225 OX66 Oxygen sensor--What Warranty?

[BLKBASS]

Hello fishermen,
Has anyone out there had any trouble with their oxygen sensor going bad(clogged up with contaminants)? My '03 motor's sensor is currently being replaced at the shop and the motor is under the extended Y.E.S. warranty through YAMAHA, however Yamaha says it will not be covered under warranty due to the contaminants from gasoline. My manual states to use 87 Octane fuel and recommends Ringfree and Yamalube oil which I've always done. I feel that Yamaha should cover the $300.00 sensor since I've followed the manual's recommendations. Anybody else run into this problem?

[Charger]

I havent had any warranty work done sinse mine is out of warranty , but my O2 sensor did get clogged up and I lost power and rpms. I removed it, soaked it in Seafoam, reinstalled and all is well.
Personally, I think Seafoam does alot better job at carbon removal than Ringfree.

[AlabamaDale]

Did they try to clean it? or just put a new one in so they would not have to mess with the cleaning.

[BLKBASS]

Yes,the mechanic is a fishin' buddy of mine and he did try to clean it but when I took it out on the water it did fine for the first couple of passes then on the third pass I started losing rpm's and speed again, although not quite as pronounced as before the cleaning. I didn't want to risk losing any more fishing time on the water so I bit the bullet and took it to the dealer. I had no idea that Yamaha would not honor the warranty.

[Hamfisted]

Here's another shocker for you, they don't cover sparkplugs under warranty either. Read the article on cleaning your own O2 sensor and get good at it. Clean it and test it with a torch and digital voltage meter as in the "How-To" article so you know it's clean and working properly before you reinstall it. It's routine maintenance on the OX motor.

Here's a link to the "How-To" article.... http://www.boatsetup.com/O2sensor.pdf

-Mike

[BLKBASS]

Thanks for the link info. I'll give it a shot.

[BuzzB8]

Doing this will save you money. Some people remove it and do a cleaning once a year. I like Sea Foam also, and I think it does a better job on the carbon. The inside of my prop is CLEAN as a testament to it's cleaning abilities.

[utfisherman]

Just got my '03 VX250 back from the shop with a new O2 sensor and a lot lighter wallet. Yamaha refused to cover the sensor under the Y.E.S. warranty. By the time all the labor, diagnostics, and tax were added, my bill was double the price of the sensor The mechanic stated he tried to clean it, but it would not respond. I have the old sensor and all winter to work with it. At least I'll have a backup if I can get it working.

I also always use Yamalube and Ringfree along with major brand 87 Octane fuel. They should state this is an excluded part in the warranty if they are not covering it.

[Charger]

O2 sensor $300
Labor $300
Goody Powders $1.59

Gettin on the water Priceless


Thats alot of change they charged just to replace an O2 sensor!

[toledo bend jim]

Sounds like a dealer thing to me. Bought my Hammer in S. Louisiana and was pre-fishing when sensor crashed called the nearest Yammy dealer in N. Louisiana and he laughed and said bring it in. NO CHARGE !!! Everything NEW, no charge for anything and I waited less than 3 hours and was back on the lake. And $300 labor is a rip. Try someone else! Good luck. TBJ

[Bob20]

I was told by my dealer and by the sweet lady at Yamaha that if it tests defective, that it is covered under warranty, but cleaning is considered a "service issue" and is NOT covered.

[utfisherman]

It seems there was a diagnostics fee, a couple of gaskets, a set of spark plugs, a trip to the lake, and apparently lunch for the whole crew at the local steak house The weather was ok yesterday, so I was able to get out. The only other boat I saw was TWRA on patrol. I picked up 2.5mph, no more excessive smoking, and a better hole shot. I hit 77mph gps for the first time!

Here is the low down from Yamaha. They will replace the o2 sensor ONCE under warranty. The previous owner had it replaced after only 6 months of use. Now I had it replaced 2 years after that. I would have done it myself, but I figured the motor was under warranty, and I wasn't sure of the problem (have had the oil pump replaced under YES warranty already). Guess I should start asking for an o2 sensor for Christmas every other year! Looks like I've finally got all the bugs worked out. Now if I can only figure some way to work a deal for a Hydrotec upgrade and a HPDI lower unit.......... Hmmmmmmmmmmmm 80+mph ??

[BLKBASS]

UTFisherman,
Who did you talk to at Yamaha that said they will replace it once under warranty?
And did Yamaha indicate that they'd warranty the sensor even if it is not mechanical failure but failure due to contaminants collected inside the sensor?
It would save me some dough if they would warranty it! Thanks

[utfisherman]

My mechanic talked to Yamaha. I have no reason to suspect he has misled me. He said mechanical failure was the reason for the initial replacement. Unless your guy can prove mechanical failure, it will be tough to fight city hall.

[BLKBASS]

Thanks Utfisherman,
I guess I'll start asking Santa Claus for an Oxygen Sensor every other Christmas too! The Yamaha rep did advise my mechanic for me to start using 89 Octane fuel because it will burn cleaner than 87. Also he said to stick with the Ringfree. Thanks again.