failed CA smog check

[Jesus Garcia]

My 97 acura integra failed smog check for the first time since i purchased it new. So the first thing i did was take off the catalytic converter to take a look and see if it looked good. Best of my knowledge its looks fine but my knowledge of cars is not much so what do u guys think? (will post some pics). The only other thing would be to check O2 senors but I think i should just replace them. My car does have 247000 miles on it and the O2 senors are original to car. Any one have some advice for me?

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[Charles]

Throwing parts at it might get quite expensive. Maybe you could get a tech to diagnose the emission performance and narrow your focus.

[Joseph C]

Though I agree with Jotmon1, I think changing 02 sensor is what *most* people do when they get a P0420 code.. Then see if P0420 or other codes reappear. (If it does, then, most likely the cat has used up its efficiency, which trips up/throws the code to the computer.) My GMC does that, and it runs better than it ever has…

What did the CA people say? It’s only smog? How did your print-out look?

Here in NJ, I got a car to pass – after it failed – with super, super, mega thorough cleanings. Test was so clean the guy did it twice, as he was in disbelief (“Is this the same truck I tested two weeks ago?” kind of thing.)

In NJ, it’s 1997, so it’s OBD2, so all they do is plug in the computer and tell you if it passed or failed. 1995 and older? The tailpipe test.

[EricTheCarGuy]

You didn’t have to remove the catalytic converter to check it.

Please don’t make assumptions when it comes to diagnosing the problem. As pointed out, it can get quite expensive.

Also it would be helpful to know what measurement caused you to fail. If you posted your results we might have a better chance of helping you figure out the issue. In the mean time I recommend you read this over as it covers much of what you might need to look into.

http://www.ericthecarguy.com/faq/solving-automotive-performance-issues

Good luck and keep us posted.

[Jesus Garcia]

The measurement that caused the failure was a high NO number at 15 mph test. The max allow was 426 and the reading was 790. If my catalytic converter was bad wouldn’t have I not passed both the 15 mph and 25 mph test?

[Author]

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