P0113 Code in 2026: Check the Plug, the Pin and the Ground Before the Sensor

P0113 is one of the few check engine codes whose name already tells you where to look first: it is a circuit code.

Every engine computer needs to know how dense the incoming air is, and density depends on temperature. So a small intake air temperature (IAT) sensor sits in the air stream — in the air filter box, in the intake duct, inside the mass airflow sensor, or in the intake manifold — and reports the temperature as a voltage. P0113 — "Intake Air Temperature Sensor 1 Circuit High" — means that voltage is higher than a working sensor can produce. On most engines, that is the signature of a circuit that has been opened somewhere: a plug not clicked home, a terminal pushed back out of its cavity, a wire strained until it broke inside its insulation, a ground that has come loose. A sensor that has failed open gives the same reading, but it is one cause among several.

We downloaded and read 17 manufacturer documents that deal with P0113 or its closest neighbors — bulletins, service messages, tech-line case notes and software notes from GM, Ford, Stellantis and FCA, Jaguar, Land Rover, Toyota and Hyundai, covering Lincoln and Fiat models too. Across all 17, the most common fix is software, mostly for the plausibility codes P0111 and P011B. For P0113 itself, the causes they document are connectors and terminals, wire strain, a ground and an air leak. None of the 17 tells a technician to start by replacing the IAT sensor, and one, GM's note on the Chevrolet Volt, says in so many words not to.

The federal complaint file is thin, and that is itself information. Of 780,071 complaints received by NHTSA from 2015 to September 2026, only 11 name P0113 by number, against 78 in our P0101 guide's count for the airflow code P0101. So we read every complaint that mentions the intake air temperature sensor in any form — 52 in all. 20 of them turned out to be about something else: the outside air temperature sensor in a bumper or a mirror, or "IAT" typed where the owner meant "at." Of the 14 that name P0113 by number or by its definition, nine also name an airflow code or the airflow sensor.

By the end you will know which of five routes your P0113 is on, what each costs in 2026, which bulletin applies to your car, and the cheap cause that gets skipped when a sensor is quoted first.

Claims marked 🟢 rest on a bulletin or service document listed in the Sources section; the 17 documents in our published list were downloaded and read in full. Claims marked ⚪ are shop-price estimates carried from our repair guides. Complaint counts come from all 52 complaints read by hand, published with ODI numbers, and every complaint quoted was read in full.

I built PulsCar after a $380 "full diagnostic" in Phuket in 2025 led to roughly $6,000 over six months across several shops (the story is on the About page). P0113 is usually a small repair, and it becomes an expensive one only when parts are bought in the wrong order, so every claim below that rests on a document names it.

What P0113 says: a thermistor, a 5-volt signal, and "circuit high"

The sensor is a temperature-dependent resistor. Inside the IAT sensor is a thermistor. On the common design, its resistance falls as the air gets warmer and rises as it gets colder. The engine computer feeds the circuit a reference voltage, usually 5 volts, through a resistor of its own, and reads the voltage left on the signal wire. Warm air, low resistance, low voltage. Cold air, high resistance, high voltage.

"Circuit high" is the top of that scale, and past it. Every sensor has a coldest temperature it can honestly report, and a voltage that goes with it. When the signal sits above that — close to the full reference voltage — the computer can no longer believe it is reading air. The most common way to get there is for the circuit to be open: with nothing pulling the signal down, it floats up to the reference. That is why P0113 so often means a plug, a pin or a wire rather than a sensor. On a scan tool, an open IAT circuit typically shows the coldest value the computer can display, often around -40°F, on a car that has been sitting in a warm garage.

Its neighbors are the same circuit, other faults. P0112 is the circuit reading low — a short to ground, or a sensor shorted internally — and shows as impossibly hot air. P0111 is range or performance: the voltage is electrically possible, but the reading disagrees with what the computer expects, for example with the coolant temperature after a long cold soak. P0114 is an intermittent signal. P0110 is a general circuit fault on some engines. On engines with two IAT sensors, P0097 and P0098 are the low and high circuit codes for the second one.

What the computer does when it stops believing the sensor. Most engine computers substitute a default air temperature and carry on. The car drives, usually normally, which is why so few owners write to a safety agency about P0113. The cost is in fueling and spark timing that are no longer corrected for the real air temperature, a failed emissions inspection, and a lit lamp that hides any new code behind it.

Why this code is not always only about emissions. When the IAT shares a plug, a ground or a reference voltage with other sensors, P0113 is the smallest symptom of a bigger fault. 🟢 Ford's SSM 54774 is the sharpest example: on 2024-2026 Explorer, Aviator and Police Interceptor Utility models, P0113 can arrive with P0217 and an "engine over-temperature warning" because loose grounds have also stopped the "engine cooling fan" from running. The code is small; the fan is not.

Where your intake air temperature sensor actually is

The intake air temperature sensor comes in four forms, and where yours sits changes the price more than anything else.

A separate sensor in the air box or intake duct. A small plug-in sensor with its own connector. 🟢 FCA's 08-002-16 shows one on the 2.4L Jeep Renegade and Fiat 500X: a separate IAT sensor with its own connector, which the bulletin reroutes under a black tube beneath the engine cover. A 2013 Wrangler owner describes a sensor that will not stay in its housing: "Intake air temperature sensor falls out of housing when accelerating. Second time this has happened for the same reason."

