Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

[killerrudy]

Well I have failed 3 times now. Each time for the HC at idle. Max is 140. First trip I blew 360. Replaced the spark plugs. Then it went down to 160. The only thing that I changed from last year was the 255 fuel pump. So I thought maybe it was over running the stock fpr at idle. Picked up an adjustable and set it to 43. Failed HC 171. The guy let me run again and I turned the fp down to 20 and it still blew 170? I am dazed and confused. I passed last year no problems. Now I replace the fuel pump and my truck is pissed off? Suggestions? How else to lower unburnt fuel at idle? I pass everything else with flying colors. :rant:

 

[Luke]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

when was the last time you changed your oil?

 

[JuStBlAzIN]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

sounds like your cats and oil are bad.

 

[wildphil]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

One thing I have used is to unplug the tan wire we unplug to set out timing right before I run it thru. Then as soon as I drive it out I plug the wire back in. It runs real bad while unplugged. But it make a big difference on the smog test.

 

[wildphil]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

It may not work for you if thet look for a check engine light because it comes on with that wire unplugged. I don't think they really look for the CEL here. But I did take a piece of paper and cover that light up.

The timing could be retarded by turning the dist. But If you are going to go thru that much trouble. You would be better off trying to get it to pass without the tricks.

 

[Don W.]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

Ya, X2 on the smog guy. I found a cool guy (who owns a GN) who let me run my truck each time with the machine on "manual" which keeps the data from going to Sac. They're not supposed to do that from what I understand. :roll: Anyway, once we figured things out (it was the cat), ran the test and it passed. All it cost was 2 tests, first and last, and a dinner certificate at the end. :lol:

 

[It's just a six]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

Unpluging the tan wire & or retarding the timing works everytime .

Denatured alky in the gas tank helps a lot also.

You can raise the idle to 1000 rpm also, which helps smooth out the idle & less surging.

 

[gstjohn]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

There is a fuel additive called guaranteed to pass. It's made by CRC and it will drop everything down to the minimum. I had to put it in a few of my cars here in Colorado to make them pass when we had emissions testing a few years ago. The stuff works great and it won't harm cats, injectors or anything.

 

[It's just a six]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

I always set my idle to 1000-1100 & different test stations. Never anything said to me. Always since 1998. These are the strict state runned test only facilitys. I will go anywhere the closet smog staion is,does not matter which one I go to. I just smogged it a few months ago also,2009

You are correct,,,,Smog stations are supposed to look @ the timing also,but they dont. Or the CEL.

If your idle is set too high it will fail the test,but you will get an idea if it will pass (during the test) & the info is not sent to Sac Ca.

This is all my own personal experience.

When my Sy is set to pass smog & running correctly,it is worse to drive & is slower ,not as fun (it's liveable but,,,),it's always nicer to drive & a lot faster when it is not in the "smog mode"

 

[killerrudy]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

Here is the full report. I replaced the exhaust and cat when I bought the truck last January and passed smog just fine. Only thing I have upgraded on the truck is the fuel pump, and now the FPR.

test RPM CO% 02% HC(PPM) CO%

idle 837 14.3 0.6 171(120max) .74(1.0max)

2500 2441 14.6 0.4 59(180max) .63(1.0max)

Thanks for your guys help.

 

[wildphil]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

You are so close to passing. Did you get your truck good and warmed up before the test? That usually helps.

 

[killerrudy]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

You are so close to passing. Did you get your truck good and warmed up before the test? That usually helps.

Very warmed up. Did an oil change 300 miles ago, along with new plugs. Has a new cap and button and the plug wires had even been changed by the previous owner. Before the tuneup I blew a 388 at idle for HC! Grosse Polluter I am! I have always been good about oil changes, fluid top offs and such. I am very much for preventitive maintenance.

 

[It's just a six]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

What type of cat did you install?

