(If you want to skip the background (tl;dr...) see "Short question" at the bottom)

My car: 1998 Civic LX with Integra GS-R engine swap (B18C1) (also 1998)

(I tried searching this forum and didn't find the answer to my question. If this is answered elsewhere, please link the thread and sorry for the double post.)

I recently (2 days ago) swapped my air intake back to the stock intake from an AEM after market one to get the SMOG check (I can't SMOG with the AEM because it's not California BAR certified). I had to unplug a sensor to remove the old intake, and once I started my car after putting the stock intake back in, I got a check engine light. Realizing I had forgotten to plug the sensor back in, I plugged it back in, started the car and the check engine light was still on. I reset the ECU by removing the + terminal from the battery for about 10 seconds, put it back on, started the car and no more check engine light. Problem is, I went to SMOG check the car and multiple systems weren't ready (I had driven the car a few miles to warm it up, but only for about 10 minutes / 5 miles).

I drove the car 45 miles this morning including full warm-up and freeway driving, and I still can't SMOG check my car; the computer read "evap system not ready"

Short question: What do I need to do to make the evap system in my car "ready" so I can smog it?

Thanks

 

I'd try more like 10 mins vs 10 seconds OR clear the code with a scanner if you have one.

 

Did all the other monitors show "ready"?

The EVAP tests will only run with the gas tank between 3/4 and 1/4 full. How full is your tank?

 

Yes, I've maintained about 3/8 - 5/8 tank since I started this

 

It doesn't matter how you reset/clear the ECM. Resetting/clearing the ECM by any method also resets all the OBD-II monitors, requiring the ECM to re-run all the OBD-II tests in order to make all the monitors report "ready" again.

The feds mandated that in order to ensure that folks wouldn't be able to pass smog by simply forcing the Check Engine light to turn off.

Some vehicles have a known problem with monitors that will not report "ready" no matter what you do. For this reason, most states/provinces that have smog checks allow at least one "not ready" monitor for those vehicles.

 

Thanks TheRealTegger.

It's the only "not ready" system/sensor. The SMOG guy is telling me he's penalized when he SMOG's a car with a system not ready and has to charge me like $100 because of it. Is this typical?

 

Go some where else i'm sure some places are more strict then others

 

I've had good experiences with this particular place before. Plus it's also a "STAR" SMOG place. My renewal notice from the DMV says I have to go to a "STAR" certified SMOG check place, not just any SMOG place. Probably because I have a legal (CA BAR'd) swap.

 

And you're not allowed even one "not ready" monitor?

EVAP monitors are -- on purpose -- very touchy and finicky. They may not run for some time, up to a couple of weeks, depending on your driving style and environment.
For some reason, the federal EPA has this unhealthy obsession with even a single molecule of hydrocarbons entering the atmosphere, hence the grand complexity of the American EVAP system. No other country in the world is so obsessed with hydrocarbons.

"Drive patterns" are formulated to force the monitors to show "ready" as quickly as possible. I don't have Honda's drive pattern, but I do have Toyota's. Since the readiness monitors are an EPA mandate, the systems are similar enough that the Toyota instructions should work for Honda products. I can scan and send to you, if you PM me with a valid email address.

 

CA used to allow up to two "not ready" ("unset") monitors, but they seem to have gotten more thuggish than before.

I don't know about the dollar figure, but CA does keep track of stations' reportage of "unset" monitors in vehicles that are allowed a pass, and there are penalties for having too many "unset" monitors.

However, I found a BAR document that says that '96-'99 gasoline vehicles are allowed ONE unset monitor without penalty; '00 and up are allowed ZERO unset monitors.
http://www.smogcheck.ca.gov/80_BARRe...uipmentQnA.pdf
also
http://www.bar.ca.gov/80_BARResource...ce%20Guide.pdf

You could call BAR and ask what's legal and what's not. Appendix C of the second document I referenced above gives the phone numbers of the various BAR local field offices.

 

What was the cel light for?
How do you have the wiring and vacuum lines ran for the evap system?
ECU?

 

Fill up the tank
Requires part throttle for a certain time (15 min stop and go)
Requires high speed for 5-10 min (get on the freeway 60+).

I think it requires 2 cycles of this, but it's been a while and this is all from memory. I had a hell of a time until I found out the gas tank had to be over 1/2.

 

I had the "evap not ready" thing when I had a turbo in my '99 Integra and switched in the original OBD2 ECU for the emissions test (turbo was tuned on an OBD1). The guy at the emissions place just told me to go drive for 30 minutes and come back.

 

I am having the same evap problem with my 2001 civic. The shop wanted $90.00 to smoke the system, so I went on YouTube, and and found out how the build my own smoker to check the system. I built the one using a coffee can. I hope this was of some help.