Built into the mass airflow sensor. On many engines the IAT is one element inside the airflow sensor's housing, sharing its connector. 🟢 GM's PI1009 for 2013-2014 3.0L and 3.6L V6s lists P0097, P00F4, P0113, P2229 and P0102 as a group that can set together from one act — disconnecting the airflow sensor with the key on — GM does not say why; the likeliest reading is that these sensors share that housing and plug, in which case the IAT is replaced as part of the airflow sensor assembly.

Built into the manifold pressure sensor. 🟢 GM's PIP6119, May 2026, names a "B65 Manifold Absolute Pressure and Intake Air Temperature Sensor" on 2024-2026 Silverado 1500 and Sierra 1500 3.0L diesels, and says a faulty one may explain a fuel temperature reading of 419°F alongside P00E9 (an IAT 3 code), P0101, P0186, P1428 and P00DF. P0113 is not among them. A combined sensor can fail in ways that point elsewhere.

A second sensor after the turbo or intercooler. Turbocharged and some other engines add an IAT 2 downstream; its codes are P0097 and P0098 on many makes. A 2016 Honda Pilot owner reports P0098 and a replaced high-pressure fuel pump; a 2017 Silverado 2500 owner lists P0097 among 144 codes after a chafed trailer brake wire.

The one that is not the intake sensor. The outside air temperature sensor, usually behind the front bumper or in a door mirror, reports to the climate control and the dash, and has its own codes (P0070 to P0073 on many makes, or body codes). Eleven of the 52 complaints we read were about that sensor or an A/C evaporator sensor, not the intake. More on that in the section on the wrong sensor.

First: which temperature code do you have?

The consequence for your wallet: P0113 alone after a service visit is a plug. P0113 with P0102 on an engine whose IAT lives in the airflow sensor is one connector and one assembly, not two failed parts. P0113 with codes from unrelated circuits — an oxygen sensor heater, a throttle, a cooling fan — is a shared connector or a ground. Our P0101 guide covers the airflow side in the same detail.

The maker atlas: who wrote about P0113, and what they blamed

Stellantis and FCA: the connector. 🟢 08-002-16 (2015 Renegade, 2016 500X 2.4L) and 08-121-15, superseded by 08-011-16 (2015 ProMaster City): "The wiring at the connector of the Intake Air Temperature (IAT) sensor may be compromised due to wire strain." 🟢 STAR case S2308000110 (2020-2023 Ram 1500): "terminal push out (TPO) or spread terminal" at the IAT plug. 🟢 STAR case S2308000118 (2023 Ram 1500): P0052, P0152 and/or P0113 from pushed-out or spread terminals in one inline connector.

GM: service mistakes, software and combined sensors. 🟢 PI1009 (2013-2014 3.0L and 3.6L, twelve models): codes set by "disconnecting the mass air flow (MAF) sensor with the ignition key on and/or the engine running." 🟢 PIC5708D (2011-2013 Volt, P0111): "please don't replace the B75B Mass Airflow Sensor, Intake Air Temperature Sensor (IAT), or the ECM"; update the software. 🟢 PIP6119 (2024-2026 3.0L diesel pickups): a combined pressure and temperature sensor misleading diagnosis.

Ford and Lincoln: grounds and software. 🟢 SSM 54774 (2024-2026 Explorer, Aviator, Police Interceptor Utility): P0113 among codes from "poor engine compartment ground connections." 🟢 SSM 47057 (2018 Mustang 5.0L, F-150 3.3L, P0111): engineering investigating, "do not attempt any repairs at this time" if no root cause is found. 🟢 NHTSA's summaries of 21 Ford and Lincoln software release notes from July 2025 to January 2026 describe "On-Board Diagnostics calibration for an enhanced Intake air temperature sensor performance" for 2021-2025 F-150, Mustang, Bronco, Maverick, Ranger, Expedition and Navigator models. We read two of the notes in full: the 2025 Mustang's says it "resolves false engine warning light," the 2024 F-150's that it "improves your On-Board Diagnostics."

Jaguar: an air leak. 🟢 SSM73671 (F-PACE, F-TYPE, XE and XF with the Ingenium 2.0L petrol; NHTSA indexes it to 2014-2018 models): lack of power with one or more of P0100, P0111, P0113, P2178 and P0299 from an intake elbow below the throttle body that "may be been incorrectly fitted," found with a smoke tester.

Toyota, Land Rover, Hyundai and Jeep: software for the correlation codes. 🟢 Toyota T-SB-0110-15 (2015 Tacoma and 4Runner 1GR-FE, P011B "when no part malfunction is present"), Land Rover LTB00800NAS2 (2013-2015 LR2 and 2012-2013 Evoque 2.0L, P011B after a block heater), Hyundai 24-FL-003H (2021-2023 Elantra and 2022-2023 Kona 1.6T), Jeep 18-040-26 (2022 Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer 3.0L, P0111).

The pattern. For the circuit code itself, every document but one points at the wiring side first — a plug, a terminal, a strained wire, a ground; Jaguar's points at an air leak. For the plausibility codes — P0111 and P011B — most point at software. None starts with the sensor.

