Smog Test Stories, Got One???

...Got a horror story or something unusual happen during your Smog Test??..If so, Post them here...

...I got my notice a month or so ago to smog my 91 X...This was to be for the "Test Only" and it would be the first time for it to have to do the "Evap" test...My X has been parked for a couple months with a broken Radius Arm...

...I pull it out of storage and it pops a code 85 and so I fix that...It then pops a code 22 and I fix that...Cool, all I have to do is limp it over to the Smog station and get it tested...



...Smog test run about $30 or more..."Test Only" runs about $50 or more...They then add more because it's a truck and the "Evap" test (for 95 and older) is another $10...Then there is the "CERT" fee of $8.25 and another $3 for electronic filing...You can see how all this can add up real fast and at some places, you pay all except the CERT and Filing fee if you fail...The trick is to find a place that has a "Pass or Free Retest"...

...Now this is where the fun begins...

...I spend Sunday afternoon searching for discount ads on "Test Only" stations...I go to Pennysaverusa.com and find 54 of them...Now you have to read them all and read between the lines to figure out if these are acceptable coupons for your vehicle....Out of 54, I wound up with 2...1 for 14.95 but it will have a couple add-on charges and another for $29.95 plus CERT and filing fee...

..Next, you need to find a place close to you that will accept other shops "Test Only" discount coupons...I found a shop down the street...Just in case, you have a back up plan of 2-3 other shops for reasons like they are packed or decide that they don't accept the coupons all of a sudden...(This happens quite often and they swap their pricing on you at just before you sign in..)...You got to watch these guys...It's not enough to have to worry about passing the test with your vehicle, you need to find this for the cheapest price before you wind up paying thru the nose...

Shop #1
...I go to the first shop and he says he'll take the coupons but he will decide the amount accepted...He has 3-4 cars waiting and tells me to come back in an hour due to lack of parking...Cool...Aw crop, I forgot I need to swap my KKM filter out so I run and do that and I'm back in 45 minutes...He tells me he has 3-4 people ahead of me, come back in an hour...I got this figured out already so I have time to check out shop number 2 and 3 and be back in an hour if that don't work..

Shop #2
..On the way to a shop I know is another shop a buddy of mine goes to, "10 Minute Smog".. I figured I would stop there...I pull right up, get out and the guy walks right up to my truck...I ask the guy if he takes coupons...He see's the $14.95 coupon and shakes his head no...Well prepared I show him the $29.99 one with all the pertinent info on it that I know he has to accept...He says yes and walks inside and looks back at my vehicle and say's, "Oh, I'm sorry, we don't take trucks with off road tires..You must have stock tires to do the test"...What a crock...This is the first time I've ever heard this in California...Heck, the soccer mom's around here roll on 37's...

Shop #3
...Ok, this is the shop that did my Ranger last year and I know they accept coupons...There is only one vehicle there and it's on the machine...I walk up and the guy says it will be next but he says they don't accept coupons anymore and my X will be $77 dollars plus..

....Now I'm starting to get miffed...I called all 3 of these shops first thing this a.m. and verified all this info......As I'm trying to pull out of their driveway, the technician walks all the way out to my truck and tells me he can do it for $50 plus the fees...I tell him "Later Dude"...

Shop #4
..While I'm sitting there in my truck and get the bright idea :scratch: to call the place with the $14.95 coupon...They are about 10 miles away but what the heck...I explain the year, model, and offroad tires and he say's no problem, the whole test would cost $35 which includes the $10 "Evap" test, $8.25 CERT fee, and the Electronic filing fee...Hmmm

...Just to be safe I swing back by Shop #1 as it's been another 45 minutes and you guessed it, "Come back in an hour"

...I make it to Shop #4 and the technician greets me with a "That's the last time I give a quote over the phone"...He then procedes to check out my suspension only while he walks around my truck, and is constantly shaking his head......I ask him what the problem is, then I said "My truck is totally stock as far as the emissions go and is no different than any other stock Explorer of the same year"...He just keeps shaking his head but I stayed cool...

..This guy then tells me it is an AWD and the system don't show a part time 4wd so he can't test it unless he disengages something, then he says ""your 4wd is not factory......after explaining to him all he could ever want to know about part time 4wd, I convinced him to test it as a 2wd..

