P230ACylinder 1 Air-Fuel Ratio Imbalance - Adjustment At Limit During Balance
- Generic OBD-II code · Powertrain
- Turns on the check-engine light
- Matters for the ITP
- Needs a drive cycle to confirm a fix
- How the car detects it
- P230A belongs to a second series of cylinder imbalance codes. P219C reports that cylinder 1 runs a mixture unlike the others; P230A goes a step further and says the balancing function has already moved the fuel correction for cylinder 1 to its end stop without evening it out. Such individual trims exist where the control unit can tell cylinders apart, for example on VW's 2014 2.5 litre five-cylinder, which leans out one cylinder at a time and read the resulting roughness. No maker documents P230A publicly; Mercedes describes the same idea on its M260/M264 four-cylinders under its own code P1CEF85 and traced it to leaking valve seats. Cylinder 1 exists on every engine, so any layout can set the code. CARB requires an imbalance monitor on all 2014 and later petrol cars.
- What you may notice
- Check engine light on
- Rough idle, possibly misfire on cylinder 1
- Higher fuel consumption or exhaust smell
- Likely causes
- LikelyInjector of cylinder 1 delivering too much or too little (deposits, wear)
- PossibleAir leak at the intake port or injector seal of cylinder 1
- PossibleValve of cylinder 1 not sealing (worn seat or guide), low compression
- RarePoor contact at the connector of injector 1
- Inspection (ITP)
- Matters for the ITP. While the check-engine light is on, the car fails the emissions check.
- Repair
- Medium · Usually a job for a workshop.Typical cost: €0 – €1,500
- Related codes
Explanation from obdex (CC0), exactly as the app shows it. Guidance only; confirm with a workshop.