Cvzrx8

Ok, i bought some headers and for me they were a pain to get in and finally i put them in. I made the biggest mistake, in the process i cut the wires for the o2 sensor because it was stuck, and in my mind i thought should be around 80 dollars, well i went to autozone today and my heart sank when i saw the super high price of $449.99
Now what do i do? I dont have the bank to spend on that, is there anyway to bypass it or someone has a spare laying around??

bose

iTrader: (5)

Why can't you just splice the wires back together?

Bastage

iTrader: (1)

Solder and heatshrink are your friends. Should cost you about 6 bucks, 12 if you don't already have a gun. Shouldn't take you very long either.

Jedi54

iTrader: (7)

yeah, you should be able to solder the wires back together. If you dont' have a solder gun, swing by Radio Shack, they have a little Butane powered one that works great for small jobs.

nycgps

iTrader: (1)

just make sure u shield it correctly (After u'r done with solder)

cuz it might melt.

Cvzrx8

yeah i have that, the problem is.... i cant get the thing out!!
right now i left my stock header at a shop i hope they can get it out,
I tried soo hard! it was me pushing it with my foot n two other friends pulling and didnt move! i was like holy crap its stuck!it actually started shreading the edges of the nut on o2 sensor

bose

iTrader: (5)

PB Blaster/WD-40 is your friend. But from the sounds of it you may have damaged the sensor, in which case your hosed.

StealthTL

iTrader: (1)

Yes, you gotta get it out first.

Note to future 'removers' - the sensor plugs in to the wiring harness on top of the clutch housing, inboard of the oilfilter. It's a bitch to get to, but if you have motor mounts off to do other work, (and have small hands!) it's reachable.

It's too late once you unbolt the exhaust manifold and it's dangling by the sensor wires.......

9krpmrx8

iTrader: (46)

I broke a craftsman 1/2" rachet and a a O2 socket getting one out so use good impact if you can. also, check out www.rockauto.com, way cheaper.

Cvzrx8

i took it to a shop and they couldnt do it!!! that o2 sensor is stuck there, im taking off the (exoticspeed) headers and puttin the old ones back, i hate seeing the cel lol

teknics

i can't recall off the top of my head but if the rx8 o2 sensor is a milliamp sensor you have to make sure your solder job is perfect once you get it out. those sensors are super sensitive to changes, and while it may not set off CEL's it can cause all sorts of problems (example: cx7's hesitate and buck back and forth in the middle of accelerating due to a bad o2 sensor but the problem won't set off a CEL, and if it does set off a CEL it sets off a code that is super vague (generally a too lean code) only way to know it's the o2 sensor is either by personal knowledge or lots of datalogging and going over the data) (also mazdaspeed3 owners who swap out there o2 sensors for wideband ones that are plug and play run into similar problems)

i would go check if it's a milliamp sensor but im sure someone around here must know, i have a gut feeling that its NOT a mA sensor but just putting the info out there.

kevin.

Cam

iTrader: (1)

teknics

Thanks for the info. good stuff.

Cvzrx8

hmmmm thats interesting, well an update lol
Today i decided to just take out the aftermarket headers and put in the stock one
and im glad i did, i love the stock sound and the header gave it a sound that wasnt my taste and for the o2 sensor i spliced the wires together (of course each one to the same color) and i feel no accelerating problems, i took it out for daily drive run and a speeding run and it feels good. I hope nothing causes a problem down the road. Thanks for all the help everyone!!
A question, i seem to be leaking a clear fluid by the transmission(seems like water) i wanted to know if the a/c leaks down by the tranny?

DOMINION

^Could be gas. Did you smell it?

You cant just crank it off. You have to heat it with a small $12.99 tourch from Autozone.

StealthTL

iTrader: (1)

Yes, the a/c drain is right in the center, by the oil filter, drips down the clutch/tranny (stupid place....)

Dom is right, it won't come off without you heat it.

So if it's not coming out, you just haven't heated it enough......get it cherry red.

Cvzrx8

Yeah i smelled it n was odorless im relieved to hear thats where the a/c drains
but everytime i look after i park it im just like wow cause it leave a lil puddle,
how much is it suppose to drain? i also feel that my a/c isnt cold lol
(well to me, i have a friend with a 240sx sr20 n everytime i say that hes like atleast you have a/c, i dont know what a/c is suppose to feel like!)

teknics

i dunno about it *won't* come out without heat....i haven't touched a torch in the shop in probably over a year and i work primarily on all the rx8's that come in.

maybe it's cause people use wrenches instead of sockets?

Only one i ever have trouble with are the 2.3 turbo motors with the o2 sensor on top, that one comes out the threads just get annihilated.

worst case scenario i have to get my 1/2" breaker bar to get it loose but i generally just use a 1/2" ratchet with a nice thick o2 sensor socket, no name brand think i got it in a sale bin at a parts store.

Only time i'd torch an o2 sensor is if you're definitely replacing it, "cherry red" o2 sensors shouldnt be reused, o2 sensors have a specific threshold for heat, once it's exceeded the element inside can be damaged resulting in inaccurate measurements. Same goes for a clogged cat, if the cat glows cherry red the precat o2 sensor should be replaced due to possible o2 damage.

kevin.

Cvzrx8

lol i guess if i lived in your area i would take it you teknics, youd be suprised how hard it is
maybe you go beast mode on the sensor lol because seriously i couldnt get it loose at all! i've been able to get everything else loose but that sensor has been the hardest thing to losen in my life so far!

Cvzrx8

oh and stealth i found the clip wow only if i'd known earlier i would of unclipped it
anyways yeah i was able to fit both my hands in there and unclip it and took it out

DOMINION

Hey when I take mine off can I send it to you to remove the 02 sensor? put you have to put it on youtube for us k

teknics

can we get a betting pool going? Bring the whole car it'll only be 5 minutes if it's longer i'll pay you double your expenses to drive here and back. If it's 5 minutes or less of actual work (not including lifting it, driving it in, etc) then you pay me double whatever your expenses would total for your roundtrip.

kevin.

Cvzrx8

It's been a while now but when I actually tried again I took it somewhere n they clamped the manifold so it wouldn't move n then put a huge breaker on it n it brokeoff lol the threads where stuck in there, I had to take it somewhere else for them to re tap the hole for the o2 sensor n of course replaced the sensor. Sigh why must everything be so frustrating lol

9krpmrx8

iTrader: (46)

I once broke a 1/2" Craftsman rachet and O2 socket trying to get an O2 out of a Turbo manifold but I got that bitch out. Took the wrench to Sears and they through it in a box and told me grab a new one

Cvzrx8

Lol I love the lifetime warranty I've broken like 3 rachets 3/8 n had them all replaced even a socket that cracked all the way down n a chunk came off of it.... I've never broken 1/2 rachet lol what did you do to it haha

9krpmrx8

iTrader: (46)

Well I had two guys stand on the manifold and then I stood on the handle of the ratchet to get the O2 to break loose. Worked, but after the ratchet was toast and the O2 socket was warped. We tried almost a whole bottle of liquid wrench, the O2 was pretty much welded to the manifold.