...Let me tell you, this guy went over my truck and verified everything with a fine tooth comb, I mean way above normal...I figured he was definitely looking to get out of his price...He then put it up and ran the test..It passed...He did the "Evap" and it passed...Gas cap etc., it all past...I'm good to go I think to myself and he starts it up, rolls it out forward with the hood still up, and proceeds to go over the truck's emissions visual again...Now here it comes...

...He sits there staring at my Borla Headers Exemption tag for at least 5 minutes...He finally gets up, shaking his head he say's, " Did you know you have headers and they are illegal" as he quickly walks to his machine...I know he's going to hit that dang FAIL button so I cut him off and as nicely as I can explain to him that he can clearly see they have an "Exemption" tag welded on them and are accepted by the State of California and asked if he could take a minute and look them up...He says, "No, you FAIL"...That's the button to push...

...After about another 5-10 minutes discussion he decided he will accept them but next time he'll fail my truck....

..If anyone has problem's in California with a Smog place over Borla Headers on a 91-94 Explorer/Ranger, you will find a link to a pdf in the first post of this thread found here...
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=219411

...I am definately sorry for such a long post but this happens to often out here...and I think $30-$100 is to great of a price variance to pay for a smog test...

...Btw, besides passing all my test and getting my sticker, it only cost me $35...:biggthump

Last time I smogged my ranger. I was driving around trying to find a place open on a sunday and I think a holiday weekend. I found a place open with a few people in front of me. Waited my turn. He saw the truck asked about any engine mods and just tell him or he would find them and fail me. I told him I had a bronco II tank but moved all the emisions stuff over. Started hooking it up and the imeditly we both could tell there was a leak in the fuel system some where so it would fail that part of the test. He un hooked it before the rest of the test and didnt charge me a penny. I had a cracked fuel filler hose. Fixed that and took it back to him a few days later and it passed fine. Sometimes trying to not nickle and dime people pays off. I think I paid $60 or so for everything.

I would go back there again.

Yeah, and this gets my blood boiling since our Ram is due again right now... Since our truck is a diesel it has to be emission tested EVERY YEAR after it hits five years old.

Last year was the first time we needed to have it tested. Here's the deal...

Instead of them getting in your vehicle to run the test like they do for gas vehicles they have the owner do it. The don't put it on the dyno, they just setup a sniffer at the tail pipe. Step one - put vehicle in neutral and set the brake. Step two - hold the throttle all the way down to the floor until they tell you to stop. This is supposedly to test the governor. On my truck the redline is 3200 rpm. The engine goes to 3500 rpm and sits there. Step 3 - Repeat the hold the foot to the floor test about 10 more times, this time they are testing for the opacity of the exhaust stream. Step 4 - pick up the pieces of your broken crankshaft... Well the last one is somewhat of an exaggeration since it didn't happen, but from what I was taught one of the worst things you can do to a reciprocating engine is to hold the throttle wide open when the engine doesn't have a load on it.

I think my only horror is i have to take the Hedman Hedders off my X cause there certified for 1990 1994ish Rangers and 1992-1994 Explorers

Dunno so don't ask me why there not Certified for a 1991 model only thing i can think of is that there Non EGR

but next week it's gonna get ran across the rollers and hopefully pass this time.

Tbars, we do smog-check with the dyno here.. and the last time the 91 zuk went in for a smog check, it had 35" BFG Krawlers on it.

It was bouncing up and down on the dyno, which is why they don't like to do them.

It is also legal to replace your air filter box, IF there are no sensors in the box. The EFI on the 91 had all the sensors in the air tube, so tossing the air box was totally legal!

We did have to fight to get to a test connector, that I buried behind the battery..

Thankfully, the Superduty is still exempt from smog check.. The zuk gets to go back next year, and I'm wanting to replace the exhaust between now and then, including the cat.

Tbars experience is what really bothers me.. IF they are going to do test, do standard tests.. if they are going to have places do the tests/inspections they better have a way to fight the fail etc. and complain about bait/switch or unknowledgable inspectors, to the point that a place could lose their license..