The 10-minute P0113 check

1. Read every code, current and history, and write down P0102, P0101, P0112, P0097, a cooling fan code like P0480, an overheating code like P0217, or an oxygen sensor heater code like P0052.
2. Look at the live IAT value if your reader shows live data, on an engine that has sat for several hours. It should be close to the outside temperature and to the coolant temperature. About -40°F on a mild day is an open circuit; a value hotter than the engine is a short.
3. Think about the last visit under the hood. An air filter, A/C service, battery, recall work, a mouse nest cleared out. P0113 soon after is a plug until proven otherwise.
4. Find the sensor in a parts diagram: separate plug, inside the airflow sensor, or in the manifold pressure sensor.
5. Press the connector home with the engine off until it clicks, and look at the locking tab. On a separate sensor, check that the sensor itself is seated in its grommet.
6. Wiggle the harness gently near the plug with the engine idling and a live-data reader connected; a reading that jumps is a wire.
7. Check the dash for an overheating warning, and listen for the cooling fan on a hot day or with the A/C on.
8. Run the VIN for bulletins at a dealer, not only recalls at nhtsa.gov.

Eight P0113 situations, and which is yours

"P0113 the day after an air filter or A/C service." A plug not clicked home. Route 1.

"P0113 right after recall or dealer work." The same, with a repair order to point to. Route 1.

"A 2015 Renegade, 2016 500X 2.4L or 2015 ProMaster City." The jumper harness bulletin. Route 2.

"A 2020-2023 Ram 1500 with P0113 — or a 2023 Ram 1500 with P0052, P0152 and P0113." A terminal at the IAT plug, or the inline connector. Route 2.

"A 2024-2026 Explorer or Aviator, P0113 with an overheating warning or weak A/C." Grounds. Route 3, and pull over first.

"P0113 with P0102 or P0101, on a Nissan, Toyota or GM V6." One housing, one plug. Route 4, and the airflow section.

"P0113 in a crowd of codes, with a stall or misfires." Something bigger. Route 5.

"A new sensor, and the code is back." Routes 2 and 3, and the section on why.

The P0113 price ladder, from the bottom up

Read it from the top: the first line costs nothing, and two of the documents, GM's PI1009 and Ford's SSM 54774, end there. The airflow figures come from our P0101 guide, the reprogram from our P0441 guide, the coolant sensor from our P0128 guide, and the wiring range from our A/C guide, and the code-read and diagnostic-fee ranges from our P0011 guide, so the numbers match across pages. We are saying plainly that we do not carry a verified price for a separate IAT sensor. The part is usually a plug-in thermistor and the labor is often minutes; ask for the part number and price before agreeing, and compare it with the coolant sensor line above.

What does it cost to fix P0113 in 2026, and when is a new sensor the wrong purchase? Often it costs a few minutes of labor: the manufacturer documents PulsCar read trace the circuit-high code to sensors unplugged with the ignition on during service (GM's fix: recheck the click and clear the codes), terminals pushed out of the connector, wire strain at the plug and loose grounds before any sensor. Our guides carry a wiring or connector repair at $150 to $500 and an airflow sensor with a built-in IAT at $200 to $400 installed; owners who reported airflow sensors to NHTSA name a median of $500. A new sensor is the wrong purchase when the live reading jumps as the harness is moved, when P0113 arrives with codes from other circuits, when it appeared right after work under the hood, and on a 2024-2026 Explorer or Aviator, where Ford says to tighten four grounds before anything else.

The five P0113 routes, cheapest first

Route 1 · A plug left unplugged or half-clicked after service — $0

The IAT and the airflow sensor live in the air intake, and the air intake is opened more often than almost any other part of the engine. Every air filter change is a chance to leave a plug loose.

What the documents show. 🟢 GM's PI1009, June 2013, for 3.0L and 3.6L V6s in twelve 2013-2014 models from the Enclave and LaCrosse to the Traverse and Terrain: "This condition may be caused by disconnecting the mass air flow (MAF) sensor with the ignition key on and/or the engine running while servicing the A/C Freon fill port, air filtration system or other components under the hood." The instruction is short: "recheck the connection to ensure the proper click engagement for the connector and clear all the codes." 🟢 GM's PIC5708D for the 2011-2013 Chevrolet Volt, about P0111, gives the same step as a stopgap on 2012-2013 cars whose software fix was still pending: "Verify MAF sensor connector is fully seated and clear the DTC." Its warranty labor for that check and clear is 0.2 hours.

What the owners report. A 2017 Nissan Rogue owner's car went in for recall work on its brake system; afterwards "a new code P0113 (Intake Air Temperature Sensor Circuit High) appeared," and the owner believes the technician "damaged or left an engine sensor unplugged during the recall work," while the dealer insisted on diagnosing the new code. A 2012 Cruze owner writes that the trouble began with the airflow sensor: "new one was placed and now all these errors popped up," including P0097. In neither complaint can we tell what was eventually found, but in both, the air intake or its wiring had been worked on shortly before.

The cheap cause that gets skipped. The click. Most sensor connectors have a locking tab that must be heard or felt to engage, and a plug can sit on the pins, make contact on a smooth road and lose it over a bump. Pressing it home with the engine off costs nothing.

Fix it yourself — the honest split. Finding the plug, checking the locking tab, pressing it home until it clicks, clearing the code and driving is a driveway job on nearly every car, and so is checking that a separate sensor is fully seated in its grommet. What is not: deciding whether a plug that was forced on the wrong way has spread its terminals, which is Route 2.

At the shop — say this: "This code appeared right after work under the hood. Before diagnosing further, can you check that the airflow and IAT connectors are fully seated and locked, clear the codes, and see whether it returns?"

Route 2 · The connector itself: a pushed-out pin, a spread terminal, a strained wire — $0 to $500

When the plug is locked and the code stays, the next suspect is the half-inch of metal inside it.

