P0201 OBD-II Trouble Code (Fuel Injector 1 Control Circuit Malfunction)

P0204: What It Means

Your engine's fuel injectors are activated by a solenoid, which in turn is activated by a transistor called a "driver." Each cylinder's injector is supplied with power from the battery, at one of two terminals. When it's time to squirt fuel into the cylinder, the PCM grounds the other terminal and completes a circuit, which activates the driver and solenoid to open the injector.

Note: When determining the cylinder number on a V6 or V8 engine, start with the front cylinder on the driver's side and work your way down each side. In other words, cylinder 4 on a V8 engine would be driver's side, all the way in back. On a V6, it would be passenger side/front.

Injector drivers commonly use either the "saturated switch" or "peak-and-hold" designs. With a saturated switch, the PCM supplies maximum voltage from the time the injector's needle valve opens until it shuts again. A peak-and-hold design supplies a pulse of maximum voltage, then drops the voltage to just enough to keep the valve open. This code could be due to a bad injector, an open or short connection, an intermittent open or short, a bad ground or even a bad PCM (though rare).

Note: On V6 and V8 engines, look for the cylinder bank that is offset slightly forward from the other and that bank will be the odd-numbered cylinders

Code P0201 indicates an injector misfire on cylinder 1, with the PCM commanding the injector to open but not recognizing a change in electrical current that would indicate the injector fired. This trouble code is similar to P0202, P0203, P0204, P0205, P0206, P0207 and P0208, and may be accompanied by one or more of those codes.

Symptoms

These symptoms can vary by year/make/model:

• Rough running
• Stalling
• Misfire
• Poor fuel economy
• Limp-in mode
• Rich-running or lean-running
• Hard-start condition

What Happens If I Ignore It?

If your vehicle is in limp-in mode, you may have a top speed that's limited to about 40 mph or less. Chances are that if you have a P0201 OBD-II trouble code, your vehicle will be running poorly enough that it won't be very driveable. In any event, ignoring a P0201 code for long can lead to further engine damage.

Possible Fixes

• Check all wiring and connections for looseness or damage; perform wiggle tests while the engine is idling.
• Using a multimeter, check the resistance of the injector. If this doesn't fall within spec, it may be the injector itself.
• Check for other misfire-related codes in the PCM. Codes P0301 through P0308 would all be misfire-related but more general, pointing to a problem with the coil pack, spark plug, etc.
• Once you've determined which cylinder is misfiring, you can easily check by using a test light (aka "noid light"). Disconnect the injector and plug the noid light into the connector. If the noid light flashes as you crank the engine, the control circuit for that injector is working properly. If it doesn't flash, or stays on the entire time, there's a problem.
• To test the circuit for power from the PCM, use a test light and attach one lead to ground. Attach the other to the B+ pin on the connector. The light should illuminate. If the light doesn't light up or only illuminates intermittently or weakly, use your multimeter to check voltages as well.

Testing a circuit has the potential to get confusing. Remember that your best bet is to keep a cool head, use some critical thinking/deduction and keep it simple. Isolate the circuit into segments to rule out problems, starting with whatever is easiest and quickest for you to check. In this case, that means starting with a visual inspection and then moving on to the injector itself. If you need to replace a fuel injector, we've got you covered there, too.