I had an issue once here in AZ.. on our old 84 van I removed the computer etc and ran an offenhauser intake with a 2 barrel 3xxcfm carb). In Az you must keep the "air system" installed. I made fitting and mounts to mount an EGR valve off an escort and even hooked up the air injection system. I go for emisions and they instantly fail me becuase they can't see the equipment. I put the equipment right back in the factory locations.. It not my fault its a van and they can't see around the engine. I then went to the referee station (across town), told him what I did, he looked (I took the dog house off, which I'm "not allowed" to do at the normal emission place). He was impressed that I put all the factory emission equipment back on, passed the truck and gave me the info to file a complaint against the tech at the other emission place.. Oh yea.. the van read lower than factory settings for co and ppm..

~Mark

Maniak said:

Oh yea.. the van read lower than factory settings for co and ppm..

~Mark

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This is what bothers me. You did something that ran cleaner and better yet in CA it would fail. Only thing that should matter is what comes out the tailpipe. If it is cleaner then the stated requirements for make and model it should pass.

What's a smog test, LOL. We have it coming soon, oh boy.

...I admit I left a couple important pieces out of the first post due to the late hour I posted it...

...I do not mind paying for the Smog test and had totally figured on paying $50 or a little more...I do have a problem when every year it turn's into "Let's make a deal" on what it is going to cost...

...I did disclose my headers at the very beginning but the guy was more interested on how to switch my AWD off on my 91....I've never had problems with legal headers with exemption tags before and until yesterday, I thought all Smog stations had access to C.A.R.B. information...

...I have always had upgraded intake air systems on all my vehicles but have always swapped them back to completely stock for smog...I have in the past been busted for not having the vacuum lines routed properly but they did let me quickly fix them before...(Btw, if anyone needs any info on this for their 91-94 Explorer or Ranger, click here... http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=241696 )

...And I can understand the tire size deal totally...But this was the first time ever that I was told no and to come back with stock tires in California...

...Just my opinion, I don't know which is worse to deal with after the prepping of your car for Smog...:scratch:

A) The basic price variance all over the map on the same Smog check
B) Them wanting more once they see the vehicle in person and it's Emissions are all stock
C) or their lack of knowledge and Reference material

...I totally believe in the idea of the Smog test and I do support it...I just think it's become a racket..(just my opinion)

...I did overhear one technician say that 2 years ago it was 1 in 3 cars to fail and this year it is 1 in 10...

...My Ranger is due for registration in June and no Smog...I am just waiting for the paperwork to see what the total amount that California has doubled it to...

damn.. this is scaring me.. i have a k&n intake and a 1" phenolic spacer.. everything else is stock engine/powertrain wise but if they are that finicky about simple modifications that are legal for use in california (your borla equipment) then they might not pass mine when i get there.. plus i still have that p0135 and p0155 codes that wont go away!

...It's not always that bad...

...This thread might be worth reading all the way thru...
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24792&highlight=smog

...But when you get out here we can help you out...Hey, :shifty_ey I know a Smog shop you can go to...:

lol, i'm gonna need the name of that smog shop.. we should have a forum member who works in an inspection shop per state that we should go to

thanks! anaheim is like 20 minutes away so its really close..

wow, i never knew that smog test where so much b.s. to do. up here we don't have anything like that (and you cant see the air you breathe as well). the only thing we have is a safety inspection when you go to register a vehicle that you have never owned before (weather it be brand new, or 30 years old). that only has to be done once and that's all.

Wow, here its every two years safety and emissions. Price is set by the state, i think its about $29. Its still a pain sometimes depending on where you go because they will fail you for things like a chip behind the mirror on the windshield or tint, but other places will pass almost anything. The nice part is that if you fail you get a free retest everywhere.

parad1mg said:

thanks! anaheim is like 20 minutes away so its really close..

Click to expand...

..:scratch:..You will be between R.J., Cybergasm, and myself, but also close to a lot of other members too...

...IIRC, the price is set by the State here too...But, The shops had an issue about not being able to make money and some ruling was passed for the business's years ago..

...At some Smog shops this is a relatively easy process if your vehicle is up to snuff...Over the years I have known a few shops that were "by the book" and straight up..:biggthump ...These guys would even do a pre-check for you before they logged your vehicle on to the computer system, and went as far as telling you if something was out of range on the readings and even would suggest to you what was wrong and a good shop to take it too at no charge what so ever...Sadly, these shops or no longer in business as most of them have retired...

