Failed California Smog!!

FastGT02 · Aug 31, 2008

Well, I had a friend who knew that i wouldn't pass the visual, smog my car for me. Guess what, It failed the machine test... Uhhhh. He would look past the fact that I had a catted X-pipe on my car, however it failed the computer system. I was under the impression this thing would pass everything in California but the Visual. Am i wrong, or is there something wrong with my car?? My mods are in my sig, not too mention i put back on my stock Maf system just in case. Any help as to why this happened? Thank goodness he did a pre-test, so that Sacramento has no record of me failing anything....

CobraRed_96_GT · Aug 31, 2008

You need you stock mid-pipe to pass. I put mine on every other year for it.

blubullett · Aug 31, 2008

You need 4 low flo cats not 2 high flow ones. AKA stock h-pipe. My car passed with flying colors with all my mods but the stock h-pipe swaped back in.

bdcardinal · Aug 31, 2008

what was the real reason for the failure, did you have stored codes, or did you fail tailpipe?

blubullett · Aug 31, 2008

bdcardinal said:
what was the real reason for the failure, did you have stored codes, or did you fail tailpipe?

He said he failed the machine test so i assume that means tailpipe.

bdcardinal · Aug 31, 2008

machine test can also include the OBDII portion, as both are out of the operators hands to interfere with.

FastGT02 · Aug 31, 2008

It was tailpipe. As far as the max readings go.... The max for 15mph is 52. I measured 58. For 25mph the max is 36 i measured 45. I was kinda shocked.. I totally thought the catted x would pass diagnostics. I just changed the oil and beat the crap out of it the way there. Oh well. Just kind of ticks me off. He told me how mustangs have tougher emissions than most cars. I was surprised to learn this.. Im just mad that a 1980 Nissan blowing black smoke will pass with flying colors yet i get the shaft. Oh well. Thats life, guess.

myponyrocks · Aug 31, 2008

Sounds to me like you let the cats cool down before you tested?

darkside03gt · Aug 31, 2008

you need to put the stock h-pipe back on in order to pass. some have passed with catted h and x pipes but by the skin of there teeth.

Mustang5L5 · Aug 31, 2008

Did you reset the computer prior to heading in? I beleive if the computer was reset soon before a test it will pass a fail code.

FastGT02 · Aug 31, 2008

No, i didn't touch the computer. The car didn't cool down at all, it came right from the freeway in 3rd gear without being shut down onto the machine. I at least thought the numbers would be close..

blubullett · Aug 31, 2008

My car with the stock read at the lowest portion of the emmisions scale, I dont think I had anything over single didgets. Just put your stocker back on and you will be fine.

trinity_gt · Aug 31, 2008

I've got Comp 262AH cams and assorted bolt-ons on my 02 GT and failed the sniffer test here in Ontario badly. At 40KPH, the readings were:

HC: 52ppm (limit 52)
CO: 0.01% (limit 0.29)
NO: 70ppm (limit 385)

So far so good, if a squeaker. Then they let it idle down and measure curb idle output:

HC: 772ppm (limit 150)
CO: 0.12% (limit 0.70)
NO: n/a

When I put my factory H back on, the numbers looked like this:

HC: 7ppm (limit 52)
CO: 0.01% (limit 0.29)
NO: 6ppm (limit 385)

and

HC: 7ppm (limit 150)
CO: 0.03% (limit 0.70)
NO: n/a

Put your factory H back on. The cats are superior (in terms of emissions control) to the high-flow stuff.

blubullett · Aug 31, 2008

trinity_gt said:
I've got Comp 262AH cams and assorted bolt-ons on my 02 GT and failed the sniffer test here in Ontario badly. At 40KPH, the readings were:

HC: 52ppm (limit 52)
CO: 0.01% (limit 0.29)
NO: 70ppm (limit 385)

So far so good, if a squeaker. Then they let it idle down and measure curb idle output:

HC: 772ppm (limit 150)
CO: 0.12% (limit 0.70)
NO: n/a

When I put my factory H back on, the numbers looked like this:

HC: 7ppm (limit 52)
CO: 0.01% (limit 0.29)
NO: 6ppm (limit 385)

and

HC: 7ppm (limit 150)
CO: 0.03% (limit 0.70)
NO: n/a

Put your factory H back on. The cats are superior (in terms of emissions control) to the high-flow stuff.

looks like Im getting the 262s. I had heard you could pass with them but had never seen actual emmissions numbers.

