Has anyone installed the "universal" Bosch 15098 and 15099 O2 sensors in their white block? Results? The sensors in our V70 are original and we are noticing mileage is down. Time to get it smogged. At 80k, I'm going to change them. I usually buy universals for the red blocks. I see 15733 is the listed universal. Anyone used it?

DS

Right from the horse's mouth: Just got off the phone with Bosch USA. Called, left a message with a "router" and an engineer called back in five minutes--wow!

15733 is a universal that they know a lot of sites recommend, but they don't. 15738 is the universal they recommend. When I explained that I've been using a single universal for earlier cars for years, he came right out and said that most people do, and that's a great way to save money. He says they sell more 13913s than almost any other sensor, regardless of age issues. I thought that was very honest.

He added that past about 93 though, lots of the heater systems for the sensors are very sensitive to load. Using the wrong sensor can result in error codes. Specifically, the 15733 has a completely different heater in it than the 15738 and he suspected that warm up time for the 33 would increase cold emissions considerably. Of course the 38 is a whole bunch more money too, naturally, nearly double.

Interestingly, the 15738 is only about 8 bucks less than the 15097 which is direct fit with plug and all. By design? For 8 bucks, it's certainly not worth soldering, splicing--any type of extra work. At $40, the 15733 is a steal and I'd gladly wire it in. But Bosch has me spooked at this point, unless someone can tell me it works.

The front and rear sensors are both the same in this car (1998). The only difference is the length of the cable.

The two white wires are the power for the sensor heater circuit and I don't /think/ it matters which order they are connected, but I always try to keep them straight just in case.

The black and grey wires are the signal wires. I don't actually know why it needs two signal wires and not just one like the older 7xx sensors.... can anyone help with this?

I believe this is the same for all 850s.

probably also the same for 1999 and 2000.

I have no information about other years.

The bosch universal sensor is the exact same 'sensor' as the exact-fit sensor, it just doesn't have a connector on the end of the cable, so you have to splice it on to your old connector. This is not a problem if you can solder.

I am currently using a 'front' sensor that was spliced on to the longer rear cable as my rear sensor and it's working great. Actually I discovered the previously installed sensor was going south and making this switch fixed a persistent MIL for me.


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1998 V70 AWD->FWD->AWD Turbo 215k+

Thanks for your reply. The 99 cars are the first to use the wideband, but 98 and back are just the "regular" unit. What number did you use? I found sites indicating the 15733 is right, but I just worked by way through Bosch's site and they say 15738. My experience is that it doesn't make any difference, as long as the type is the same, the numbers are all just cord/cable garbage, but the number of different universal apps for this year surprised me completely.
DS

I think it was a 15097 - it's kind of long story but I'll give it to you:

I bought the car with whatever sensors were in it, but I immediately started chasing a P0133 code.

I bought a Bosch 15097 from FCP and put installed it in the front position. But I kept the sensor I took out, which I could tell was a bosch sensor and had the proper connector - so I guess let's assume it was a 15097 as well. The guy I bought it from (I sort of know him) told me he replaced the sensor the week before I bought it, and he thought it would take care of the code (but it didn't).

I continued to have problems with the code but had other things to chase down that actually could have been causing it, so I didn't look into O2 sensors again for nearly 2 years.

I eventually started to think everything /should/ have been cleared up but I was still getting the P0133, so I ran through the test procedure to test the O2 sensors and determined that the rear sensor was not behaving correctly.

I did some research and found out that the two sensors were the same, so I pulled the rear sensor and soldered in the sensor I pulled from the front position earlier. I assumed it was good based on the information from the seller that it was nearly new.

Now a question for you - is the sensor on the end of the 15097 more like the 15733 or more like the 15738?

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1998 V70 AWD->FWD->AWD Turbo 215k+

You certainly are picking up on the details. The 15097, at least if the pictures are right, has the classic thimble tip on it. The dome with the slits. Both the 15733 and the 15738 have the later, square end with the small bulb on the tip. This leads me to believe that the 33 and 38 are probably the same or at least interchangeable, but who knows? I found the 38 for $67, which is now $20 less than the 097, so that's now at the edge of the "practical to solder yourself" range. Of course I've now put about $100 of time into the project at my preferred rate of $2.95 per hour (Volvo DIY/Internet/Brickboard hourly rate)--LOL.

Dave

I am surprised that you want to preemptively replace the O2 sensor(s). My 1998 is at 188K with original sensors; I suspect that they probably have reached their limit, but still no codes and mpg is only -2 from when it had 150K on them.

New tires typically rob 4mpg for the first 5K miles. A lot of 'cold' engine running will subtract 5-6mpg and coat the O2 sensors with exhaust soot.

Yes, replacing the O2 sensors will increase mpg, but for how long? Enough to make up the investment? Regular here just dropped to $3.90 which is still $1 more than last year, darn speculators.

Klaus
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Always willing to listen, just not able to take direction.

Klaus! How are you? Thanks for weighing in. 180+ on the sensors, incredible. We have logged mileage down a little over 3 in the city, and with gas still over $4.20 for regular here, and smog pending, I've decided I want to give this a shot. That said, today is the free day I have to get the smog done, and the sensor is not even on order yet, so I decided about two hours ago to just get the smog done without. Sensors certainly don't age without running, so at 80k, this one should be more than capable of producing good numbers on the meter. I'll post back with what I've learned. I am going to replace it though, and see if mileage improves. Everything else was done about 10k ago with virtually no improvement in mileage. Short of a clogged cat, which would show up in other ways, the sensor is about the only variable right now.
Regards,
Dave