OBD-II trouble code
P0281: Cylinder 7 Contribution/Balance
SAE J2012 APR2002: cylinder 7 contribution/balance. 17-NA-194 treats it as an induction leak on the LWN. The circuit codes are P0279 and P0280. The printed pair is one injector after compression is even.
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 19-NA-232 trace is even; the LWN charge-air leak 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 P0281 mean?
SAE J2012 APR2002 names P0281 Cylinder 7 Contribution/Balance. It is not the injector-circuit monitor. P0279 is circuit low and P0280 is circuit high. A VAG-group list prints 16665 P0281 as a deviation of fuel quantity injected on cylinder 7.
Bulletin 17-NA-194, NHTSA MC-10166641, includes P0281 in a long DTC list for 2016–2020 Chevrolet Colorado and Express and GMC Canyon and Savana with the 2.8L LWN diesel. The cause line is one sentence: the condition may be caused by an induction-system leak. The information line recommends Charge Air Cooler Diagnosis, the full-system air leak test. An injector is not what that bulletin orders.
Bulletin 19-NA-232, NHTSA MC-10168238, also includes P0281, on 2017–2020 Silverado and Sierra with the L5D and L5P and the cab-chassis years listed, together with P0300 through P0308. The three causes it names are a fuel injector, an electrical issue, and loss of cylinder compression. The crank uses the PicoScope across the battery after the fuel-pump control module B+ fuse is pulled, so the engine is not fueled. Collection time on that write-up is changed from 5 ms/div to 200 ms/div, and the crank is two to three seconds. The downward spikes are the comparison. A passing graph, in the bulletin's words, is not a reason to think anything is mechanically wrong.
LBT-149's Duramax balance test records cylinders 1–8, so cylinder 7 is inside it, at +4 mm³ to −4 mm³ in Neutral or Park and +6 mm³ to −6 mm³ in Drive. SB-10030789 stops at cylinder 4 and is not a cylinder 7 test. None of these papers leads with a spark plug.
Common causes
- On a 17-NA-194 LWN, an induction-system leak
- On a 19-NA-232 truck, loss of cylinder compression
- A fuel injector or an electrical fault after that battery-voltage trace looks even
- A Duramax cylinder 7 quantity outside the LBT-149 gear window that applies
Symptoms
- P0281 stored
- An LWN with another DTC from the 17-NA-194 list
- P0300 through P0308 beside P0281 on an L5D or L5P
- A balance rate that is inside the Park window and outside the Drive window, or the reverse
- P0280 stored, which is circuit high
Diagnostic steps
- 1.If P0279 or P0280 is stored, use that circuit page. Contribution is separate.
- 2.On a 2016–2020 LWN the bulletin names, do the full-system charge-air leak test before an injector is priced.
- 3.On a 19-NA-232 truck, set the scope to 200 ms/div, pull the FPCM B+ fuse, crank two to three seconds, stop the capture, save it, refit the fuse, clear codes the fuse-pull set. Compare downward spikes.
- 4.A weak spike goes to mechanical diagnosis. An even trace takes compression off the list and leaves the injector and the electrical path the bulletin names.
- 5.On the Duramax LBT-149 covers, keep Drive at +6 mm³ to −6 mm³ and Park or Neutral at +4 mm³ to −4 mm³. Do not read cylinder 7 from SB-10030789.
- 6.Depressurize before an injector is opened. The printed pair is one injector after compression is not low. The charge-air repair is outside it.
Repair cost
$768 – $953 (one fuel injector replacement, parts and labor, after the 19-NA-232 trace is even; the LWN charge-air leak and a compression repair are outside this pair)
Injector replacement, RepairPal national estimate updated 3 September 2026, is $768–$953 with labor $304–$446 and parts $464–$507. That is the printed pair for the injector still indicated after relative compression passes. 17-NA-194's leak repair has no sourced total on this page. Diagnosis is $125–$183 and is separate. The national filter price of $258–$322 was not a step in the bulletins read. The 2026 F-150 injector line at $1,130–$1,415 is outside the pair.
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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.