I own an LC-1 wideband and i was wondering if the lifespan of a wideband is similar to a regular narrow band sensor ? my stock sensor is shot and i want to use the wideband in narrow mode, but if the wideband life is 10 times shorter than stock, it may be cheaper to get a stock 02.
anyone ?
if no(lifespan equals between the 2), is there a way to make it work (im using uberdata) in wideband mode so the reading would be more accurate for my ECU?
PS (im posting it into FI forum cause wideband are used most of the time by FI cars)
It won’t be more accurate for your ECU. The stock ECU can only read up to 3.8v for resolution, but doesn’t know what to do with it. The simulated analog narrow band output is not as good as a real narrowband sensor.
Once the car is tuned, and happy, put the normal o2 sensor back in for the ECU. Then you have a couple options - 1) leave the wideband in for monitoring (get a gauge for this) or 2) take it out.
As to lifespan, the sensor will have the same life as a normal o2 sensor. They are not as cheap, so if you don’t have the money to replace the wideband at regular intervals, I’d take it out.
For me? I’d rather have to replace the sensor all the time, just so I can have a good reading on what my engine is doing. I put two bungs on my downpipe for normal and wideband o2.
your saying ECU cant read above 3.8v !? lucky me, i didnt start tuning it right now. i thought i could divide my 0-5v reading to cover a 9:1 to 17:1 afr !! as for the sensor, i think the bosch sensor that comes with the LC1 goes for about 70 CAN ?
It does if you buy it from Innovate, but you can get it from the VW dealer for around $43. I forget the part number, but it’s from a lot of the 1.8t cars.