Fault Tree

OBD-II differential diagnosis

A trouble code is a symptom report from one sensor, not a diagnosis, but it gets read as one. P0420 says catalyst efficiency below threshold and the driver is quoted $1,400.00 for a converter, when the cause is more often a $118.00 oxygen sensor. This takes a code plus the freeze frame the ECU captured when it set, and produces a ranked differential with prices attached.

Code structure decoder

SAE J2012 codes are structured, not arbitrary: the letter is the system, the first digit says whether the definition is generic or manufacturer-specific, and the third character selects the subsystem. Any well-formed code decodes even when no repair data is loaded for it.

Diagnosis

P0301 severe stop driving will fail emissions
Cylinder 1 misfire detected
One cylinder is not burning its fuel properly. Unburnt fuel goes into the exhaust and can destroy the catalytic converter in a few hundred miles, which turns a cheap repair into an expensive one.
Vehicle
2018 Chevrolet Equinox LT · 1.5L Turbo · 74,905 mi
Complaint
shaking under acceleration, flashing light
Scanned
2026-07-24 22:35
Code family
Powertrain · generic SAE
Subsystem
Ignition system or misfire

Most likely cause, given the freeze frame

Ignition coil, cylinder 1 — 31% likely
Swap the coil to another cylinder. If the misfire follows, the coil is the fault.
parts $78.00 + labour 0.4h @ $142.00/h = $134.80

Full ranked differential

CausePriorUpdatedRepair
Ignition coil, cylinder 1 34% 31% $135
Spark plug, cylinder 1 28% 26% $85
Low compression, cylinder 1
set under 78% load, mechanical causes rise
13% 20% $213
Fuel injector, cylinder 1 16% 15% $344
Vacuum leak local to cylinder 1 9% 8% $180
The prior column is what the code alone tells you. The updated column is after conditioning on the freeze-frame values below. Green moved up on the evidence, red moved down.

What the diagnosis is worth

Work the ranked path, stop when fixed $379 expected
Replace fuel injector, cylinder 1 first $344
Expected cost sums each cause's probability against the cumulative cost of reaching it in order. On this scan the ranked path expects $379 against $344 for going straight at the expensive component, which is the quote most people are handed.

Freeze frame — sensor state when the code set

PIDParameterValue
MAF Mass air flow rate 22.8 g/s
RPM Engine RPM 2640 rpm
SPEED Vehicle speed 61 km/h
O2_B1S1 O2 sensor, bank 1 sensor 1 0.31 V
O2_B1S2 O2 sensor, bank 1 sensor 2 0.52 V
LONG_FT1 Long-term fuel trim, bank 1 6.8 %
SHORT_FT1 Short-term fuel trim, bank 1 4.2 %
ENGINE_LOAD Calculated engine load 78 %
INTAKE_TEMP Intake air temperature 34 °C
COOLANT_TEMP Engine coolant temperature 92 °C