PULMEOVR · Sep 1, 2008

trinity_gt said:
I've got Comp 262AH cams and assorted bolt-ons on my 02 GT and failed the sniffer test here in Ontario badly. At 40KPH, the readings were:

HC: 52ppm (limit 52)
CO: 0.01% (limit 0.29)
NO: 70ppm (limit 385)

So far so good, if a squeaker. Then they let it idle down and measure curb idle output:

HC: 772ppm (limit 150)
CO: 0.12% (limit 0.70)
NO: n/a

When I put my factory H back on, the numbers looked like this:

HC: 7ppm (limit 52)
CO: 0.01% (limit 0.29)
NO: 6ppm (limit 385)

and

HC: 7ppm (limit 150)
CO: 0.03% (limit 0.70)
NO: n/a

Put your factory H back on. The cats are superior (in terms of emissions control) to the high-flow stuff.

What high-flow mid-pipe did you have for emissions testing? I'm also from Ontario and I barely passed the emissions test with my MAC catted Prochamber. Hopefully I can pass again in 2009!

Matt

FastGT02 · Sep 1, 2008

I assume that California is on the strictest testing system? Does this mean that my car would most likely pass in other states other than California?

trinity_gt · Sep 1, 2008

PULMEOVR said:
What high-flow mid-pipe did you have for emissions testing? I'm also from Ontario and I barely passed the emissions test with my MAC catted Prochamber. Hopefully I can pass again in 2009!

Matt

MRT catted H. Shortly after it was first installed, I DriveCleaned it and it passed, barely. Since then I'd put the cams in it and put maybe 15,000KMs. If it was marginal new, it's not really surprising it's a fail after a few KMs and a set of mild cams...

trinity_gt · Sep 1, 2008

FastGT02 said:
I assume that California is on the strictest testing system? Does this mean that my car would most likely pass in other states other than California?

Probably not. I'm in Canada and it sounds like we're using similar limits to you (i.e. at 40KPH, about 25MPH, our HC limit is 52ppm, same as yours.) I imagine other states with sniffer inspections will have the same limits.

I'm surprised you were okay on inspection. I thought they'd ding you for that. Up here I've heard of MoE (Ministry of the Environment) cars pulling over a Mustang and the driver being given the gears for having the incorrect mid-pipe on. The one story I heard was that the MoE guy knew that particular year of Mustang came with a 4-cat midpipe and he only saw two on the car. I thought Cali would be even more strict.

2000GTdriver · Sep 1, 2008

FastGT02 said:
I assume that California is on the strictest testing system? Does this mean that my car would most likely pass in other states other than California?

We have pretty much the same emission standards here in the Denver area as you describe for Cali and Canada. I have heard that high-flow cats will probably fail the tailpipe test and will surely fail the visual one. The good news is that they are experimenting with a new test that uses a mobile van to measure emissions as you drive by on the highway. I actually passed my last test this way so it eliminates the visual check. On the other hand, if you like to drive around with an off-road pipe without cats and only swap on the real one for annual testing you will probably get caught and recieve a notice in the mail to report to your local emissions check station. In the future the drive-by vans are supposed to replace the other system, and would not "pass" cars but would only flag ones that fail. Of course the guys that own the shops that run the current roller test are fighting hard against any changes.

blubullett · Sep 1, 2008

California also has mobile smog stations which is like a portable dyno that they will set up on the side of the road and a cop will "randomly" pull people over to check them. I saw them once but they had one car on it and another waiting behind it so I didnt get pulled over.

Failed California Smog!!

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