What the documents show. 🟢 FCA's 08-002-16, January 2016, for the 2015 Jeep Renegade and 2016 Fiat 500X with the 2.4L engine built from 8 January to 4 November 2015: "The wiring at the connector of the Intake Air Temperature (IAT) sensor may be compromised due to wire strain causing DTCs." The fix reroutes the IAT plug and the one below it under a black tube, turns the connector opening away from the engine, and adds jumper harness 68301680AA — 0.2 hours, "Reimbursable within the provisions of the warranty." 🟢 The same jumper appears in 08-121-15 and its replacement 08-011-16 for the 2015 ProMaster City built from 9 December 2014 to 12 May 2015, with a line worth reading twice: "Installing the jumper will not correct any DTCs. If any IAT DTCs are found, visually inspect the wires at the IAT connector." In other words, the jumper prevents the damage; if the code is already there, the damage may already be in the wires.

🟢 Stellantis STAR case S2308000110, August 2023, for 2020-2023 Ram 1500s with P0113: "This may be caused by a terminal push out (TPO) or spread terminal of the Intake Air Temperature Sensor (IAT) connector sensor return circuit K915." The technician disconnects the plug, looks at cavity 2, reinserts the terminal "and confirm[s] it is fully secured using a pull test," or replaces it with repair kit 05014003AA. 🟢 S2308000118, September 2023, for the 2023 Ram 1500, is the same kind of fault one connector further away: P0052, P0152 and/or P0113 from pushed-out or spread terminals in inline connector XY237A, a black 16-way plug carrying circuits K199 or K21, with repair kit 68018957AA. Each case note says: "This document does not authorize warranty repairs."

What the owners report. A 2013 Wrangler owner's IAT "falls out of housing when accelerating," for the second time — a sensor that will not stay in its housing may read under-hood air and can strain its wires and plug. A 2015 Renegade owner describes a check engine light that comes on in hot weather and goes off in cold, three diagnoses and a mechanic who blamed the coolant thermostat, which the owner writes "might be affecting my intake air temperature"; the complaint names no code and no build date, so we cannot tell whether that car is inside the bulletin's range.

The cheap cause that gets skipped. The terminal. A pull test — tugging gently on each wire at the back of the plug to see whether its terminal slides out — takes a minute, and with a look into the socket it finds the two faults Stellantis describes. A new sensor bought first does not.

Fix it yourself — the honest split. Unplugging the connector and looking into it with a flashlight for a terminal sitting lower than its neighbors, a green crust or a spread socket is a driveway job. So is the classic two-wire test with a live-data reader: unplugged, the reading should drop to its coldest value; with the plug's two terminals bridged by a paper clip, it should jump to its hottest (on a separate two-wire sensor only; on a combined airflow sensor plug, leave this to a shop with the wiring diagram). If both happen, the wiring back to the computer is sound and the sensor is the suspect. Replacing a terminal with a repair kit is fiddly and best left to a shop.

At the shop — say this: "Before replacing the IAT sensor, can you pull-test the terminals in its connector and any inline connector on that circuit? Is there a bulletin for my car — FCA's 08-002-16 or 08-011-16, or a STAR case for the Ram — that applies?"

Route 3 · A ground or a shared circuit: when several sensors fail together — $0 to $500

A three-wire sensor needs a reference voltage, a signal wire and a ground; a two-wire IAT needs its signal wire, fed from inside the computer, and a ground or return. When a feed or a ground is shared with other sensors and fails, several codes arrive at once, and the cheapest reading of them is that one thing broke.

What the documents show. 🟢 Ford's SSM 54774, April 2026, for 2024-2026 Explorer, Aviator and Police Interceptor Utility: an illuminated check engine light "with engine over-temperature warning in the message center and poor air conditioning (A/C) performance from the engine cooling fan not running," with B3A1B, P0113, P0217 and/or P0480, caused by "poor engine compartment ground connections at G105, G107, G111 and/or G122." The instruction comes "Prior to any Workshop Manual (WSM) diagnostics": tighten all four grounds to 62 lb-in (7 Nm). 🟢 The Ram inline-connector case above is the same lesson from another angle: an oxygen sensor heater code, an oxygen sensor code and P0113, any of which Stellantis traces to terminals in one 16-way inline connector.

What the owners report. A 2009 Dodge Journey owner lists P0113 with P0642 — on many engines, a sensor reference voltage circuit low — plus P2138 and P0335, and writes that a new throttle body, pedal sensors and an intake air sensor were fitted and the engine still surges. P0642 with P0113 points at wiring several sensors share: a reference feed, or a common sensor ground that, when open, makes a two-wire IAT read high. A 2013 Equinox owner's independent mechanic lists the barometric, humidity and two IAT circuits, "SENSOR REFERENCE VOLTAGE A," and the airflow sensor as all failed at once. A 2009 Fusion owner's P0110 sits beside two throttle position codes. A 2006 Altima owner's IAT code arrived with a throttle position code. And a 2017 Silverado 2500 owner's P0097 was one of 144 codes that followed a trailer-brake wire chafing against the frame. In the 32 complaints that are about the intake sensor, 5 describe several sensor circuits or wiring failing at once.

Rodents belong here too. A 2017 Escape owner paid over $1,400 for wiring in the front bumper chewed by mice, including an "air temperature sensor" — almost certainly the outside air sensor, given where it was, but the lesson for the intake side is the same: a chewed harness sets codes on every circuit it carries.

The cheap cause that gets skipped. The ground. A loose ground stud costs a wrench and a few minutes, and Ford's own instruction is to check it before any other diagnosis.

