brain that uses it to correct the density of the air and determines the amount of fuel ready to the engine according to the thermal environment.