Hi.
What is the difference between a wide band oxygen sensor and a normal stock one?
I have an 85 slightly modified 4+3. Will a wideband oxygen snsor be better? I assume the price is high for the wide band?

 

A narrow band is what 99% of GM and the others manufacturers use as a final control element to control fueling to the engine. The difference is that the narrow band sensor operates in a very narrow band of 0 to 1 volt or as some say 0 to 1000mV. A wide band sensor is different it operates in a 0 to 5volt range. The narrow band sensors are very accurate within their range, stoich (14.7 AFR) occurs at 450mV, anything below or above will be either lean or rich, how much is anyones guess. Once past 450mV they are inaccurate.

A wide band sensor can be accurate throughout its operating range to give a full indication of acutal air fuel ratio. In the old days tuners used to tell people to make sure that when you are at WOT that the o2 voltage is 800mV and above. We tune for around 11 to 13 AFR depending on what the application is. A narrow band sensor reading 800 and above can be construed as rich, but you really have no idea as to how rich. I have seen 11:1 with a sensor reading 700mV and some as lean as 13:1 at 850mV.

The other thing is that you CAN'T substitute a wide band sensor into your car. You can however get a aftermarket system like a Innovate Motorsports and install it into your car. You have the option to install a gauge on the pillar or wherever you want it or you can leave it as a portable unit to use as needed.

 

This part is very interesting can a wide band be retro'd to work with factory ECU's i also have an 85

 

Unfortunately not. However some wide band controllers have an external narrow band output that some people have connected to the ECM o2 input with varied results. The problem I see is that if this simulated narrow band signal is not exactly like a real narrow band sensor output then the ECM cannot reliably fuel the car. The OE ECMs sees a rapidly changine signal from the sensor. It ranges from as low as 100mV to as high as 950mV, and it is constantly changing from high to low or vice versa. The time the voltage spends above and below stoich (450mV) is used by the ECM to determine its fuel trims to control fueling to the engine. As old as your car is, the same strategies are still used in todays modern PCMs for fueling. The terminology has changed from BLM (block learn multiplier) INT (integrator) to long and short term fuel trims. Both essentially do the same thing, and both rely upon the ECM or PCMs ability to read the incoming o2 sensor input to calculate the fueling.

 

Hi all.
Thanks for the answers. I am sorry to come this late as I have not been around and able to to answer. This gave me a good impression on what is going on.

 

some well worded responses there.

I'm always trying to absorb this type in order to learn how to tune for my mods. A stand alone wide band is in my near future...

 

You can use a WB in place of your stock NB O2 sensor if your WB unit has a simulated NB O2 output. I have a Zitronix I have been using like this for a few years. When I am tuning I hook up my PC to get the WB data. When I'm just driving the simulated NB drives the ECM.

I don't have the display, which I think is useless because you need O2 vs RPM to do any tuning.

 

I have a question. Using the O2 sensor, if the mixture is rich enough to missfire, will it show a lean mixture because of the unburned O2 in the exhaust?

 

The newest generation of "cheaper" Wide Band Oxygen sensors has spawned some new meters

http://www.wbo2.com/