white powder on o2 sensor

What does white powder on my o2 sensor mean? I recently put oil treatment crap in my car that i think made me fail smog (hydrocarbons at idle). Could that oil treatment have been what caused the white powder on the o2? Thanks in advance for any help.

u sure it isnt just corrosion?

how often does the 02 sensor needs replacing?? what are the tell-tell signs the itz in need of replacing:confused:

r u sure u havnt been sniffin crack in ur engine bay again???:p lol

Ive seen o2 sensors that were white and some that were back. Im not sure what it means though possibly like spark pugs (black to rich white to lean?)

I decided to change my O2 sensor when my check engine light came on every time I drove the car over 5 miles. I didn't know about pulling up the carpet under the passenger seat to see what codes the computer was flashing. Now, thanks to this forum, I know.
If your check engine light is coming on, leave the key on, pull the carpet up on the angled part of the passenger floorboard, and see how many times that little light is flashing. Lookup the number of flashes on Ami's website, and it'll tell you if the O2 content is off.
I'm sure your mileage would drop a little if the O2 sensor wasn't working properly. Sometimes the little wire connecting it to the computer has just come off, and you can reach down there and reconnect it.
Most of the time, you have to shell out $40 at Autozone. I recommend the Bosch unit.
Flunky
PS-About the white stuff? I don't know. It might be a deposit left from burning some bad gas. That's my guess.

Thanks for the replies guys. In response to whether it's corrosion or not, no it isn't. I had the o2 in for two weeks and it came out white. Then last night i put a different one in for about five minutes and it came out white. As far as me sniffin crack in the engine bay, yes i did, but i made sure i didn't lose track of any; i like to do it off of the valve cover. As far as the check engine light, it's not on, and it won't be because i'm running good o2 sensors. The problem is not the o2, but whatever is causing it to turn white, which i think i know now. See http://www.sjmautotechnik.com/20vo2tst.html. My problem is that i've tried to convert to a four wire (heated) o2 sensor from the 1 wire 02 my ecu is looking for and i don't have it wired properly yet, which i think is causing the white powder that i now believe is silicone. The white powder is causing my o2 to read less oxygen and therefore dick up my idle and acceleration, while increasing emmisions and lowering my gas mileage significantly. If anyone can think of any other reason for the silicone buildup, please advise. Thanks again.

Running too rich (which will cause backfire) is the most common sign your O2 is on the way out.

As for white powder maybe someone was trying to snort coke off your O2.