At the shop — say this: "Several unrelated codes set together. Before replacing sensors, can you check the grounds, the sensor reference voltage and any connector these circuits share? On a 2024-2026 Explorer or Aviator, is Ford's SSM 54774 done?"

Route 4 · The sensor, or the airflow sensor it lives in — $100 to $725

Sensors do fail, and when the circuit tests good, the sensor is the honest answer.

What the documents show. Not much, and that is informative. Only one of the 17 replaces a part containing an IAT sensor — GM's PIP6119, below, and only after a resistance test. None replaces a separate IAT sensor. 🟢 GM's PIC5708D for the Volt says the opposite: "If you experience this DTC, please don't replace the B75B Mass Airflow Sensor, Intake Air Temperature Sensor (IAT), or the ECM," and fixes P0111 with software. 🟢 GM's PIP6119 does replace a combined sensor — the B65 manifold pressure and IAT sensor on 2024-2026 3.0L diesel pickups — but only "If basic SI diagnostics are inconclusive" and after measuring its resistance against the temperature chart and finding it "substantially lower" than published.

Which part you are buying. On a car with a separate plug-in IAT, the part is small and usually minutes to fit. On a car whose IAT lives inside the airflow sensor, you are buying an airflow sensor assembly, and our P0101 guide applies in full — including its warning that, on Nissans, many owners replaced that assembly and saw the code return. On a car with a combined manifold pressure and IAT sensor, you are buying that.

What the owners report. In the 32 complaints about the intake sensor, 3 describe the sensor itself — loose, replaced or blamed. The Wrangler above. A 2022 Tucson owner writes that the first check engine light, two days after buying the car new, "was a bad IAT that resulted in engine stalling." And a 2012 Grand Cherokee owner replaced the battery, crankshaft sensor, camshaft sensor and IAT sensor for random engine cut-outs with no codes stored, "ALL WITH NO HELP." Separately, a 2012 Rogue owner's mechanic replaced "the intake air temperature sensor and the MAF sensors; however, the failure recurred," and a 2010 Volkswagen CC owner's dealer replaced the fuel pump, the airflow sensor and an air temperature sensor for stalling, and "the failure recurred."

The cheap cause that gets skipped. The two-wire test from Route 2. It separates the sensor from the circuit with a paper clip and a reader, and it is the difference between buying one part and buying two.

Fix it yourself — the honest split. A separate IAT sensor held by a grommet or a clip is often a driveway replacement; a combined airflow sensor usually is too, held by two screws, though at a higher price. What is not: a sensor under the intake manifold or behind a turbo pipe, or any job where a new part is a guess.

At the shop — say this: "Did the circuit pass the two-wire test at the plug — coldest reading unplugged, hottest when bridged — so that the sensor is the part left? On my engine, is the IAT a separate part or inside the airflow sensor, and what does each cost?"

Route 5 · Software, correlation codes and the engine behind the code — $0 to $200, or more

Two kinds of P0113 do not belong to the sensor at all: the ones the software sets wrongly, and the ones that ride along with a bigger fault.

What the documents show — software. 🟢 Toyota's T-SB-0110-15 for the 2015 Tacoma and 4Runner 1GR-FE: P011B, the coolant-and-intake-temperature correlation code, "when no part malfunction is present"; the engine computer logic "has been modified," a 0.4-hour reprogram under the Federal Emission Warranty of 8 years or 80,000 miles, and "The ECM (PCM) should NOT be replaced." 🟢 Land Rover's LTB00800NAS2 for the 2013-2015 LR2 and 2012-2013 Evoque 2.0L: P0116 and P011B "on start up after using Block Heater," caused by "an On-board Diagnostics (OBD) calibration error" — a block heater warms the coolant overnight while the intake air stays cold, exactly the kind of difference a correlation check is built to flag. 🟢 Hyundai's 24-FL-003H reprograms 2021-2023 Elantra and 2022-2023 Kona 1.6T engines for P011B and P050C among others. 🟢 Jeep's 18-040-26 reprograms the 2022 Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer 3.0L for P0111 and a long list of other codes. 🟢 GM's PIC5708D reprograms the Volt for P0111. 🟢 NHTSA's summaries of Ford's 2025-2026 release notes describe a "calibration for an enhanced Intake air temperature sensor performance" across 2021-2025 Ford and Lincoln trucks, SUVs and Mustangs; the note written for the 2025 Mustang tells owners it "resolves false engine warning light."

What the documents show — an air leak. 🟢 Jaguar's SSM73671 for the Ingenium 2.0L petrol lists one or more of P0100, P0111, P0113, P2178 and P0299 with a lack of power, and blames an intake elbow below the throttle body fitted incorrectly, found with a smoke tester. Jaguar does not say how the leak sets a circuit-high code; if the elbow is refitted and P0113 stays, test the IAT circuit as in Routes 1-3.

What the owners report — the crowd. In the 32 complaints about the intake sensor, 8 put an IAT code or sensor in a crowd of faults behind an engine or fuel problem. A 2019 Outback owner read P0177, P0174, P0102 and P0113 after a stall at 60 mph, and the dealer diagnosed a failed fuel pump and airflow sensor on a car that had already had fuel pump recall work under campaign 20V-218. A 2019 Accord 1.5T owner lists P0100, P0113 and P023D on an engine with a failed head gasket and a fuel pump recall, 23V-858, whose remedy, the owner writes, was not available to them for 18 months; the dealer blamed aftermarket parts and a missing turbo gasket. A 2011 Durango owner lists P0113 with P0300, P0304 and P0340 after a stall at 70 mph and a cleaned airflow sensor that changed nothing. And one more, coded elsewhere: a 2017 Corolla owner writes only: "CAR STALLED WHILE DRIVING. GAVE DTC P0113, P0013, P1603, P1605."

