Ernesto13B

iTrader: (4)

This first picture is my smog test result in June...... I failed

This SECIND picture is my smog test today after I fixed my air pump, and wiring, and made NO other changes. I noticed my CO2 (air/fuel mix) seems a LOT richer, O2 is WAAAY up, and NOX is also WAY UP. this makes no sense??? How did things get worse, anybody know what happened??

Ernesto13B

iTrader: (4)

I looked up my results just now, and found out that my o2 went Up MOST LIKEY because the air injection pump is now working, so that makes sense... and NOX went up possibly because of a leaner air/fuel mixture due to the air pump pushing more air. If you notice, the first test I took... HC's at 15 mph (1800 RPM) are "87" BARLEY passing, and HC's at 25mph (2900 RPM) are "59". Now SECOND test.... HC's at 15 mph (1750 RPM) are "70" which is BETTER then before.... and HC's at 25 mph (only at 2000 RPM this time??) are "66". I noticed that the test at 25mph was at 2900 RPM the first time, and only 2000 RPM the second time..Does this matter when it comes to the air injection pump?? sorry I hope I didnt confuse anybody lol

Six Rotors

iTrader: (17)

Air pump cut off is about 3250 rpm,except when engine coolant is below 59F and cut -off is about 3750 rpm.Basically the air pump cut off is to control catalytic converter temperature

Normally when you run the test at higher rpm the NOX goes up,all else being
equal.

Some other things to check:
-ensure your air filter is not restricted
-how are the spark plugs and wires?if this stuff is worn you will have high HC
-how clean is your oil?if it fuel contaminated change it

smog-guy707

iTrader: (11)

yeah it will make a difference. looks like he shifted to thrid gear the second test, when the car is reved higher the cat is hotter and more efficient

when is the last time you changed your plugs and wires?

moconnor

iTrader: (14)

As others have suggested, get new plugs and wires and change your oil. Also make sure the car is well warmed up before the test (20+ minutes of highway driving). If you still have a problem, I'd get a new O2 sensor.

Ernesto13B

iTrader: (4)

I last changed my oil last month and when it leaks out through the oil pan gasket, its gold instead of black so I think its good! and I actually changed my spark plugs and wires about 3000 miles ago (last year) They still look brank new. The air filter also I also changed about 3000 miles ago.

I mean think about it...My FIRST test @ 15 mph (1800 RPM) was 87 for HC's, and SECOND retest @ 15 mph (1750 RPM) is 70 for HC's (BETTER). NOW.... again My FIRST test @ 25 mph (2900 RPM) is 59 for HC's, and for my retest @ 25mph I got 66 for HC's BUT engine was only at 2000 RPM this time instead of 2900 RPM. The only reason why the 15 mph test was better this time around is because the engine RPM's were the same on both tests (1800 and 1750), AND my air pump is now working.... Now the engine RPM's for the 25mph test's were NOT the same, the first test was @ 2900 RPM, second test was @ 2000 RPM... Hope I didnt fry anybodys brain, but.... is anybody following me?

moconnor

iTrader: (14)

You should pass by a wide margin irrespective of the 25mph testing gear. How old is your O2 sensor?

Ernesto13B

iTrader: (4)

I found the paperwork, and the o2 sensor was replaced at 48757 miles, and the car has about 86000 miles now... So the o2 sensor is almost 40,000 miles old, its definitley not new, but I dont think thats the problem, there is no check engine light

moconnor

iTrader: (14)

That's pretty old for an FD sensor - remember it sits a few inches from the turbos. You don't necessarily get a CEL if it fails.

smog-guy707

iTrader: (11)

dude, your so close i think if you just warm up the car and he testes it in 2nd gear on both speeds you will be ok, if all else fails, a new cat will do it

RLaoFD

iTrader: (6)

his cat is brand new, but its custom. could that be a problem? it looked a lot smaller than a stock cat.

Ernesto13B

iTrader: (4)

The car was fully warmed up for sure, but the problem was that both tests were NOT performed the same way. The reason why I only had 59 for HC's in the first test, is because the engine speed was at 2900 RPM's at 25 mph. In the second test at 25 mph, I had 66 for HC's, but then again the engine speed was only about 2000 RPM's BIG difference. A way to prove my theory, is that my first test at 15 mph, I had 87 for HC's, and the engine speed was at 1800 RPM. The second test at 15 mph, I had 70 for HC's ( Noticably better), and the engine speed was at 1750 RPM ( 1750, 1800 same thing). So im gonna bring these result to the shop, and retest again, but make sure the test is performed the same way.

RLaoFD

iTrader: (6)

The higher rpm will cause a greater temp, which will make your cat function more efficiently, as someone already stated. You should pass.