...Safety checks......I have lived in States that had those and they can be just as much a pain as Smog test...Fun stuff like flares, triangles, first aid kits, and tire sizes...

for the safety checks here, they normally zone in big time on suspension (if it is even lifted it will pass), just as long as it is in good shape your ok. however, if you have rust holes, or things in that nature, no dice!!! more or less, it is common sense stuff. i has a B2 back in the day that some jerk for a cop pulled me over and wanted me to get a safety done (it was lifted with a 4 inch suspension 3 inch body, and 33's) and it passed with flying colors. i went back and found the cop who pulled me (he had a hard on for guys with lifted trucks) that if he ever bothered me again, i would make sure he would be handing out parking tickets. needless to say, never bugged me again! heh heh heh!

similar to Ricks story (even though this is in AZ, not CA like the thread section) my boss has a '98 H1 with only 34,000 miles. He drives this thing like 500 miles a year and needs to smog it yearly. He asks me to take it in, I see it's only added 360 miles from the year prior and before I even start the test they fail me for it leaking. Turns out it was leaking coolant, another $4,300 trip to the dealer because of the HVAC system or something needed replacing. I felt pretty guilty but didn't do anything to cause the leak.

It's had a full engine replacement at 20,000 miles under warranty as well. The bill on that was $18,000

...All Smog stories are welcome here...It can be moved if needed...I just put it in the Cal section figuring it would get the most repeat customers here...

...RangerX's story is one I haven't run across before...
http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=163638&highlight=smog

Well I had mine done a few weeks ago....stock 4.0 with 291k on it...passed just fine. Here the #'s:

I have 2 stories of things that happened many years ago. The first one was with my former 89 Mercury Sable. I went to a place for an inspection, and the guy was kind of shady. He wouldn't allow customers into their work area, and he was pulling stuff off from underneath. I asked him what he was doing, and he said that I have non OEM parts that might prevent me from passing. He gave me a sticker with mistakes. I told him that it wasn't acceptable, and he got smart with me. He said that he would have to charge me for another sticker. I told him that I'm not paying twice just because he made a mistake. He said that I might not pass the second time. He did a quick inspection, and was fooling around under the hood. He then put a new sticker on, and told me to leave. I drove a few blocks with a bunch of people in the car, and I suddenly had no power anywhere! Some guy with a van pushed me into a local service station & broke my taillight accidentally. The guy opened the hood, and showed me a bunch of cut wires on the front relay module. It was done intentionally by the owner of the first shop.

The second story was many years later with my 88 Aerostar. It was the end of December, and all of the local service stations were out of stickers because they were switching to new stickers. The DMV didn't give them new ones yet. I kept trying one place after another until I found a shop that specialized in transmission repair. He said that he does other repairs as well, but is mainly a transmission shop. He said that he had stickers, and would inspect my vehicle. I thought that I got lucky, but found out later that he was a big crook. He never had stickers. Another lady was waiting for an inspection at the same time as I was, but I was first. He spent way too much time with it, and wouldn't allow me to see what they were doing because of their insurance regulations. He came over to me, and said that my vehicle was unsafe to be on the road, and he can't allow me to drive it out unless he performs over $800 worth of repairs (to this day, I've never replaced the parts that he wanted to replace). He wanted money for an inspection even though he wouldn't give me a sticker. I was furious, but I just wanted to leave so I paid him. He still made a fuss, and said that I couldn't drive it out. I told him that I'm not playing games with him, and I have to get home. He told me to wait a minute, and his mechanic will drive it out. He purposely drained my battery to prove that there was a problem. I had no power. He said that he will give me a boost, but wanted another $10! I told him to boost it, and I will discuss it. I have a dual battery system with a battery gauge in the rear which he didn't know about. His booster pack was dead, and he was pretending that he was boosting me. I told him this, but he said that I had to give him $10 before he will connect a plug in charger. I told him that I wasn't interested. He told his mechanic to push it out into the street. I told him to wait, and I will start it. He thought that I was nuts, and started to smile. He said that I should go ahead, and start it or else he will push it into the street. I put my key into the back up battery, and bypassed everything. I started it up, and was about to pull out. He stopped me, and said that his mechanic has to pull it out. The guy drove full speed in reverse as his garage door was opening. He almost smashed up my van. He was very close to his roll up door as it was still going up. A pedestrian jumped out of the way since he almost ran him over as he was backing up into oncoming traffic in a busy 4 lane avenue. A couple of cars slammed on their brakes as they just missed my van. His mechanic casually walked out as it was in the middle of the street with the engine still running.