98 Legacy Outback, o2 sensor.

[Espey16]

Hey guys, I'm back with another question about this car. I swapped the lift, and the header over from a 99 same car i had but got rid of. Like an idiot, I didn't disconnect the pre cat o2 sensor, and when I dropped the exhaust to remove the manifold to cat bolts, I forgot to disconnect the o2 sensor. The wires pulled out from the male connector, but the terminals stayed connected. I plugged them in the way I thought they were supposed to be oriented and I haven't had a cel. I know the male end of the connection is supposed to be there to prevent moisture. My question is (till I get a new sensor) are the 2 white wires supposed to go into a specific spot, or are they interchangeable? Thank you for any help, I appreciate you guys.

[Espey16]

I'm dropping the exhaust again because the header vibrates on the sway bar. That's why I'm curious about the orientation of the wires. I don't know the brand of the header, I'm just gonna "massage" it a little with a ball pien hammer. Can't go grinding on the sway bar haha.

[ocei77]

if you're not getting a cel, you should be good.

If anyone has scanner with a live data function, you can look at the voltage to double check. IIRC the whites are heater wires and black the ground.

O.

[Espey16]

Awesome, thank you. I have a scanner with a live data function, I just don't really know how to use it except to check for dtcs

[ocei77]

if you go to live data, just select complete set and scroll down to the O2 sensor in question. You should see the voltage fluctuate.

The car has to warm up and the system in closed loop

Hitting enter  will graph that function.

You will see something resembling a square wave.

Don't remember the normal values. Listed in the DTC code section of manual.

again, no cel sb no worries

O.