Finally passed emissions!!!!

[SoCalZR1]

Today was a good day here in Southern California. The ZR-1 made it this time. Well within limits on NO and CO, a close call on HC, but it passed! Final config was:

New injectors
New O2 sensors (I don't think it made a difference)
New fuel pumps
New spark plugs (gapped to stock spec)
stock PROM
New gasoline
Cleaned and oiled K&N filter

And a different test station that kept air flow to the radiator as they should and so NO was well within limits.

Off to celebrate with some prime rib and a cocktail!

Mike

[bobbyhi]

Good to hear Mike - Congrats.... http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/4/4_1_112.gif (http://www.smileycentral.com/?partner=ZSzeb001_ZSYYYYYY23US)





http://www.smileycentral.com/sig.jsp?pc=ZSzeb114&pp=ZSYYYYYY23US (http://www.smileycentral.com/dl/index.jhtml?partner=ZSzeb114_ZSYYYYYY23US&utm_id=7922)

[tomtom72]

:handshak: =D>

Great news! I wonder how much of an influence the cooling air from the fan they did not use on the first test was?

[Ccmano]

Who did you use?
H
:cheers:

[SoCalZR1]

Who did you use?
H
:cheers:

It was AA Smog Test Only at 14501 Redhill Ave, in Tustin. Let me know if you need more info. I am not sure it mattered that much other than the tech was willing to communicate with me. I asked him if it mattered what gear he was in for the tests. He showed me that it did not as long as it stayed within a specified upper and lower limit. I saw the limits and he could and did stay in first gear. I think that helped for for 15 MPH. He was in second for 25MPH.

The tech had never tested a Vette, let alone a ZR-1. He almost wouldn't do it. I said I would help him, no problem. :)

Let me know if you need other info.

Mike

[SoCalZR1]

:handshak: =D>

Great news! I wonder how much of an influence the cooling air from the fan they did not use on the first test was?

I think quite a bit. As soon as the ambient temp dropped NO became a non issue.

[glkuntz]

I am struggling with a 90 ZR1 not passing the NO since The California EPA lowered the limits to 541 at 15 MPH and 498 at 25 MPH sometime in 2010.

The car has only 50K on it and nothing has been modified. I did replace the Injectors with Bosch II design from Fuel Injector Connection in 2008 and that made it a much better running car, and it still tests the same as it has for the last 5 years, but it will not meet the new standards.

Since you passed recently, do you know what standard your car was held to? The old standard was 772 at 15 MPH and 711 at 25 MPH.

It seems a lot of 90 and 91 ZR1 owners are having trouble meeting this new standard.

If I can get enough feedback I will look into filing a request for reconsideration of the limit with the state EPA.

[Z Factor]

.

Hello and welcome to the forum. :handshak:

:cheers:



I really feel sorry for you west coast brothers. We here in Florida do not have inspections of any kind, much less smog/emission inspections.

My ZR-1 came from CA and the first thing I did was take off the front license plate which we also are not required to have. I like to visit CA, but I doubt I will ever live there due to all the government regulation, taxes, etc.

[zr1don]

I have a 90 that has not passed smog since the new standards were implemented. It passed fine befor the change in standards. It has only 30,000 mi on the engine. It was due in November, I could not pass, I put new CA approved cats on it, have done all the usual, plugs, new gas, checked all vacume stuff for leaks, new pcv's. still could not pass. NOx was high, I retarded timing, got NOx in and HC went out. My current plan is to try a smog tuned chip. I thought states could not reduce (make smog limits more restrictive) but apparently CA is saying they are not making the standards more restrictive, only taking them back to what the standards were when the car was new. (sounds like making the standards more restrictive to me!!!) I will gladely join any effort to get the old standards back.

[GTOger]

Don (and others)
My 90 ZR-1 passed our Texas (Dallas/Ft Worth) emissions test with no worries. It can be done. I'll offer these suggestions based on my experience with various cars over the years, ranging from turbo 4 cyls to American muscle to British 6's and V12's.

1. First and foremost, make sure you're running right. If something isn't right with the engine, more than likely it's not going to pass. This should seem obvious but I've got pals who will take something that spits and coughs and then wonder why it flunked. Running clean, tuned up, purring like the pussycat you know it can be - that's the way to take it to the sniffer.

2. If the engine was designed with cats, make sure you're running cats. Again, seems obvious, but...

3. If the car has been sitting for some time with old gas, get all that old gas out one way or another. Drain the tank or drive it until it's gone. Fill up with a nice tank of fresh clean gas. I'm very agnostic when it comes to brands. Some guys swear by a specific brand purporting to have a special additive. I've seen a tanker go from a Chevron to an off-brand convenience store, so I have little faith in the marketing. Just use something from a nice station. You know it when you see it. Drive the car through at least that tank.

4. See if you can find a bottle of RXP gas additive. It's a little bitty orange bottle that costs about $8. You'll swear it's too small to do anything. Trust me, it does something. It's a very concentrated formula that will knock the carbon off the innards. Add it to a fresh tank. Do not be alarmed if you blow a bunch of black smoke for the next tank of gas. Important: Do NOT take the car to the sniffer on that tank of RXP gas. Everything that it cleans out has to be expelled someplace... it's through the exhaust. Wait 'til your next tank.

