At 05:41 PM 10/12/2001 -0400, Greg Rowe wrote to: <rtgetzinger@scif.com>:
> >
>
>Did you ever consider trying one of those "Add To The Fuel Tank
>And We Guarantee You'll Pass Or Your Money Back" snake oils? B-)
In the '70s we got a car through the idle test by running it on a mixture
of 50% gas and 50% isopropanol (sp?) alcohol (dry gas). The tester
couldn't understand how a barely-running engine could be so "clean".
Another trick we would try back then was to pull out the choke on the
initial sniff test. Of course the emissions would be off the scale!
Tearfully (yeah right) we would beg the inspector for an immediate retest.
The readings would be quite a bit better (but of course we knew they
wouldn't meet the regulations). Often the inspector would pity the stupid
owner and pass the car...
Ever tried running through the sniffer with loose exhaust manifold
bolts? This would allow air to leak into the exhaust stream. More air =
less parts per million (PPM) (kind of a poor man's air pump). This one was
tricky, because too much exhaust noise would fail the car too -- it was a
delicate balance!
The last was to send my wife through the line with our rambunctious little
kids in the car. When the car failed, she would burst into tears "as she
had just paid a mechanic a lot of money to make it pass"! The Inspector
passed her, but told her to bring the car back to the mechanic to have it
done right. :)
Can't do that stuff nowadays....
Atwell Haines
'79 Spitfire (passes "fair and square")
Succasunna
NJ
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