The cheap cause that gets skipped. The software level and the rest of the list. A reprogram fixes the codes that software set; a fuel, misfire or timing code beside P0113 is almost always the one to chase first.

Fix it yourself — what to write down. When the code set: first start of the morning, after a block heater, after a hot soak, after a fill-up; the outside temperature; and every other code on the list, with its status. That page separates Route 5 from Routes 1-4.

At the shop — say this: "Is there a software update or bulletin for this code on my VIN? And of all the codes stored, which one do you think caused the others — can we start there rather than with the IAT?"

The airflow connection: why P0113 travels with P0102

Nine of the 14 complaints that name P0113 also name an airflow code or the airflow sensor. Five name P0102 — four by number, one by its definition. That pairing has a likely explanation, and GM's PI1009 points to it.

🟢 GM's PI1009 lists what happens when the airflow sensor plug on its 2013-2014 V6s is disconnected with the key on: P0097, P00F4, P0113, P2229 and P0102. Read the two most familiar codes on that list side by side. P0102 is the airflow circuit reading low — no signal from the airflow element. P0113 is the temperature circuit reading high — an open temperature circuit. An unplugged combined sensor can set that pair. So when P0113 and P0102 arrive together on an engine whose IAT lives inside the airflow sensor, the first suspect is the thing they share: the plug, its terminals, the wires behind it, and the power and ground that feed it. Two failed sensors at once is the least likely reading.

What the owners report. A 2018 Nissan Kicks owner lists P0101, P0102 and P0113 after the ABS, forward collision and check engine lights came on and the engine shut off in Park, restarted and stalled again. A 2019 Kicks owner writes that the airflow and IAT codes keep returning and "Neither can be fixed by replacing these parts." A 2012 Rogue owner's mechanic replaced both, and "the failure recurred." A 2018 Prius owner saw P0113 and P0102 on starting the car in a garage at about 55°F and read that a weak 12-volt battery can trigger several codes at once; Toyota asked for a $110 diagnostic fee to look. A 2011 Malibu owner lists P0113 with P1668, writes that the airflow sensor was replaced "and issues have continued," and describes the engine control module shutting the engine down at 40 mph.

The Kicks, specifically. Our P0101 guide found that 14 of 21 Kicks complaints naming P0101 mention the collision or emergency braking warning, and that Nissan's bulletin NTB21-049 for 2018-2021 Kicks and 2020-2021 Versa names P0101 and P0507, a battery test, an idle air volume relearn and the throttle chamber. That bulletin does not name P0113, and we found no Nissan document that does. If your Kicks shows P0113 with the airflow codes, start with the connector and the battery, then ask for NTB21-049 by number.

The rule of thumb. Two codes from one housing: test the plug and its feed first. One code: test that circuit. Codes from several housings: Route 3.

The wrong sensor: outside air versus intake air

The most surprising result of reading all 52 complaints was how many were about a different part. Eleven were about the outside air temperature sensor — the one behind the bumper or in a door mirror that feeds the dash display and the climate control — or an evaporator temperature sensor in the A/C. Six more matched only because an owner typed "IAT" for "at." One quoted an IAT value from a freeze frame that was not a fault, one wrote a throttle code as "P112," and one did not say which sensor.

The confusion matters because the two parts cost very differently and live in different places. A 2016 Fiat 500X owner writes that the outside air sensor on their car sits in the door mirror, that the dealer "replace[s] this part at least once a month," and that they were told the total would be around $2,000 because the whole mirror had to be replaced and painted — for "a little $10 bit." A 2018 Journey owner was told the outside air sensor had failed, and the light went off by itself the next day. A 2021 Seltos owner replaced an A/C sensor for P0070 and the problem stayed; a mechanic blamed a circuit in the control module. A 2017 Escape owner paid over $1,400 for mouse-damaged wiring in the front bumper that included an air temperature sensor.

How to tell which one a quote means. The intake sensor's codes are P0110 to P0114 (and P0097, P0098 for a second one). The outside sensor's are P0070 to P0073 on many makes, or body codes such as Honda's B1227 in one complaint. If a quote says "air temperature sensor," ask which, and ask for the code it is fixing.

What 52 complaints about the intake air temperature sensor show

We searched every complaint for the IAT codes P0110 to P0114, P0097 and P0098, the word IAT, and the phrases "intake air temp" and "air temperature sensor," and read all 52 that matched.

The 14 that name P0113. Eleven by number and three by its definition — "intake air temperature sensor circuit high input" or a close variant. By maker: Nissan and Infiniti 4, Chevrolet 2, Dodge 2, Toyota 2, and one each from Jeep, Ford, Honda and Subaru. Five describe a stall, and three more a loss of power, a limp mode or a no-start. Nine also name an airflow code or the airflow sensor.

Why the file is so small. NHTSA is a safety agency, and people write to it when a car frightens them. An IAT fault on its own rarely changes how a car drives, so it rarely produces a complaint; the ones that do are mostly cars where P0113 arrived with something that did frighten the owner — a stall or a crowd of warning lights. That is a bias worth keeping in mind in both directions: the file overstates how dramatic P0113 is, and it tells us little about the ordinary, quiet P0113 that ends with a plug pushed home.

