What impact will a faulty front oxygen sensor have on a car?

[OKinsley]

A faulty front oxygen sensor will prevent the electronic fuel injection system's computer from obtaining accurate information about the oxygen concentration in the exhaust pipe, significantly affecting the car's air-fuel ratio. This can lead to increased fuel consumption by the engine, higher exhaust emissions, and even the direct emission of black smoke. Over time, issues such as unstable engine idle, misfires, and surging may become more frequent. Automobile oxygen sensors are actually divided into two types—front and rear—with the three-way catalytic converter serving as the boundary. The sensor before the three-way catalytic converter is the front oxygen sensor, while the one after it is the rear oxygen sensor. The role of the front oxygen sensor is to detect the oxygen concentration in the engine's exhaust gases and then transmit the obtained information in the form of an electrical signal to the ECU. The ECU uses this oxygen concentration information to perform feedback control on the air-fuel ratio. This not only effectively controls exhaust emissions, thereby reducing the car's environmental pollution, but also improves the quality of fuel combustion in the engine, which can help lower the car's fuel consumption.