>Yesterday I went to have my California smog test done and am now it
>appears I am
>in Smog Check Hell! I tuned up my 67 series 5 using colortune and had
it
Wow, bummer.
>Apparently now the specs have changed because I failed on a high speed
>test that was not a part of the previous tests.
The smog test has been at idle, and at 2500 RPM for years, it looks like
your carb has changed, not the test. Thank your lucky stars they arent
testing for NOX. The Alpine has a nasty combustion chamber, and this
would not be in the favor of our cars.
What were the HC and CO figures at the time of failure(Idle and 2500
numbers)?
The gross pollutor spec is quite lax, and your car must be running very
poorly, or be rather modified not to pass.
I have helped quite a few people pass in cars ranging from simple cars
like alpines to high performance cars as well.
Since the engine is not loaded at the 2500 RPM test, it is the Idle jets
that need to be reduced in order to pass. The idle jets function up to
1/8 throttle through the progression system. Reduce the size of these,
and then reset the idle mixture adjustment screws before retest.
Here are some tips that really work for any car.
1) Never let the technician connect YOUR car to the machine, and begin
the testing without first running the machine in monitor mode.
This keeps you anonomous with respect to the state, and lets you know
what you are in for before they press the REAL button.
This is generally not in the best interest of the garage, because if the
vehicle fails
in monitor mode, they generally DONT get paid. Assure the mechanic that
you will pay the testing fee regardless of the pre-test outcome.
2) Retard you base timing by 2 degrees. This reduces the CO emmisions.
Never run your distributor advanced for a test.
3) If your car runs rich, go to the auto parts store, and buy a bottle
of
"Smog test" additive. These additives contain mostly Isopropyl alcohol,
which brings along some extra oxigen. The AF ratio for buring IsoPropyl
is about 7/1 as compared to 14.65 /1 with gasoline. This means that
running IsoPropyl in you car with standard jetting will result in a
leaner
burn. It also means that you will be making a ton of CO2, but guess
what?
They dont test for CO2!
4) Be sure the oil has just been changed. Oil absorbs the volitile
fallout
from the engines blowby. Smell your oil the next time you change it.
Its
loaded with HC's, that get into the intake through the PCV valve.
Hope this helps, and good luck.
Jarrid Gross
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