There are high flow cats that will not pass smog tests,, IIRC something like 600 or higher the better for smog. Or was it 100,200 600 cell?

Cant remember 600 cell,,??,, 200 cell & lower are higher flowing but sometimes wont pass smog.

 

[killerrudy]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

I don't know what kind of cat it is. Just a 3in one that the exhaust shop put on. I passed with it last year so??? on that. Your numbers are way low! Maybe I have a crappy one. It was pretty cheap. The cat was only 150. I will shop around and see about getting a nice 3in one. Hopefully that helps. Thanks again guys

 

[midnightbluS10]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

Before spending more money, why not try what Dave suggested? Get the cat good and hot right before you test. Drive it hard for 15 or 20 minutes, then take it in immediately. No need to spend $ if you don't have to.

 

[gkrcr882]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

This is something from my school days, particularly when I was in fuel & emissions class:

CO2 = Efficiency indicator. Will be very high with efficient combustion
CO = Rich indicator.
O2 = Lean indicator. **Do not confuse a lean-high O2 reading with a high O2 false air reading)
HC = Misfire indicator. Unburned fuel.
NOx = Oxides of Nitrogen. Created when the engine is under load and combustion temperatures exceed 2500*F. Occurs during efficient combustion

 

[Espritmike]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

Killerrudy,
1. Is the car tagged as a gross polluter or was it a pre-test.2. Is it a test only? reason- I own a smog shop (test and repair) and can do it if not a gross polluter or test only. If not, her goes. You need to see cat efficiency. Easiest way is to run motor for 2-3 min at about 2500-3000 rpm with a 4-5 gas analyzer hooked up to tailpipe. Then immediatly shut motor off and disable ignition system (easiest way is to unplug coil wire). Then crank motor for about 5 seconds (ign disabled)and stop. for the next 2-3 seconds look at the CO2 reading on the analyzer should pop up to 13.5-14.5 %. If maxes out to 10-12% cat is not working. Also look at O2 reading on your test results should not be over 1-2%. If so cat is not absorbing oxygen= not working. High HC is in indicator of misfire , so check for lean misfire (vacuum leaks), too advanced timing,etc. sounds like you have checked most of it. Get the right guy to test it ,in gear, power braking up to 950-1000, that will clean it up too...Good luck-MIKE

 

[SloGN]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

Nobody has even mentioned what is the standard operating temps for the smog tests are?

You need to installed the factory 195 t-stat back in. The hotter collant temps will result in a lower HC and the fuell will evaporate better in the intake/cylinder for a cleaner burn.




I'm so glad that here in NC we don't have emissions testing. The closest thing we have is for obd2 testing that connects tot he car and verifies all the readiness tests have passed and no stored codes in the system.


95- older gets a safety inspection thats just a visual test.

 

[AWDcameoLSX]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

There is a fuel additive called guaranteed to pass. It's made by CRC and it will drop everything down to the minimum. I had to put it in a few of my cars here in Colorado to make them pass when we had emissions testing a few years ago. The stuff works great and it won't harm cats, injectors or anything.

+1 on that stuff works great. Turned my first car from blowing like 3 categories to a perfect pass and the truck never gained a problem from the additive.

 

[SY2455]

Re: Failed Smog again! I hate Cali when it comes to the Smog Nazi's

Nobody has even mentioned what is the standard operating temps for the smog tests are?

You need to installed the factory 195 t-stat back in. The hotter collant temps will result in a lower HC and the fuell will evaporate better in the intake/cylinder for a cleaner burn.




I'm so glad that here in NC we don't have emissions testing. The closest thing we have is for obd2 testing that connects tot he car and verifies all the readiness tests have passed and no stored codes in the system.


95- older gets a safety inspection thats just a visual test.

You can pass here in Calif with a 160 t-stat in as I have been doing it since I got my truck. You just need a good Cat and a good tune :tup:. On my last test my testing guy told me that I will be needing a new Cat for the next test in Feb 2010.