5. Run the car around. Don't just take it up the block and back, drive it around. Drive it around town, to work, on errands, to Grandma's house, whatever. Get it good and warmed up and exercise it. Give that nice gas and RXP a chance to do some magic. When you're done with the treated tank, fill up with some nice "plain" gas (no additive).

6. Once you've taken care of all of the above and you're ready for testing day, make sure you arrive at the sniffer nice and warmed up. I like to drive around for at least an hour or so. Your engine will run far cleaner hot than it does just started up. I don't typically smell very sweet or behave at my best when somebody first wakes me, and my cars are sort of the same. We take a while to get all limbered up.

Now I'm not from California so I can't speak from personal experience there. And I know your standards are more stringent than what we've got here in the Lone Star State. But hopefully you've got everything running right under the hood. I think that if you are, and you follow some of the common sense rules here, you may have a good result at your emissions test.

Best of luck!

Note: here's more on RXP: http://rxp.com/

[glkuntz]

ZR1 Don
I'm curious, where did you find Ca approved Cats for your 1990. The cats in a 1990 are part of the exhaust header and as far as I know they are not available from anyone. There is a Chey service bulletin which states that 1990 and 1991 ZR1's which need cat service should be updated to the 1993 and up total exhaust system.

If you added cats to the existing 1990 system they probably won't work as they will not get hot enough as they will be too far away from the engine.

Unfortunately many automotive supply houses list the standard 1990 ZR1 and the 1990 L98 as having the same exhaust system and if you believe them you could buy cats and install them and they wouldn't work.

If the car is in good tune and does not have blowby or other issues it should pass with good cats, but these are not available. There is a workaround to this problem. If you have a certified smog repair station certify that the car is working properly in every way but the problem is limited to the poor performance of the cats you can apply to a program called the BAR Parts Exemption Contractor, and they will give you a list of suppliers to contact to verify that the 1990 headers/cats are no longer available and when you have done that and provide them with the certification of cat problem from the smog station they will issue you a limited exemption for the cats.

With that in hand you take the car to a BAR Referee and they will inspect the car to verify that it has not been modified in any way and that all the factory equipment is in place and then they will run a standard smog test. If it fails that, as it no doubt will, they will give you certification based on the parts exemption that will allow you to register the vehicle.

This will allow you to get the car back on the road legally. The bad part is that you will have to go through this same process the next time you need to register the car.

I know the above works as I have just completed the process on my car and I am going back to the referee next week for the final time. I did not get the certification from the referee the first time as I did not have a receipt from a certified smog station indicating the cats were bad. I now have the limited exemption and the referee indicated that he will give me the certification once I give him the exemption and the receipt.

I wold recommend that You can go online and get a list of BAR approved Gold Seal smog stations and take your car there to have them very what the exact cause of the failure is. They can do two different tests to verify the cats are weak or bad.

I realize most of these problems have been caused by the more restrictive standards that are now being imposed as I stated in an earlier post. The excuse of going back to the original standards does not apply, in my opinion, as the original standards the cars had to meet did not include tests at speed only a part per mile spec. See:http://www.arb.ca.gov/msprog/onroad/cert/pcldtmdv/1990/gm_pc_p0060031_5d7_ta0.pdf

There is an ombudsman program with the BAR where complaints can be taken and I feel that if a data base of owners with cars that would have passed with the standards in place from last year were presented to the ombudsman we might have a case. Realize this would only bring the standards back to last year so the car still has to be in good shape. The case needs to be presented in a factual non threating or emotional manner.

I have all the documents from the BAR to backup everything I have stated in this post.

Sorry for the long message, but I have about 100 hours in dealing with this problem and I would like to prevent others from having to repeat my efforts.

Gary, 1990 ZR1 #556

[glkuntz]

SoCal ZR1

Congratulations on passing. You were very lucky. My car will also pass, after about $800 worth of fiddling around, but only when doing the 15MPH test in low gear. Unlike your test guy the state requires the test be done in 2cd gear and every station I have taken it to will only test it this way.

I would prefer to pass this way as opposed to using the Parts Exemption method that I have describe in a previous post. Anyone know of a Test Only station in Norther Calif that would test it in low gear. You may want to PM me with an answer to no get anyone in hot water.

Gary, ZR1 #556 glkuntz@aol.com

[zr1don]

Gary,

Thanks for all the info, the cats I purchased were magnaflow from a local muffler shop. They had a book with approved cats for each model engine and year. They could not be used w/stock 90 manifolds w/o serious mods to the manifold. I have SSW headers w/stock air injection tubes installed (all operational} and the test station I use did not question them on the visual. He did check the numbers on the cats. I agree, I do not think the cats located downstream from the headers work as well as the stock cats attached directly to the exhaust manifold. I would prefer not to go through all the referee procedure every two years, except as a last resort. I have found a couple of minor possible contributing factors that I have corrected and will be testing again to see if I can pass. I wouild like to join/support you with any action taken to get these standards changed.

[RedRiderZR1]

Its time for me to go through this again as well. Will be taking my 90 in soon to see how it does. Last time I took it in for a smog check it was way below average on everything. Smog guy was amazed. Will see how it goes this time. Car is stock except for Catback, X-pipe and DRM chip.

Will report back here how it does on the test.