When your sporty, smooth, and powerful vehicle suddenly starts to have surging or hesitating in the engine, it can be rather alarming. One part to check is the Mercedes CLK320 oxygen sensor. The Mercedes CLK320 oxygen sensor is a small electronic device that measures the proportion of oxygen to gasoline in your internal combustion engine.

The information that it gathers is then fed to the Electronic Control Unit (ECU) which in turn can make computerized adjustments to help your engine run as optimally as is possible. The amount of oxygen that s found in your mix of gasoline helps to determine the amount of power that your combustion engine can provide.

A fuel that is too rich doesn’t have enough oxygen and it runs sluggish. A fuel that is not rich enough has too much oxygen in it and also runs sluggish.

Unstable fuel can more importantly cause damage to the catalytic converter and can translate into expensive repairs. Depending on the year that your particular automobile was made determines how frequently the oxygen sensor should be replaced. For those that have an unheated sensor in a vehicle made between 1976 and the early 1990s, it should be replaced every 30,000 to 50,000 miles. For vehicles with a heated sensor made between the mid 1980s and the mid 1990s, change it every 60,000 miles. For heated sensor vehicles made after the mid 1990s, replace it every 100,000 miles. Your Mercedes CLK320 oxygen sensor can improve your fuel efficiency by as much as 10 to 15 percent, and can reduce your exhaust emissions as well.In the long run, this part can save you money when you replace it by saving you in fuel and in other costly repairs.