Failed CA smog by .17 on CO reading at cruise.

[hairy_apple]

Besides wishing a horible death to anyone who works for the EPA and CARB... I'm trying to do a little research so we don't have to dump a ton of money into a truck that is pretty beat to hell.

1982 pickup, 22r. Failed by .17 on the CO at the cruise reading. The idle and HC readings passed. He told me the carb most likely needs to be overhauled to fix it... however, that's going to cost a lot and I can't do that myself.

The truck has been on the border of failing for the last few years. Finally got there. The truck runs great, but the body is beat to hell. It's my girlfriend's truck and it's her baby but we can't see putting a ton of money into repairing the emissions junk.

Would a new cat help with the C0 readings at cruise? I know almost nothing about emissions crap but from what I'm reading tonight I'm getting a feeling it's worth a try before trusting someone who's going to make a lot of moeny doing it to overhaul a carb to make it pass.

Any ideas, thoughts, ect would be a lot of help. She's pretty upset about the idea of not having her truck right before summer... I can't blame her.

 

[bcstoy]

Here is what I do with the carb. I just take the top off carefully removing the links to the fast idle cam and the choke making sure I do not lose the hair pins that hold them to the top. Then remove all the top screws including the ones in the middle so I set the top aside and proceed to blow carburator cleaner in all the passages inside the carburator. Then I blow compressed air into it. After that put the top back and that does it with emissions. I had few instances where I have taken it three times but if it gets that far then I mess with the mixture screw which roughly is supposed to be about three turns before it runs out of room when going clockwise. I also suggest you change your PCV and clean your EGR passages behind the carburator and change your air & fuel filter. If your plugs are more close to 2 years then change them too. Also check the inside of your distributor to make sure it has not developed carbon tracks. I am almost sure that if you do these things the truck will make it. It is after doing this stuff that you mess withe the catalitic. Usually if the catalitic is bad you are more likely to fail more than one part of the emissions test. When you go for the test have about half of a tank of gas and make sure the truck is warmed up. I also like to hold my hand on the tail pipe and smell my hand if the truck is running good there should be no smell. But if it does chances are the truck will fail.

 

[hairy_apple]

Forgot to add that the plugs, wires, and air filter are all brand new. Distributor cap and rotor as well. I will try messing with the carb a little and see what happens. It just sucks it's $40 a pop and it adds up quick to keep failing and trying again tweeking it.

Thank you.

 

[axed existence]

around here (LA) a lot of smog places will retest for free if you fail. maybe there are some shops like that around your town?

 

[ToyotaDon]

You can put all your numbers in here: http://www.smogsite.com/calculators.html#lambda

It will tell you if you are rich or lean, then you can address the causes of that condition.

A new catalytic convertor will likely make it pass, but if things aren't right up top, that new cat won't last long. Then how much money have you spent for nothing?

 

[hairy_apple]

GF keeps everything for that truck (good idea but I'm too lazy) and she just pulled out the old smog tests from 2 years ago. It was WAY higher. It would have failed across the board in the city, but she moved to a differant county with less strict emssions standerds so it only failed on the one here.

Best part is the smog dude tweek with it yesterday trying to make it pass I guess and now it runs like poo poo when it was running aweosme before.

We also found a plug wire has a cut in it, looks like it hit the belt maybe. Going to replace that as well... maybe it wasn't firing 100% on that cylinder becuase of that and that would cause it to run rich... and I would think cause it to have emission issues across the board like it seems to be having. 2 years ago it passed with flying colors. Now it's really far from where it was 2 years ago, and it hasn't been driven that much. It goes to the dumps, camping, sometimes she just drives it on nice days... but not enough to have caused a major change I wouldn't think.

I think we are going to take the paperwork to the smog shop next to her work (NAPA) since they kinda know her and see if they can give us an idea what has happened. Since she gets a massive discount at NAPA and I can weld in the cat, it might be cost effective to just go ahead and put a new cat in it to get it to pass... putting a band aid on it I know, but at least we'd be able to use it again. Now the tags are out and it won't pass smog and camping is just around the cornor.

Thanks for the help. Going to clean the carb, replace the wire and see what happens. I think there are free retest stations around here, but I didn't take it to one becuase it passed so easy last time and now it was in a less strict county I didn't expect an issue...

 

[bcstoy]

Like I said given the fact that you are almost there leave the cat alone. Likely cleaning the carb will do it.
BTW make sure the gas level stays at the dot mark in the window with the truck running. When you take the top off if you turn the top upside down the float should look horizontal if it does not you may have to mess with its tabs to set it right. You neve said how much off it was from the standard applicable for the truck. One of the leading causes of high CO is a rich mixture.

 

[mattafact]

I just got my 85 pickup smogged and it was only high on the CO at 15mph. I had already rebuilt the carb, new rotor, cap, plug wires, pcv, etc.

Went out and got a new cat (found out the old one had a fat hole in it) and passed with flying colors.

 

[bcstoy]

Interesting, in my own experience of owning close to 15 toyotas and at least 6 nissans I have replaced the cat only once in an 84 4runner. And emissions in Phoenix are not like in Texas where they only check your wipers and blinking light. I have had like 3 tough ones that I retested 3 times before they made it. Having said that I should have mentioned that a visual inspection of the cat should flag issues for example if you tap it with a wooden block and hear things inside it means the cat has lost integrity. Also if you remove the back pipe and can see damage of the wire mesh and it seems to be too black then it very likely that the cat has seen better days. Overall emissions are not easy but a necessary evil so we help the environment to last. I may add that none touches my vehicles for repairs and I own a LC, 2 85's LB and an XCab, an 86 4runner and have a couple of projects 79 & 83 both LB.

 

[liveoak]

you failed by such a small amount if i was you i would run half can of seafoam with a full tank. wait until tank is almost empty fill it up again use the other half of the seafoam. make sure you have changed your oil recently and add some of that no smoke thick oil additive to help up the compression, change air filter and the most important of all is to run your truck hard just prior to the test get that cat to heat up and while you are waiting for the test keep the truck idling and never turn it off. my truck is always on the edge of failing. i just sit in my truck in the parking lot holding the pedal to achieve about 2000-2500 rpm waiting for my turn. having the truck at full operating temp can easily change the numbers in your favor. it's too bad you messed with the carb. you were so close.