Failed smog-need cat...

[dansgt]

so the 525 failed smog by hardly anything, my cat's on it's way out. Anyone know where I can get one under 200 for ca??

[tonyroc14]

i've got a feeling my car will not pass smog :(

[sancarlosscott]

If you can get the dealer to admit your cat is gone and you have <80K miles, by CA law, the dealer has to replace it. Just the part, not necessarily the labor. They did it for me a few years ago. Good luck.

[dansgt]

I've got 169k so no go lol. It'll probably cost me 300 to smog it now oh well.

[SpeedsterBek]

did you try any local exhaust shops? They might be able to weld a univerasal one to your car.

[nairmac]

Mine *barely* passed this year. Luckily a friend of mine was doing the test and saw how it was going, stopped the test before a fail, and ran it again once the car was warmed up. Apparently this works sometimes, I don't know why. So, custom exhaust for me next year....

[Binjammin]

If you can get the dealer to admit your cat is gone and you have <80K miles, by CA law, the dealer has to replace it. Just the part, not necessarily the labor. They did it for me a few years ago. Good luck.

It's not CA law, it's Federal law. It's 80k or 8 years, whichever comes first, and it applies to all emissions controls.

[Sixdown]

Mine *barely* passed this year. Luckily a friend of mine was doing the test and saw how it was going, stopped the test before a fail, and ran it again once the car was warmed up. Apparently this works sometimes, I don't know why. So, custom exhaust for me next year....
That's because you want your cat completely warmed up before a test. I take mine on the highway for at least 20min before any test. I learned this the annoying way in my old e28.

[David325e]

I live in Virgina, so no smog:D

But funny thing is, I have two receipts from the PO having the car tested by a private company? Once in 1995 and again in 2001.

[TouringDan]

Get new plugs, and change the oil. The key to these cars passing a smog is to get the cats HOT. Run it on the road for a good while, and bounce the car up into the R's a few times to really get the cats lit. Then drive straight on to the rollers - do NOT shut the car off.


I
But funny thing is, I have two receipts from the PO having the car tested by a private company? Once in 1995 and again in 2001.

That's because a smog test is a really good indicator of how the car is running and points you in the direction of things that need to be fixed. They are an excellent diagnostic tool.

[David325e]

That's because a smog test is a really good indicator of how the car is running and points you in the direction of things that need to be fixed. They are an excellent diagnostic tool.

True True, but what makes it even more odd is that no receipts for work come withing 6 months of those test. And, the first test the car actually failed one category at the slower engine speed. Oh well, have to add that to my list of things to ask them...

[dovstar]

Smog Test I will be seeing you tomorrow.

[funnyman06]

The smog place we go too will have you run the car at like 2500 rpms for like 10 minutes on the dyno before he runs the test, they really want the cats to be like 1100 degress, the hotter they are the better they work. But im guessing you could pull the factory one and put in i think its 2 aftermarket ones. We have had good luck with the Magnaflow Cats. I had 1 on my Jag and it worked perfect, car passed smog better than the bimmer ever has...

[dansgt]

i had been driving the car around all day, had maybe 10 min to cool before testing so i doubt that was the problem and the guy did rev it up a bit first, may not have helped, but if its goin out i'd rather replace it than ignore it.

[dansgt]

so i talked to the previous owner, he's sending me 126 back (all he says is left after school fees) to help with the repairs, so thats better than nothing.

[T444E]

Go to the adoption agency :dunno
http://www.catfacts.org/cat-facts.jpg

[dansgt]

i dont think that would smell very good after the first few minutes...

[Bill R]

It's not CA law, it's Federal law. It's 80k or 8 years, whichever comes first, and it applies to all emissions controls.

Sorry Bin, that federal law only applies to 95 and newer cars and it only covers 3 major systems after the first 24 months 24kmiles.. the 3 systems it covers are the Cat, the Engine computer and the onboard emissions diagnostic computer.


i had been driving the car around all day, had maybe 10 min to cool before testing so i doubt that was the problem and the guy did rev it up a bit first, may not have helped, but if its goin out i'd rather replace it than ignore it.

Nope, that is the problem, you need to run it hard at high rpm just before you go into emissions and not let it sit or cool down if possible. Virtually all of them will pass like this on the older bmw's. Here we take it to the test station after a failure and they will let us warm it up good and get it hot to pass before testing after you have one failure. But each state is different

[sfgearhead]

i had been driving the car around all day, had maybe 10 min to cool before testing so i doubt that was the problem and the guy did rev it up a bit first, may not have helped, but if its goin out i'd rather replace it than ignore it.