Six Rotors

iTrader: (17)

Fuel also makes a difference----in our location Sunoco fuel usually produces cleaner exhaust gases.

jeff p

what are your mods , are you on the stock ecu?.

Jeff

Ernesto13B

iTrader: (4)

Ok there is good news and bad news!!!!!! The good news is, after I had them retest the car in second gear the car passed almost with flying colors, So now my car is finally legal!!! the BAD news is that I discovered I have a new coolant leak!!!!!!! time to start a new thread!!!!!!

smog-guy707

iTrader: (11)

congrats... sux bout the leak

Ernesto13B

iTrader: (4)

I cant let a coolant leak get me down though, I will fix it myself, it might take a long time cause I am meticulous but it will get done. Im just glad that I passed smog the CORRECT way, which means that every year, I dont have to sweat it when it comes to smog I can finally be relaxed and know I will pass

Ernesto13B

iTrader: (4)

Ok coolant leak finally fixed. All of my coolant hoses in the entire car are brand new at this point, including a new AST, and waterpump is in good shape. I wanted to get everything done all at once , cause I dont wanna mess around with coolant again for a long time ! lol anyway, yesterday I got a ticket for having an expired Florida registration, and I told the cop I was gonna get it done today, but he didnt believe me. Well it was only a fix it ticket, but watever, today I got my California registration finally, new tags, and a California licence plate.

Everybody kept telling me, " oh you will never get that car to pass smog" " Fixing the Air pump wont make a difference" "Its an old car, you might as well sell it" im thinking WOW talk about words of encouragement! lol anyways thanks for all the help

axnjaksn

iTrader: (2)

half a tank of gas, 1 gallon of de-natured alcohol in the tank, drive around for about an hour get the car nice and warm, operating temp, and get that cat nice and hot, pull into the smog shop and let ur car run till he puts it on the dyno, running the whole time and if its relatively close to stock should pass with flying colors, mine did with downpipe and high flow cat.....im in cali too

wstrohm

Ernesto,

The design of the internal portion of the catalytic converter on an FD is extremely important. On an OEM converter, the air injected by the secondary air pump is distributed evenly through the active catalyst. On some converters, the air is just injected into the can, period. If your converter is successfully burning all the O2 in the injected air, the measured O2 value at the tailpipe will be LOW, not HIGH. On our '94, I had a terrible time back in 2000, passing smog. The OEM cat was very old, and just missed HCs by a little. So I replaced plugs, wires, oil, and ran the car until the engine was quite hot. No go. So I bought an aftermarket cat, no other changes after the second failure, and failed worse! O2 was higher than with the OEM cat. So I bit the bullet and replaced the aftermarket cat with a new OEM cat, and flew through the tests. O2 was down to 0.0% during the last passing test with the OEM cat. Bottom line is that some aftermarket cats may cut it, but some definitely do NOT!

moconnor

iTrader: (14)

A new OEM cat? Why would you do that? The can be had for ~$100 used; aren't new ones $1000+?

Lots of people have passed California smog with aftermarket cats (the Bonez, for example, passes easily). I could not pass with an SMB high flow metallic cat but that is the only cat I know of that reliably fails. Most people don't pass smog because there is something wrong with their car.

wstrohm

Actually it was a new Bonez that failed my car. Perhaps they have re-designed their cat in the last 8 years, I don't know... I'm still running the OEM cat installed in 2000; have passed easily 3 times now; that's with a Bonez downpipe, no pre-cat. And yes, the OEM cat cost over $1300 in 2000. That's why I said "bit the bullet." I had tried four times to pass before installing the OEM cat. Car was running perfectly, it was just "dirty" combustion, like all rotaries. There wasn't anything else left to do.

Ernesto13B

iTrader: (4)

My Random Technology metalic cat cost $450, and before I fixed my air pump, I actually ALMOST passed smog which I found quite impressive. After I fixed my air pump, I passed with smog with flying colors. I still have the original LARGE Precat conveter on my car, only beause if I remove it, I may have boost problems, or need to get another ecu to control boost.

The precat seems to be in good shape though ( I removed it an looked inside with flashlight, and everything seemed in tact, no broken parts). Although I find it hard to believe that the precat can "break apart" because according to the FSM, the Precat has a metallic honycomb inside of it because of the heat it has to endure. The FSM says that the Midcat is monolithic( I think meaning ceramic?), but anyway a cheap after market cat should pass smog, as long as it has a port for air injection, well thats what I think anyway

RLaoFD

iTrader: (6)

Ernesto, removing the precat is vital to engine component life. It relieves the engine bay of quite a lot of heat.