P0201 means Injector Circuit/Open – Cylinder 1. The computer has detected an open or faulty circuit for the cylinder 1 fuel injector. It is a generic OBD-II code, so the definition is the same on any make, but the most likely cause varies by engine; confirm with a scan tool and the service information for your vehicle before buying parts.
What P0201 means
Each fuel injector is a small solenoid that the engine computer switches on and off many times a second. The computer monitors every injector circuit for opens and shorts, and an injector circuit fault usually comes with a misfire on the same cylinder because that cylinder gets no fuel.
P0201 symptoms
- Misfire on cylinder 1, often with P0301
- Rough idle
- Loss of power
Common causes of P0201
- Failed injector coil
- Damaged wiring or connector
- Injector driver fault in the engine computer
How to diagnose P0201
- Check for a P0301 misfire
- Inspect the connector and wiring
- Measure injector resistance and compare with the other cylinders
- Use a noid light to check the injector pulse
Can you drive with P0201?
Short distances only; a dead cylinder can overheat the catalytic converter.
P0201 tips
Injector circuit codes come with a misfire on the matching cylinder because no fuel is delivered. Compare injector resistance across all cylinders; one that is open or very different from the rest is the failed injector. If resistance is normal, back-probe the connector with the engine cranking: a noid light that flashes means the computer is driving the injector and the fault is in the injector or its connector; no flash points back to the wiring or the driver. Injector connectors become brittle with engine heat, and a broken locking tab can let one work loose.
Will P0201 clear itself?
If the fault stops, the computer turns off the check engine light by itself after several drive cycles without seeing it again, and the code stays in memory as history for a while. Clearing P0201 with a scan tool after a repair is fine, but if the cause is still there the code returns, sometimes within one drive. Disconnecting the battery also clears codes on most vehicles, but it erases learned fuel trims and idle settings as well.
Related codes
| Code | Meaning |
|---|---|
| P0202 | Injector Circuit/Open – Cylinder 2 |
| P0301 | Cylinder 1 Misfire Detected |
| P0300 | Random/Multiple Cylinder Misfire Detected |
Guides that help
When it is more than a sensor
If an injector and its wiring test good but the cylinder still misfires, a compression test separates a fuel problem from a mechanical one; see engine replacement cost and our engines page if the engine is worn.
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