Passing Ontario emissions with my 94' Corolla

[bluetoon]

Just bought this bad boy and went to get it tested for emissions and failed. It doesn't seem to be by a whole lot and I've heard the tests are finicky and it's likely because I went in cold. I'm thinking of going again Monday after driving around the highway for a good half hour.

Now my questions is in regards to the alcohol trick, the one where you put in a litre of alcohol when you're low on gas and then get your emissions test done. Does it make a huge improvement? Does it harm my car? What percentage of alcohol should be used?

Any help is appreciated as well as any other tips for my particular model.

[PhatRoyale]

You should scan your test results and post them here.

It will help others figure out where the problem might be coming from.

[Callum3]

Make sure that if the car was sitting for awhile that you use all the old fuel in the tank and have fresh fuel for the test. This worked for a buddy of mine in his Mazda MX-6

[bluetoon]

I ran through the first tank of gas already. I bought the premium gas from Husky and also added fuel injector cleaner because my mechanic had just cleaned mine out after one of the cyclinders wasn't firing properly (or at all, I forget which). I added in the premium gas from Esso today as well as another shot of fuel injector cleaner (the car is still stuttering a bit before I hit 30-40km/h) and went in after driving around for about an hour. Passed one of the sections where I previously failed and improved in some areas but still failed the overall test. I also noticed that when my car is stopped the engine engine doesn't have a constant vibration, it feels like a heartbeat sometimes.

How long should this particular model be run for to make it hot enough when I send it in? Should it be highway driving? Will that be enough to make me pass or is it a waste to get it tested again until I get a diagnostic done?

Anyways, here are the pictures of the first and second test results. The first time I went in cold, having done no research on the emissions test. I drove the car for about 15 minutes to get there and that's about it. The second time I did a little more driving, for about an hour but there was traffic so I don't think it really made a difference. I revved it for a few minutes in the parking lot too.

First


and second

[PhatRoyale]

When was the last time you had a full tune up done?

Did you have the timing checked?

How old is the catalytic converter on the car?

As for other preparation tips, you want to run the car HARD at wide open throttle on the highway (adhering to speed limits and laws though of course), for an extended period, a good 30-40minutes minimum to get the catalytic converter temperature nice and hot. Go directly to the testing center and leave the car running. DO NOT SHUT IT OFF. If you have to wait for someone else then revving it for a bit while idling will help keep the cat temps up.

If this fails, then your cat will likely need to be replaced.

[bluetoon]

I'm very uneducated when it comes to cars so bear with me. I had my mechanic take a look at it and he said it looked good. He didn't do a full tune up, just took it for a quick drive, replaced the spark plugs and cleaned the fuel injectors out for me and said it was in good condition.

The basic story of the car is this. It was purchased from a coworker of my mother's. She is the original owner of the car. It hasn't been in any accidents and had the breaks, battery and some of the engine wires replaced and then it was left in a garage for the last year. She says she'd start the car once a week, every week for the last year and only hasn't done so in the last month or two. According to my mechanic she drove it like an old lady and it's suffered some because of it.

My mechanic is currently out of town and I've only got a few days left with my temporary sticker and my problem is that I won't be able to pay for any repairs or even a tune up until Friday (the last day I can actually drive the car before the sticker expires). It's a little bit stressful and I don't mind putting up some cash to have the car work properly but I'm totally lost when it comes to these kinds of things.

Originally Posted by PhatRoyale

When was the last time you had a full tune up done?

Did you have the timing checked?

How old is the catalytic converter on the car?

As for other preparation tips, you want to run the car HARD at wide open throttle on the highway (adhering to speed limits and laws though of course), for an extended period, a good 30-40minutes minimum to get the catalytic converter temperature nice and hot. Go directly to the testing center and leave the car running. DO NOT SHUT IT OFF. If you have to wait for someone else then revving it for a bit while idling will help keep the cat temps up.

If this fails, then your cat will likely need to be replaced.

[PhatRoyale]

We all have to start somewhere.

Chances are the catalytic converter's gone bad if it hasn't been replaced before, due to age and normal wear and tear. Here's a little bit of reading for you to familiarize yourself: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalytic_converter

Everything else sounds like it's in good condition from your description.

Let us know how things work out and what your mechanic finds when he returns. I'd bring the test results and show him those as well.

[bluetoon]

So I think I'll give the test one more try after a good run on the highway and see how it works out for me. I think I'll try another emissions testing place in the area as well (there's one around the corner from me I haven't tried). Otherwise I'll have the cat looked at and go from there then.

Have you got any other tips or tricks for the test I should use? I'm very happy with this car otherwise and I've been told that Toyota's are built to last if you look after them.

Originally Posted by PhatRoyale

We all have to start somewhere.

Chances are the catalytic converter's gone bad if it hasn't been replaced before, due to age and normal wear and tear. Here's a little bit of reading for you to familiarize yourself: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalytic_converter

Everything else sounds like it's in good condition from your description.

Let us know how things work out and what your mechanic finds when he returns. I'd bring the test results and show him those as well.

[PhatRoyale]

Try to go to a location that has only a testing facility available.

Maybe get an oil change done if you're due for one soon. Other than that, if you have no check engine or other warning lights on then you should be good to go.

I went through the same process this year over the summer when I had to renew the plates on mine. Turns out my cat was done and needed replacing. Ran the test again and it passed with flying colours.

Toyota's built during the mid-90's were pretty special and definitely known for their reliability and durability. If you keep up with maintenance and replacement of normal wear and tear items then the car you have will pretty much run forever. Preventing rust and corrosion are pretty much the only things that you will have to worry about in Ontario due to the amount of salt they use on the roads in winter.

[bluetoon]

So I've decided I'm going to get the cat replaced since it will likely solve the emissions problem as well as the stuttering issue my car has sometimes too. I appreciate all the help that's been provided thus far, thank you. I'll keep you guys posted on the results.

[Bitter]

NO just barely failing could be a cat at the end of its life. check the EGR system as well for slight blockages and make sure the plugs are the right heat range. would not hurt to "steam clean" the top end to reduce carbon.

[4doorGTS]

there is only a few things that could contribute to failing NO on the test one of them is high combustion chamber temps as bitter mentioned. It also seems from your tests that when you got more heat into the cat it responed more meaning that it is functioning somewhat (enough to pass) so save your money there and put some water or something like seafoam through the intake to clean out deposits on valves and pistons your mechanic can handle this, and get him to check/clean the egr system as this would also contribute to failing NO.

If you want to pass on the cheap I have *heard* that adding 30% toluene to the gas tank works wonders and I will guarentee it will pass. so assuming the ae101 has a roughly 40L tank drive the car untill it needs gas and put the recommended octane in(no need for anything else and no other additives) of 20L and then add 10L of toluene drive the car for half an hour at highway speeds then take the car in to get tested right away(make an appointment so they will test it as soon as you arrive) if they can't test it right away keep it around 2500rpm until they can. it will pass.

and don't worry about anything I just mentioned as being dangerous, our regular gasoline we use everyday is made up of an aromatic hydrocarbon aka toluene, it was also used in f1 turbo cars back in the day. good luck.

[4doorGTS]

one more factor I somehow forgot was to ensure timing is set properly, from your tests you should be ok by taking option number 2 but if you do take it in to a mechanic get him to check it anyways as this can play a huge effect in the emission testing.

[zythr]

They're trying to tell you in a nice way, you should have got the OB II Corolla

[Bitter]

its not toulene you want, its alcohol. that will lower the combustion temp and burn rather clean....but mess with the O2 sensor reading the go a touch lean too.