ok so my car passes emissions but, "the idle is a bit too high, and there's a spacer on the throttle body" is what the smog guy told me.

the only thing I can think hes talking about is what I have pictured.....but it looks stock to me. what is it, is it indeed stock, and if I took it off would it cause problems for my car?

 

That is as stock as can be. The black spacer is a factory part. Download that part from the PARTS FISCHE who's location is on this forum.

Stock idle is 750-800 rpm and is in the free online FSM. Go take a look. I might be wrong just a tiny bit on the stock idle. Check the FSM.

 

Idle spec is 750 +- 50 RPM if you want to get technical. I seem to recall anything under 1000 RPM being fine for a smog test though. I might just depend on how much of an idiot the tech is. I once had a guy try to convince me that the charcoal canister wasn't supposed to have an open drain line on the bottom. It can be hilarious watching some of them look though the factory manual trying to find various emissions components.

 

thanks guys. Ill go for my retest Monday or sometime this week.

idles kinda rough in park at 750 -900 ish rpm, but its fine when I have it in drive.....how is that possible? (its an automatic BTW)

 

Wow that tech isn't a very bright one. I hope you are getting the retest done for free. A lot of times the increased load of having the transmission in drive will help take away misfires. Its a good trick when doing an idle emissions test.

 

The attached jpg came out of the 88 non turbo FSM. Shows the Automatic idle rpm in N range.

I'm not sure what the emissions testers use as the official idle rpms. I'd bet it's in the software they use to test the vehicle. It might vary from the FSM. Got me.

In TEXAS, when they do the test, the information is put into a computer and sent to AUSTIN Tx at the same time they do the test. That's what I understand about it. Might be wrong. Might be right. Just saying the tester might not have any flexibility as to what the idle speed should be if it's built into the software of the test equipment. You might ask him.

About the *spacer*/isolator. You might look into the FSM and find other jpgs that show it, to compliment the jpg I gave you of the parts fische.

 

what does "N Range" mean? (sorry I'm not the best at fixing this stuff)

 

Probably N range= Neutral.
Probably.

On the other hand, it's Japanese so it could mean "Ninja"....

 

During the testing procedure, after the emissions test has been run it asks a yes or nor question if the idle is within manufacturers range, followed by a question asking you to input the ignition timing of the vehicle.... The idle spec that is called out on the emissions decal located on the hood of the vehicle is what is used to determine correct idle speeds. If no emissions decal is present than the spec that is called out in the emissions applications guide is used. I have never heard of a technician failing a car because the idle is a little out of spec. That technician must either be really new, or extremely conscious about his vehicle testing due to a violation citation.

Again, I sure hope you are getting a free retest, as that is ridiculous that happened to you.

 

well, I agree...ever since I had to start adjusting my idle its unpredictable....could start it and it idles at 1500 in park, then later start it and its at 1000-1100... I dropped my idle to just below 1000, drove it over, shut off the engine, then restarted it...looked good. he went to put it on the dyno and the car was idling so low it didn't want to stay running......it failed the free retest because the car was too unstable and caused the machine to abort the test......$89 down the drain........well if I have a laps in judgment and try to fix this car I will NOT take it back to that guy...... I might just see if I could do the thing here in California where I can get $1000 because it wont pass smog......we'll see what happens I guess.

 

^ Wow that tech is a complete *****.... If the emissions do pass like you say just drive it down here to the bay area and I will smog the car hassle free.

 

I'm going to adjust the idle and make sure it doesn't change that much then take the car one city over to a shop that looks respectable (not just to the shop in town that my mom said "Hey I know there's a shop over here." man I hate this one horse town more and more every year I live here.) If I get crap about a "spacer" and idle again I'll spend the $50 in gas and drive down. thanks for the offer.

 

that spacer is a temperature barrier so heat from the throttle body doesn't bleed into the intake manifold or vise versa.

probably has something to do with the face that they're pumping 200 degree coolant through the throttle body

 

You think your smog tech was wrong? Ha! Last time i smogged my 89na the tech said it passed cleaner than the stock 2004 miata that hit the rollers right before me.

 

You'd be surprised - he may have been right. Never know what the other car's condition/maintenance was like.

(end off-topic)

 

The isolator has holes for the air and vacuum nipples. IF you remove it you have to make sure it does not get put in assbackwards.

 

funny this topic got brought back up...took my car in today and...

























... it failed.....for get this, the timing being off... when he clipped the timing gun on the spark plug wires it read like 3k but the idle was fine and it passed emissions again....... I'm getting tired of this...is that even a thing that could stop you from passing smog? is it really off? idle was at like 900-1000-ish

 

When you are setting your idle, are you setting the initial set connector? (green connector on right) Not doing this would help explain an unsteady/unpredictable idle. If your idle is still unsteady, you might want to look at adjusting the air bypass on top.

As to timing, no techs know rotary motors, you will have to explain a few things to them. The leading plugs (read front coil) fire twice per combustion (2nd time is cleanup spark.) The tech needs to pick up the signal from the rear coil. I suggest saying "put the inductive clip on either of those wires back there."

 

Well I have a friend in berkely that is closer to you than I am and he would be glad to smog your car hassle free.

 

I have just been adjusting the top needle.. and I didn't see a green connector.


can some one point out where I can find that info in the FSM or something (tried looking in the FSM and didn't find it.) just in case the guy doesn't believe me?

 

That would be the problem with your idle, look up the "initial set connector" in your FSM, you need to set this when doing timing or idle. It tells the ecu to forget about warmup procedure etc, and not to adjust while you are adjusting it.

At this point I would find a different place or at least a different person to get tested by. Almost every time the tech puts his reader on my dash it reports a bad idle, then he moves it once or twice and it all works fine.

 

can some one please point out where I can find that info in the FSM or something? I'm taking my car back for the free retest this weekend and don't want the guy to give me any more crap.

 

Did it fail the last time because the RPMs on his timing gun said it was at 3k or because the actual idle was at 3k?

 

timing gun said it was at 3k, idle was fine

 

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Ask him to connect to the Lead plug wires and then compare that reading to what is shown on your tachometer. THEN have him connect to the TRAIL sparkplug wires and compare his reading to the tach.

He'll readily see that when connected to the trail plugs, his instruments rpm match the cars tachometer and when he connects his instrument to the Lead sparkplug wires, the reading on his instrument will be twice the cars tachometer.

Trail sparkplugs are the upper sparkplugs and the Lead sparkplugs are the lower sparkplugs. This is for reference, although next to each sparkplug hole, there is a L or a T embossed in the rotor housing to ID the sparkplugs location.