P0153
O2 Sensor Circuit Slow Response (Bank 2 Sensor 1)
- Severity
- Medium
- Driving
- Drivable — book it in
The upstream oxygen sensor on bank 2 is responding too slowly. A healthy upstream sensor switches between rich and lean many times a second; as the sensor ages its response slows, and the module measures this directly. This is the classic sign of a worn-out but not yet dead oxygen sensor.
Possible causes
- CommonOxygen sensor worn out with age and mileage
- CommonSensor contaminated by oil, coolant or fuel additives
- PossibleExhaust leak near the sensor slowing its response
- PossibleSilicone sealant used on the engine poisoning the sensor
What you might notice
- Check engine light on
- Gradually worsening fuel economy
- Slightly rough running
- Failed emissions test
What to check, in order
- Check the sensor's age and mileage. Oxygen sensors are wear items, and slow response is how they usually fail.
- Watch the sensor's switching rate on the live data screen with the engine warm and at a steady speed. Sluggish, lazy oscillation confirms the diagnosis.
- Check for exhaust leaks near the sensor before condemning it.
- Look for signs of oil or coolant consumption, which shorten sensor life considerably.
- This is one of the cases where replacing the sensor is usually the correct fix rather than a guess.
Read this code from your own car
Plug an ELM327 adapter into the OBD-II port under the dashboard. Pin16 reads every stored, pending and permanent code, explains each one like this page does — offline, with no account — and shows what the car recorded when the fault was set.
Where this code sits
P00xxP01xxP02xxP03xxP04xxP05xxP06xxP07xxP08xxP09xxP0AxxP0BxxP0CxxP0DxxP0ExxP0FxxP10xxP11xxP12xxP13xxP14xxP15xxP16xxP17xxP18xxP19xxP1AxxP1BxxP1CxxP1DxxP1ExxP1FxxP20xxP21xxP22xxP23xxP24xxP25xxP26xxP27xxP28xxP29xxP2AxxP2BxxP2CxxP2DxxP2ExxP2FxxP30xxP31xxP32xxP33xxP34xxP35xxP36xxP37xxP38xxP39xxP3AxxP3BxxP3CxxP3DxxP3ExxP3Fxx
Fuel and air metering
P0100P0101P0102P0103P0104P0105P0106P0107P0108P0109P0110P0111P0112P0113P0114P0115P0116P0117P0118P0119P0120P0121P0122P0123P0124P0125P0126P0127P0128P0129P0130P0131P0132P0133P0134P0135P0136P0137P0138P0139P0140P0141P0142P0143P0144P0145P0146P0147P0148P0149P0150P0151P0152P0153P0154P0155P0156P0157P0158P0159P0160P0161P0162P0163P0164P0165P0166P0167P0168P0169P0170P0171P0172P0173P0174P0175P0176P0177P0178P0179P0180P0181P0182P0183P0184P0185P0186P0187P0188P0189P0190P0191P0192P0193P0194P0195P0196P0197P0198P0199