O2 sensor causing surging?

1997 Cherokee, automatic 152k, 231 tcase and so on...

So my CEL came on the other day with the P0132 O2 sensor code. It went away after awhile, but popped up again. Today while driving through town I came up to a stop light and while sitting there, the RPMS did a quick surge from like 800-1000 for a split second and the Jeep felt like it wanted to surge forward. It did it about 3 times with 5-9 seconds in between surges, light turned green and I was on my way. Came up to the next stop light, didn't do it's surging at all.

Prior to this happening, when the CEL came on the first time, right before the light came on the Jeep felt like it lost power for a brief second but power resumed. Same thing happened today when the CEL came back on, slight loss for a split second then light came on.

Are these issues related to the O2 sensor being bad and the engine running differently?

My cat converter also needs replaced. Sounds like it's got a lot of loose baffling inside. I noticed that when driving, at stop light etc it's more noticeable than when in park. I got to my in-law's house and was listening to the cat converter, when in park I could barely hear the baffling noise, got back in the Jeep, foot on the brake and put the Jeep into drive and the baffling noise was a lot more noticeable. I also noticed that when I put it into park from drive, there is a slight rev in the engine then goes back to normal idle.

I've only had the Jeep a few days and still working out kinks but would like some feedback on these little issues.

P0132 Possible causes
- Front Heated Oxygen Sensor Bank 1 harness is open circuit or short circuit
- Front Heated Oxygen Sensor Bank 1 circuit poor electrical connection
- Faulty Front Heated Oxygen Sensor Bank 1
- Inappropriate fuel pressure
- Faulty fuel injectors
- Intake air leaks
- Exhaust gas leaks

Tune-up and fix the known problems. Clean the Throttle Body and Idle Air Controller. Replace the cat, inspect the exhaust manifold for cracks. Inspect the O2 sensor wires for damaged or chafed insulation. Check the O2 sensor fuses. Consider replacing the O2 sensors, their service life is approximately 150,000 miles. Replace all the fluids too.

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The guy I bought it from said it just had a tune up... Like a few days before I bought it from him.

I'll check for those other things though. O2 sensor fuses are located...? PDC or inside cab in the fuse box?

Looks like #11 in the PDC

Welp, while on the freeway to work this morning it starting surging even more than before... I was coming off the off-ramp at about 50 and it started surging and MPH's went down to about 40, luckily the next exit was within a mile. I limped off and pulled into a parking lot. Luckily had the code reader in the Jeep and cleared the code. Drove over to my sister's house to hitch a ride with her the rest of the way to work.

Seems as though this would be more of the

- Inappropriate fuel pressure
- Faulty fuel injectors

at this point in time due to how it was acting. When it was surging it seemed as though it was craving more fuel which it wasn't getting. I've also noticed my MPG drop quite a bit more... I went from just over the halfway line to about 1/4 below the half line in a matter of like 10 miles.

Should I be looking at plugged/dirty fuel injectors? Or would an O2 sensor cause these symptoms as well? Hoping it's an easy fix as I've already got a new O2 sensor from a 96 I hope works on the 97...

Reading a post about a bad cat and came across this statement

"as for the jeep running crappy if the cat is indeed clogged than when you increase the RPM's there is no place for the exhaust to go except back into the combustion chamber. Too much exhaust in the combustion chamber displaces all the oxygen needed for complete combustion there for giving you poor engine performance and stalling at high RPM's"

Could the cat be causing these symptoms as well? The continous surging if the exhaust is having issues going through the cat and coming back a little? This quote was from a thread talking about bad catalytic conv. issues and dying at high RPMS but the statement made me wonder if my bad cat is causing a similar situation but with surging.

I had a clogged Cat once--only symptom was loss of power. No surging, or idle issues, just would not accelerate over ~50mph; very sluggish. I don't think a plugged cat is your problem.

So after you pulled into a parking lot and cleared the code, how did it drive?

Drove fine after clearing it... The whole time driving to my sister's I kept waiting for that devil light to pop back on and start surging again.

The O2 sensors are the most likely and most logical cause of the symptoms, especially the drop in gas mpg's. O2 sensors can be tested, check the FAQ or search the Forum, the test procedure has been posted before. The #1 sensor closest to the engine is the throwing the code.

O2 sensors are a routine maintenance item like tires or mufflers, they are simply replaced when they wear out, or no longer function correctly.

I would have a good hard look at the wiring and terminals, as suggested earlier. It costs nothing and takes very little time. I also put zero faith in claims of recent tuneups or accident-free histories... Doesn't take long to inspect the cap, rotor, and plugs, although that might not be a culprit here.

Looking at the cap/rotor, plug wires... they look fresh out of the box. Like no dirt or anything on them yet. Going to check the O2 sensor when I get home from work... also read about a cat converter recall that I'm going to check into with my VIN... be sweet if it was covered and I could get a free one =)

Replaced the O2 sensor... it was pretty nasty due to the power steering leak running down the frame onto the wires and such... surprisingly it came out extremely easy.

Now to find a good deal on a direct fit cat. The one on there now is bolted on, I'd like to find one that I can bolt back on until I can get it welded.

Will this unit work?

http://www.carpartswholesale.com/v5...eepcherokee19961999magnaflowm6699006hm1caco97

It will work, but it says it requires modification. Does it have an O2 sensor bung?

Magnaflow lists pn 23226 as their direct-fit converter.