The honest limits. One reader, one pass, no second coder. At 32 relevant reports, every share here is rough. The coding of all 52 is published.

What the file does not contain: a price for this sensor

None of the 52 complaints prices an intake air temperature sensor repair. One names a fee tied to P0113: the $110 Toyota asked of the Prius owner above to diagnose P0113 and P0102. The other dollar figures belong to other things — the $2,000 mirror with an outside air sensor, $432.80 for ignition coils on a car that also showed an outside air sensor fault, $3,820 for a transmission, $310 for a CVT valve — and we do not use them as P0113 prices.

That is why the price ladder above carries the connector, wiring and airflow sensor figures from our other guides, and says plainly where we have no verified number. It may also say something about P0113's cost: one plausible reason owners do not write about the bill is that the bill was small, though the file cannot show it.

Why P0113 comes back after a new sensor

Why does P0113 come back after a new IAT sensor, and what should be checked before a second one? Usually because the circuit, not the sensor, was open. In the 17 manufacturer documents PulsCar read, the circuit-high code is traced to a sensor unplugged with the ignition on during service, terminals pushed out of the IAT connector on 2020-2023 Ram 1500s, wire strain at the plug on the 2015 Renegade, 2016 500X and 2015 ProMaster City, an inline connector shared with oxygen sensor wires, and loose engine grounds on 2024-2026 Explorers and Aviators. A new sensor plugged into any of those sets the same code. In the complaints, owners who replaced the IAT and airflow sensors, or the throttle body and pedal sensors, saw the fault return. Before a second sensor, ask for a pull test of the terminals, a two-wire test at the plug, the grounds and reference voltage, and a software check.

The other reasons, from the complaints: a sensor that keeps working loose from its housing, as the Wrangler owner found twice, and a code that was never the lead — riding along with a fuel pump, misfire or head gasket fault that the new sensor could not touch.

Can you drive with P0113?

Usually, yes. P0113 on its own rarely changes how the car drives.

P0113 alone, engine running normally. Drive it, and have it checked within a few weeks. It will fail an OBD emissions inspection where one is required, fuel economy may suffer, and the lit lamp hides any new code.

P0113 with airflow codes and a stall, hesitation or loss of power. Keep trips short and avoid situations where a stall is dangerous, such as merging or left turns across traffic, until it is diagnosed.

P0113 with an engine over-temperature warning, especially on a 2024-2026 Explorer or Aviator. Pull over and let the engine cool. Ford traces that combination to grounds that can stop the cooling fan.

P0113 with a flashing check engine light or misfire codes. Stop driving it hard, have it checked promptly, and read our flashing check engine light guide.

Can you drive with a P0113 code, and when should you stop? Usually yes: most engine computers substitute a default air temperature when the IAT circuit reads high, so the car drives normally, though it will fail an OBD emissions inspection and fuel economy can suffer. In PulsCar's reading of the 52 federal complaints about the intake air temperature sensor, the frightening cases were the ones where P0113 arrived with something else: five of the 14 that name P0113 describe a stall, usually alongside airflow, misfire or fuel codes. Treat the stall, not the IAT code, as the problem, and avoid merging or turning across traffic until it is diagnosed. On a 2024-2026 Explorer, Aviator or Police Interceptor Utility, P0113 with an over-temperature warning is different again: Ford's SSM 54774 traces it to loose grounds that can stop the cooling fan, so pull over and let the engine cool.

Should you buy a used car with a P0113 history?

Usually yes; this is rarely a costly code. Ask for the repair order: a reseated plug, a repaired terminal, a jumper harness or a software update is a closed case. Two or three sensors in a year is an open one, and points at the wiring. Look at the air filter box and the connectors on it for broken clips or taped wires. On a 2015 Renegade, 2016 500X or 2015 ProMaster City, ask whether the jumper harness bulletin was done. And if the history shows P0113 among many codes, ask what the lead code was and what fixed it.

Clearing P0113 before an inspection

Clearing the code turns the lamp off and resets the readiness monitors, and an inspection station will see monitors that have not completed. If the circuit is still open, P0113 returns quickly, often on the first start, because the engine computer checks the IAT circuit continuously. Fix the plug, pin, wire or ground, drive until the monitors report ready, and keep the repair order. A code that set once after service and never returned may simply need the drive cycles.

What a shop actually does with a P0113, checkpoint by checkpoint

1. Reads every code and the freeze frame, and notes which other circuits are complaining.
2. Reads the live IAT value against the coolant and outside temperatures after a cold soak.
3. Checks the VIN for bulletins, service messages and software updates.
4. Checks the connector: seated, locked, terminals pull-tested, no corrosion or spread sockets.
5. Runs the two-wire test at the plug: unplugged, bridged, watching the live value.
6. Checks reference voltage and ground at the plug, and the engine grounds named in any bulletin.
7. Inspects the harness for strain, chafing and rodent damage, including inline connectors.
8. Replaces the sensor, or the assembly it lives in, only then, and clears codes and confirms the live value.

Three P0113 traps that cost owners the most

Trap 1: the sensor before the plug. The code names a sensor, so a sensor is quoted, and on the documents above the plug, the pin or the ground is the likelier fault. Lesson: ask for the two-wire test and a pull test before the part.

Trap 2: the wrong air temperature sensor. Eleven of the 52 complaints were about the outside air sensor or an A/C evaporator sensor, and one owner faced a whole door mirror for it. Lesson: ask which sensor, and which code the quote is fixing.

