OBD-II trouble code
P0263: Cylinder 1 Contribution/Balance
SAE J2012 APR2002: cylinder 1 contribution/balance. The 2007 Sierra balance window is +4 mm³ to -6.9 mm³ in Park or Neutral. The printed pair is one injector after compression tests normal.
Quick facts
- System
- Powertrain
- Category
- Fuel Injectors
- Severity
- Medium severity
- Drivable
- Usually safe to drive short-term
- Repair cost range
- $768 – $953 (one fuel injector replacement, parts and labor, after the 2007 Sierra test finds compression is not low; a filter, contaminated fuel, and a compression repair are outside this pair)
- DIY difficulty
- Shop recommended
Browse every code in P0200–P0299, or start from the full code library.
What does P0263 mean?
SAE J2012 APR2002 names P0263 Cylinder 1 Contribution/Balance. It is not P0261, which is cylinder 1 injector circuit low, and it is not P0262, circuit high. A contribution code can set with the injector circuit electrically intact.
The GM 6.5L balance description republished at dieselmechanic.info says the PCM trims fuel at each cylinder for a smooth idle, and this code sets when the fuel reduction for a cylinder exceeds an internal limit. The enable on that write-up is idle for more than 90 seconds total, misfire codes already run and passed, coolant at normal temperature, and a constant fault, met for 2 seconds. That write-up says the PCM does not illuminate the malfunction indicator lamp for this code. The balance test it describes looks for an rpm drop when the cylinder is cut; a drop means the cylinder is contributing. The diagnostic aids call malfunctioning nozzles the likely cause on that procedure, and they say several balance codes together with nothing found at the nozzles should send you to pinched feed lines or a restricted filter. That is one diesel calibration's wording, including the 'no lamp' sentence.
The 2007 GMC Sierra fuel-injector balance test uses a different number. Balance rates should be between +4 mm³ and -6.9 mm³ in Park or Neutral. Rates outside that may indicate contaminated fuel, in that procedure's words. The rates change between Neutral and Drive. They are an idle trim. A high balance rate points at an injector or at compression only if the ECM can control fuel pressure. The cylinder-power-balance portion can run from idle to wide-open throttle with a 5-minute limit, and the procedure says not to use cruise control during it. Cancelling a cylinder should feel like a misfire. No change identifies that cylinder. Then a compression test. If compression is low, the procedure leaves the injectors and goes to mechanical diagnosis. If compression is not low, it replaces the injectors on the cylinders with low contribution, high balance rates, or a noise or smoke change when cancelled. Record the feel or the trace. Do not perform the loaded portion while the driver is also watching the tool.
GM bulletin 19-NA-232, NHTSA MC-10168238, covers 2017–2020 Silverado and Sierra trucks with the L5D and L5P, plus the cab-chassis years that bulletin lists. It includes P0263 among codes that can sit with P0300 through P0308. The causes it names are an injector, an electrical issue, or loss of compression. The relative-compression setup pulls the fuel-pump control module B+ fuse so the engine cranks without fuel. That is not the 6.5L idle-trim test and not the Sierra +4 to -6.9 mm³ window.
The 2007 Jeep Compass and Patriot diesel manual, in the MK factory text, sets P0263 when the ECM detects multiple misfires from cylinder 1. That sentence is not the Sierra balance rate. Do not use +4 mm³ to -6.9 mm³ on that Jeep.
A spark plug is not the first part in any of these diesel procedures. No gasoline contribution pinpoint was in the documents read, so a plug is not added as the lead repair.
Common causes
- On the 6.5L write-up, fuel reduction at one cylinder past the internal limit, with nozzles named in the diagnostic aids
- Several 6.5L balance codes together, which that text sends toward pinched lines or a restricted filter when the nozzles check out
- A 2007 Sierra balance rate outside +4 mm³ to -6.9 mm³ in Park or Neutral, which that test says may be contaminated fuel
- A Sierra cylinder that does not change when it is cancelled, then low compression, which leaves the injector in place
- The same cancellation with compression that is not low, which replaces the injector on the weak cylinder
- On the 19-NA-232 trucks, an injector, an electrical fault, or lost compression, separated with a no-fuel relative-compression crank
- The Jeep MK sentence, multiple misfires from cylinder 1, which is not the millimetre window
Symptoms
- P0263 stored
- No lamp on the 6.5L write-up, which is not the same as a Sierra that has a misfire feel
- A balance rate outside +4 mm³ to -6.9 mm³ in Park or Neutral on the 2007 Sierra test
- No change in feel when cylinder 1 is cancelled
- P0300 through P0308 on a 19-NA-232 truck, which adds the relative-compression path
- P0261 or P0262 stored, which are circuit codes and come off this page
Diagnostic steps
- 1.If P0261 or P0262 is stored, diagnose the circuit code. Contribution is the row that can remain after the circuit tests pass.
- 2.On the 6.5L description, confirm the idle time, the passed misfire codes, and normal coolant before treating the code as current. Cut the cylinder and look for an rpm drop. No drop means it is not contributing. Several codes and sound nozzles: pinched lines or the filter, which is not the injector pair below.
- 3.On the 2007 Sierra test, read balance rates in Park or Neutral against +4 mm³ to -6.9 mm³. Do not use a Drive reading against that Park/Neutral window. Outside the window, that text says contaminated fuel is possible.
- 4.Cancel cylinders only with a passenger or a recording if the test is under load. No cruise control. Five minutes is that procedure's limit. No change when cylinder 1 is cancelled identifies it. Then compression. Low compression goes to mechanical diagnosis. Compression that is not low replaces the injector on the weak cylinder, and only if fuel pressure is under ECM control when you are using the balance rate that way.
- 5.On a 19-NA-232 L5D or L5P, pull the fuel-pump control module B+ fuse before the relative-compression crank so no fuel is delivered. That crank separates compression from an injector. It does not use the 6.5L 90-second idle enable.
- 6.Do not apply +4 mm³ to -6.9 mm³ to the 2007 Jeep diesel. That manual's set condition is multiple misfires from cylinder 1.
- 7.Depressurize before an injector is opened. The printed pair is one injector after the Sierra path finds compression intact. A filter, a compression repair, and contaminated fuel are outside it.
- 8.Verify with the same balance reading that failed, in Park or Neutral if that was the window, or with the relative-compression trace on the bulletin's trucks.
Repair cost
$768 – $953 (one fuel injector replacement, parts and labor, after the 2007 Sierra test finds compression is not low; a filter, contaminated fuel, and a compression repair are outside this pair)
RepairPal's fuel injector replacement, updated 3 September 2026, is $768–$953 (labor $304–$446, parts $464–$507). The printed pair is that national average and matches the Sierra step that replaces the injector when compression is not low. A fuel filter is $258–$322 and is the 6.5L restricted-filter path, outside this pair. Diagnosis is $125–$183 labor and is separate. A compression repair and contaminated-fuel service were searched for as their own injector or filter lines and do not have a separate total on this page. Other vehicle lines on the injector estimator are outside the pair. RepairPal says the replacement is not a DIY repair.
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DIY vs shop
Leave this one to a qualified shop. The barrier here is high-pressure fuel components, where residual pressure remains after shutdown and escaping fuel can penetrate skin. DIY attempts often produce a more expensive problem than the original code.