If you already said it, why do you keep repeating yourself? It isn’t as though a few crooked shops prove your point.
Maybe if you say it a few more times, you might convince those who disagree.
Is your income derived from emissions testing Ron-man? Do you really think the 3% that fail these tests make ANY measurable difference in over-all air quality?? When these cars are “fixed” so they pass the “test” are their tail-pipe emissions any different?? How about a month later when the CEL comes back on?
I kept going back to the “State Approved Emissions Testing Facility” at Midas Muffler because,in spite of all the “we see this type of problem every day” and “just drive the car some more” explainations; they haven’t charged me for the retests.
Yeah; I know, believing them, and trying the same thing over and over again, hoping for a different end result is not to bright, on my part!
Today; I did go to the local privately owned automotive repair shop that we use, and explained my emissions test nightmare, and gave them the code number that keeps coming up. They also monitored the readings put out by the computerized unit on my car and agreed with what “Hellokit” said in a previous response in this discussion; that the problem is very likely, ignition wiring related, and easy to correct.
I’ll reply regarding how all this turns out.
Hopefully, this emissions test nightmare will soon end!
Not to rattle the “tree huggers” cages; but it is just about impossible to believe that the State of Connecticut auto emissions testing program isn’t just another revenue raising rip-off, that produces little if any, meaningful environmental improvement.
Unfortunately, we now live in an era where environmental improvement is “very big Bu$ine$$” for many, and questioning anything that is proposed or done with that being the proported goal; is like bad mouthing a cure for every terminal disease known to mankind, or merely the rantings of “knuckle dragging, Neanderthal” types!
Gotta go back in my cave; its raining! 
Is your income derived from emissions testing Ron-man?
Nope.
Do you really think the 3% that fail these tests make ANY measurable difference in over-all air quality??
I would imagine so. How many cars are there in the USA? I think the number is about 62 million. What’s 3% of 62 million? 1,860,000 is a lot of cars.
When these cars are “fixed” so they pass the “test” are their tail-pipe emissions any different??
I would imagine so, unless it was some kind of sensor failure.
How about a month later when the CEL comes back on?
Wouldn’t the vehicles still be covered under a 12 month warranty by the shop that fixed the car?
I didn’t know that wanting to breathe clean air and have asthma free kids made me a “tree hugger,” but if it does, I suppose I will wear it as a badge of honor.
I thought “tree hugger” was a term for those worried about deforestation. Maybe you should go to the nearest cancer ward, find a non-smoker with lung cancer, and call her/him a “tree hugger.” Unlike the name calling you have done here, that would take some guts.
If this is an issue related to your ignition wiring, fixing the problem will decrease the amount of unburned fuel flowing from your exhaust. That would make this an example of emissions tests working as they are supposed to. Don’t you want your car to be more efficient? I guess you only care about that when fuel costs $4/gallon, or when the state forces your car to undergo emissions testing.
I like trees and clean air too, but I truly believe the CT emissions testing program doesn’t make any difference in reducing air pollution or making any more trees for us all to hug. It’s a waste of CT drivers time and money. If the state was serious about reducing pollution, they would develop some type of light rail system. Maybe even lay the tracks in our unused HOV lanes. Except for the towns along the shore near New York, CT has no mass transit system to speak of.
While the EPA “Mandates” emissions testing in certain areas and ignores others, the States are allowed to develop their own testing programs. So EVERY state has a different testing procedure…Or if they are lucky, no testing procedure… Some, with mostly 100% self-service gas stations, use a single private contractor to perform the “test” at Test Centers. Huge money pits. Toll Booths. Others, like Massachusetts with a strong Mom & Pop full service gas station dealer association DEPEND on doing these “tests” as their principal source of income. They are the only thing keeping them in business and they know it. Here, sniffing tailpipes is a thing of the past and as long as your OBD-2 system is clean, (no CEL lit) you pass, Ka-Ching, $35…If you drive an old high-pollution beater, you don’t even have to have it tested, but you still pay $35 for the annual “safety” sticker…Ka-Ching!!
If all the cars that ever failed an emissions test were removed from the road tomorrow, not “repaired” but removed from the road, there would be NO measurable improvement in air quality…
DoctorPinto, Thank you for weighing in on CT’s emissions program. It’s nice to see a point of view that is focused and specific instead of one that is as clear as dishwater.
I apologize for the name calling, and realize that the frustration related to genuinely trying to comply with a program mandated by politicians and managed by bureaucrats, and getting nowhere in the process; is no excuse.
Admittedly; I’m not qualified to question the real worth of the State Emissions Test Program, in terms of pollution reduction.
On the flip side; I’ve yet to hear, see, or read documented proof, compiled by an unbiased agency, that this program has produced any significant pollution reduction results.
How many Miles on your car? 3 basics, change the plugs, air filter and make sure the car is entirely warmed up before taking the test, I assume no CEL on he dash. Sea foam 100 miles before test could be helpful.
California did one study years ago…It was titled “Clean For A Day”. They went back and re-tested cars that had failed, been repaired, and then passed. The re-tests were done 30 days later, for free, with no penalty as to the results…People were asked to volunteer and were sometimes given incentives (a free test next year). The results were astounding. Most of the re-tested cars were just as “dirty” or MORE dirty than they were when they failed!
CARB was using the dramatic reductions reported on the “After Repair” test to make outlandish claims about how they were cleaning up the air. This bombshell brought the “centralized” test centers into existance (but not in California!) and the beat goes on…
Half the cars in the U.S. are not tested at all, maybe more than half when you consider all the exemptions, most are only tested every 2 years, and the overall failure rate is less than 4%…That means 96% of the cars tested pass the “test”. Does anyone think the other 4% make any difference?? If you shredded them tomorrow, would it make any difference?
This poor guy failed not because of any emissions…He failed because his OBD-2 system claimed it was NOT READY to be scanned…And it appears it may NEVER be ready…
Good luck to the OP-er and I hope he gets back to us.
I’m not working as a mechanic now, but I still have my PA Emissions license. True enough, maybe only 3% of the OBD2 (post '95 model year) cars fail emissions.
Catalytic converters came out around '75 model year, later for pickups. In PA, and probably other states, there’s no test done for a pre '75 model year car. But how many of them are out there?
As for the in between model years, '76 through '95, they only get a visual inspection, to make sure the cat, PCV, EGR, air pump, etc haven’t been removed, so gone are the days of removing your cat, egr, or whatever on those vehicles. There’s still a lot of those cars out there, so this visual inspection does really help keep our air clean.
Is possible, I should mention having the oil and filter change could help, disconnect the battery after prescribed maintenance for a compute reset?, Shirly we can figure this out, maybe maybe.