[kjcho92]

Okay. I went back to the Meineke with all the information that you guys helped me with, (esp. Brian, thanks a lot.) and it turns out he was trying to rip me off, even if he does not admit.

First, I asked him why I have to replace the both A/F sensor and the Oxygen sensor. He said that P1130 is for the A/F sensor and P1135 is for the oxygen sensor. Since I knew that the two codes refer to the same sensor, except that P1135 refers to the heater element on the sensor, and the P1130 is for the sensor range/peformance, I asked him again. He even printed out the definition of the codes from alldata.com, saying he just looks at them and follows the steps that's suggested in the manual.

Both manuals points to the A/F sensor, and does not even mention anything about the oxygen sensor nor the EVAP system. (he told me to change the VSV valve for the EVAP system.) It does mention checking the EGR valve system. But like I said, I had the VSV valve for the EGR system changed about a year ago from the Toyota dealer. (Maybe that's why he switched to EVAP VSV valve after I told him I already changed that.)

He kept on arguing that the P1135 points to the oxygen sensor. I even pointed out that the both manuals show a graph of operation, from 2.4 V to 4 V. Oxygen sensors operate from 0 to 1 V.

If he had said that even the codes just point to the A/F sensor, he checked the voltage levels of the Oxygen sensor and it showed no change, which means they are dead, maybe I would have believed him and went ahead with changing the whole package. But he's lies were not good enough.

He said that the VSV valve for EVAP system is not working, which caused the A/F sensor and the oxygen sensor to die.
This argument does not make any sense to me. If the oxygen sensor was not working, I should see a code saying that it's not working. and if VSV valve for EVAP system is the problem, I should see a code that points to somewhere in the EVAP system. Right?

I'm 99% sure that he is lying to me, but I have to change the A/F sensor and see if it solves the problem or not.

I tried to get the diagnosis fee back, with no avail. (Diagnosis to rip me off, basically) I already had the code, I already knew what they meant, I just went to Meineke to have them replaced, but they tried to rip me off. I couldn't fight back at first, since I didn't know that much.

I bought the part from the dealer directly, since the price was not that much different from the web. I tried to change it myself, but it was not easy to access. I need a special tool for this. I'll just go to a independent repair shop and give them the labor fee to have it replaced.

Anyways, hope this thread helps other people who has a check engine light on.

I think check engine light is something that the repair shops can easily rip off the customers with, since it looks like that something is very dangerously wrong, and unless you have the knowledge, you can't argue back. They say, that oh, the code doesn't pinpoint to the problem, and give you a whole list of things to be changed. Yes, it is true that the code does not pinpoint to a problem, but it at least tells you where to look for a problem.

Next time I see a check engine light, I'll just go to the autozone, check the code, and search or upload the code to this site. If it's something easy, like O2 sensor or A/F sensor, I'll just change that, instead of asking to do the diagnosis and pay them like $100.

Anyways, thanks again, Brian. God bless you.

KJ