Coolant vs. air fuel ratio or O2 sensor

Question

If there's a trace of coolant getting into the cylinder combustion chamber what would the effect be on the AFR or O2 sensors fitted to the exhaust pipe?

I'm guessing zirconium sensors would read rich due to less oxygen, but there's likely other factors, just curious.

jwh20 · Answer

Unless you're literally dumping coolant into the intake, i can't imagine you could get enough through the engine to significantly lower the O2 content of the exhaust stream. The usual causes of coolant through the engine, say a leaking head gasket, generally just adds a small amount with each cycle of the cylinder and that gets mixed with the output from the non-leaking cylinders. Yes, the coolant can be detected in the exhaust but only by equipment that is designed to detect it.

Answered by jwh20 on May 13, 2021

Coolant vs. air fuel ratio or O2 sensor

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