Trap 3: the IAT code as the headline. In a crowd of codes after a stall, P0113 is the easiest to understand and the least likely to be the cause; on a 2024-2026 Explorer, the overheating warning next to it is the real message. Lesson: ask which code caused the others, and start there.

Three P0113 quotes, decoded

These are composite scenarios, not individual customers: each combines details that come up repeatedly in owner reports and shop quotes; the dollar ranges are the ⚪ ranges from the price ladder above.

Scenario 1: 2014 Chevrolet Traverse 3.6L, 71,000 miles, P0113, P0102 and P0097 the week after an oil change and air filter, quote for a new airflow sensor, $200-$400 in our guides. A second technician recognizes GM's PI1009, finds the airflow sensor plug resting on its tab without locking, clicks it home and clears the codes, for a short labor charge. Lesson: a code that follows a service visit starts at the plug that was touched.

Scenario 2: 2015 Ram ProMaster City 2.4L, 64,000 miles, P0113 that comes and goes, quote for a new IAT sensor. The shop follows 08-011-16's warning to inspect the wires at the IAT connector, finds a broken strand where the harness bends, repairs it and fits the 68301680AA jumper — a wiring repair in the $150-$500 range out of warranty. Lesson: the jumper prevents the strain; the wires are the repair.

Scenario 3: 2025 Ford Explorer, 18,000 miles, P0113 and P0217 with an overheating warning in summer traffic, quote for an IAT sensor and cooling system diagnosis. The dealer applies SSM 54774 first, finds a loose ground, tightens all four to 62 lb-in, and the fan runs again, under warranty. Lesson: when an IAT code arrives with a fan or overheating code, the ground is the part to check.

The P0113 plan: 10 minutes, today, this week

In the next 10 minutes: read every code; look at the live IAT value if your reader shows one; think about the last time the hood was open; press the airflow and IAT plugs home until they click; and if an overheating warning is on, pull over.

Today: find where your IAT lives in a parts diagram; clear the code and drive; and if it returns, run the VIN with a dealer for bulletins and software updates — on a 2015 Renegade, 2016 500X or ProMaster City, the jumper harness; on a 2020-2023 Ram 1500, the terminal case; on a 2024-2026 Explorer or Aviator, SSM 54774.

This week: have the connector pull-tested and the two-wire test done before any sensor is ordered; ask which part is being replaced — a separate sensor or an airflow assembly — and what each costs; and if P0113 is one of many codes, ask which one led.

If the engine also sounds different — a new whistle from the intake, a rattle or a rough idle — PulsCar's free sound check screens a 30-second recording of your car. It does not read codes; it is a second opinion on what the engine sounds like.

Sources and documents

Primary documents only. Where a claim in this guide is marked 🟢, it rests on one of the items below, and the reference is given so you can pull the document yourself. Claims marked ⚪ are shop-price estimates carried from PulsCar's repair guides — estimates, not measurements from a dataset we own.

1. FCA Service Bulletins 08-002-16 (Jeep Renegade, Fiat 500X), 08-121-15 and 08-011-16 (Ram ProMaster City); Stellantis STAR cases S2308000110 and S2308000118 (Ram 1500).
2. GM PI1009, PIC5708D and PIP6119.
3. Ford SSM 54774 and SSM 47057; Ford powertrain software release notes PT-25.8.0 (2025 Mustang) and PT-25.12.2 (2024 F-150), with NHTSA's summaries of 19 further Ford and Lincoln release notes.
4. Jaguar SSM73671; Land Rover LTB00800NAS2.
5. Toyota T-SB-0110-15; Hyundai 24-FL-003H; Jeep 18-040-26.
6. Nissan NTB21-049, as described in our P0101 guide (it does not name P0113).
7. 42 U.S.C. 7541(i)(1) and (i)(2): 2 years or 24,000 miles for emission-related parts; 8 years or 80,000 miles for the catalytic converter, electronic emissions control unit and onboard diagnostic device.
8. PulsCar analysis of NHTSA public data, September 2026: 11 complaints naming P0113, all 52 intake-air-temperature complaints read in full and coded, and the 17-document list. Data and method.

For the neighboring codes and symptoms: P0101 airflow, P0171 lean, P0128 coolant temperature, P0300 misfire, car stalls while driving, car jerking when accelerating, check engine light on and the code index. For the cars: Nissan Rogue, Chevrolet Malibu, Chevrolet Equinox, Ford Escape and Honda Accord.

Methodology. The complaint set is a full-text search of NHTSA's complaint file for the intake air temperature codes and wording listed above; all 52 matches were read in full and coded, and the coding is published. Every complaint quoted, and every dollar figure, was read in full. A search of NHTSA's recall file from 2010 for P0113 returns no campaigns. Manufacturer communications are those received by NHTSA from 2015 onward; some documents are older. Owner figures are not invoices. Nothing here is a failure rate.

Prices verified July to September 2026 in the repair guides they are carried from, and reviewed quarterly. Technical documents verified September 2026: the 17 documents in our published list — among them FCA 08-002-16 and 08-011-16, Stellantis S2308000110 and S2308000118, GM PI1009 and PIC5708D, Ford SSM 54774 and Jaguar SSM73671 — were downloaded from static.nhtsa.gov and read in full on 26 September 2026, when the complaint, recall and bulletin files behind our analysis were also queried.

Had a P0113 fixed by a plug, a terminal, a ground, a software update or a sensor? Email [email protected] with the vehicle, mileage and outcome.