94 Del Sol Vtec failed CA smog. Looking for advice on repairs...
 

Here are the numbers...

Attachment 529558


Some background info:

About a week before I took it to the smog check station I changed oil, burned through a whole tank of gas with fuel cleaner added before refilling the tank. I also used some detergent and water to clean the really dirty air filter for my AEM short ram intake. Just before the test I drove the car around for about 15 minutes.

The car has failed smog twice in the past and both times I passed by replacing the catalytic converter. Based on the numbers do you think that fix would that work again? What might be causing the fails? Any knowledgable help is appreciated. This is such a pain in the ass...Thanks so much!

Re: 94 Del Sol Vtec failed CA smog. Looking for advice on repairs...
 

Exhaust leaks kill catalytic converters. I would start there.

Run some seafoam and look for white smoke coming out of the exhaust anywhere from the exhaust manifold to the oxygen sensor.

Not an expert on del sol's but whenever I see a failed smog test I think to myself, "clean out the egr valve and ports".

Re: 94 Del Sol Vtec failed CA smog. Looking for advice on repairs...
 

B16A doesn't have an EGR.

Mileage?
Last tune up (cap, rotor, plugs, wires)?
Checked ignition and cam timing?
Burn oil?
What type of cats have you used that you had to replace it twice?

Re: 94 Del Sol Vtec failed CA smog. Looking for advice on repairs...
 

Thanks for replying.

The milage on the odometer is 268,600 but I think the milage on the actual engine is around 200,000?

The most recently I had the car tuned was probably a year ago. At the most 2 years ago when I last smogged.

The cats that I used were aftermarket cats from a muffler shop in Alhambra. I think they cost around $140-200 to install.

Re: 94 Del Sol Vtec failed CA smog. Looking for advice on repairs...
 

bump

Re: 94 Del Sol Vtec failed CA smog. Looking for advice on repairs...
 

How much oil do you lose between changes? You're bound to burn at that mileage and prob doesn't help your situation.

Re: 94 Del Sol Vtec failed CA smog. Looking for advice on repairs...
 

Not sure about the oil burning. Last time I got it changed, the mechanic didn't mention anything...

New cat will get it to pass but not fix the problem, and the cat won't last that long either. Exhaust leak won't cause NOX to be high. Since you have issues in every area, start with checking the timing and go from there.