Hello fellow Dodge heads. My truck is a 2001 Dodge Ram 1500 Sport 4door, 4x4, 5.2L 318. I have searched everywhere on here and in my Haynes manual to find out how many O2 sensors are on my truck and can't find a credible answer. I am under the impression that there are 4 total, one pre Cat and one post Cat on each side. I am confused when I read "only in California" etc. I live in Idaho so I don't have emission guidelines as strict as CA, but we still have them. Before I make this post too confusing, I will post my questions orderly as follows:

1. How many o2 sensors does my truck have?
2. What are the best brand of o2 sensors? I assume NTK?
3. What are some tricks to removing the old sensors if they are stuck when I go to remove them? High heat treating with a torch?
4. What part number NTK sensors do I need? I am slightly confused understanding the difference between A/T (Calif.) and M/T rated sensors and what thes abbreviations stand for at NTK's website: http://www.ngksparkplugs.com/part_fi...uv/results.asp . Please help.

My orignal symptoms are the classical stalling/cutting out during excelleration. It goes away if I let off and after engine is warm. I understand that it can be a clogged CAT, plenum gasket, etc., but I am pretty sure it is only faulty o2 sensor/s. I will start there. I don't think the CAT is clogged and I thing I have been blessed to not have plenum gasket failure. I will be sure to post my end result but I need to know how many sensors to purchase before I do the job. One last thing, my gas mileage is horrible right now and has gotten excesively worse along with the stalling, I am excited to see an increase in fuel mileage. Thank you in advance for all who read this and reply.

 

Should have 2 unless it was manufactured to be sent to and sold in cali.

All of the symptoms you cited indicate a clogged cat. A bad o2 would set a code and turn on your cel (a clogged cat does too, but it doesnt happen until its REALLY clogged); you sure your plenum is good?

 

Should be two on a Federal emissions vehicle. The best bet, though, is to crawl under the truck and look.

NTK or whatever the dealership hands you.

Soak 'em down with a good quality penetrating oil overnight, and if they hang up use mechanical shock to fracture the rust. Heat might work, but where they're located I'm hesitant to go with a flame.

If you've got a Federal emissions truck, go with the Federal emissions parts. If you can't find any other indication of the original destination of the truck, get a build sheet from Chrysler (the quick way is to visit a dealer with your VIN handy) to find out. It's a safe bet that if the truck wasn't originally sold in California it's a Fed truck.

 

Hey guys - I was amazed of how easy it was to get mine out to check it. It looks like a rust color. I'm at 106k. I think its original - should I go ahead and replace or save the $70 for something else for now?

 

Yeah, my O2 sensor didn't even require a wrench to remove it.

I would replace it, check Rockauto.com. It ought to be around $40 for an NTK, at least on my OBDI truck it was that much.

 

I see there is an upstream and downstream. My cat is a 2 in / 1 out and the sensor is kind of in the middle. ???

 

The upstream is more important, and that is the one in the cat.

 

Dont fix what aint broke.

I just rolled over 177k on my original ones, never had a problem. They look rusty on the outside because of heat, humidity, mud, etc. If you pull one, the probe is likley soot covered, but just fine.

Save the money

 

edit: <deleted> double posted

 

The service life of an O2 sensor is between 60K and 100K miles (depending on type), so it should be changed.