10 min will allow a lot of cooling. As others have said, run it hard on the freeway before the test, then keep it on while you're waiting, ideally above idle if possible.

If you just barely failed then you'll probably pass this way. Clean oil and plugs will help too.

As long as the cat isn't plugging up, why replace it sooner than needed?

[dansgt]

to make sure i wont have problems in the future. imma have the shop test it again and see before i do any repairs, if they will...

[sfgearhead]

I'm pretty sure you're allowed at least one re-test, from my CA days.

[dansgt]

its up to the shop. this one will retest it sat without any work cuz i told em i didnt trust the results haha. most shops retest only if they do the work.

[skylinergtr]

check your plugs, filters, and o2 sensors. Maybe drive the living piss out of it before you go for smog test. put a liter of methyle hydrate in your gas tank as it helps your emissions. If you fail again look around a new cat. if you can i suggest magnaflow high-flow cats. good luck.

[dansgt]

wanna change the plugs, how big a difference will that make? which ones should i go with? the magnaflow cats the only one that ive found thats ca legal now.

[skylinergtr]

get the regular ones that the car recommends. You can ask the dealer or check online. They are copper and good and inexpensive. They can make a difference if they are really old. How badly did your car fail? if it was close i would change the plugs, clean the intake, pour some methyl hydrate and drive the piss out of it.

[dansgt]

not by much, ill get the paper at lunch and post it since i drove that car today. you think it'd be worth it to get iridium's? i've run em before and liked em, just dont know how they act in these cars...

[dansgt]

heres the smog info
http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/1100/smog.jpg
think plugs and gettin it hot will make it pass?

[David325e]

Stick with the old school stock Bosch plugs. Finicky old engines are made for finicky old plugs. Back when they came out a newb would show up every few months with a problem that would be traced to the iridium or platinum plugs.

[moroza]

You're simultaneously emitting more HC and more NOx than allowed. The former is generally from running rich, the latter from running lean. Spark plugs are a very likely cause of running rich, and you should replace them anyway if they're old. Use OEM Bosch... whatever that number is, I forget. It's possible that the plugs have something to do with running lean, but that makes less sense - running rich And putting out that much NOx suggest the cats are bad. If you have free retests available, do the plugs alone and test it like that. Otherwise, replace the cat.

[dansgt]

yea there gonna retest it because i told em i didnt trust the results because it sat to long cooling down. so if i put in oe plugs and let it get nice and hot should help right? what about doing a 3 step fuel system cleaning that do anything? i want to do that anyways, but dont know if it'll make any difference. (never took the time to learn about smog related stuff haha)

[TouringDan]

Might want to change out your O2 sensor as well, before you drop the coin on a cat

[dansgt]

but should i pass with just pulgs and lettin her get hot? im kind of broke here...
http://shop.oreillyauto.com/ProductDetail.aspx?MfrCode=BOS&MfrPartNumber=F7LDCR&PartType=960&PTSet=A
that the right plug?

[moroza]

If they'll retest it for free, just do the plugs and drive the piss out of the car for a good 15 minutes before heading straight for the roller. I think there's a decent chance that you'll pass with that alone.

If they charge you per test, find another shop.

I cannot overemphasize how important it is that everything be warmed up as fully as possible.

[dansgt]

imma try that, drive it hard on the freeway than have it tested. you think the fuel system cleaning will help or not?

[moroza]

Cleaning the injectors will likely help. Cleaning the rest (pump, lines), probably not.

I have E39 540i cats for sale if you end up needing them.

[dansgt]

i wanna do the full service on it because im sure it needs it, and i know itll help it run smoother(though it runs great as is). the e39 have the same cats? ca or 49 state ones?

[moroza]

The cats are not the same in terms of part number. An exhaust shop should be able to install them, however. They flow well and do the job. I'm in Norcal and these passed smog up here. I can get pics up tonight if you like.

[dansgt]

ya pm me pics and price. i dont want to spend 300 putting on a new cat on a car i spent 1k on...though if i restore the interior i really wont have anything to complain about with this car...

[dansgt]

still failed...

[TouringDan]

still failed...

What did you do to it in terms of tuning-up?

[dansgt]

changed the plugs and air filter (oil was just changed before i bought the car) and got it nice and hot before the test. got the same results.

[TouringDan]

Change the 02 sensor. It's 100 and an easy DIY

[dansgt]

problem is thats not a guarantee pass...