-Hey, I failed my inspection last week. The Catalyst, O2 Sensor, and O2 Sensor Heater are all displayed as "Not Ready." A local shop recommended by Eurocharged believes that removing the secondary cats is decreasing the temperature of the primary cats so they are not at their ideal operating temperature, ditto for the o2's. He thinks the easiest, and cheapest, way to fix this is o2 simulators. Does this sound right? I've never heard of these and don't know which kind or voltage to get.
-Any help here would be very much appreciated. I have until Nov. 13 before late penalties are applied.
-PS: I have searched and could only find a brief mention on the forum.
Please, I'm moderately desperate.
Thank you, Robert

 

hmm i'm curious I replaced my cats with resonators, i'm curious if I am going to run into the same problem

 

Same here; cats out, resonators in(although not in the same place).

 

This does sound a bit off... The catalyst is able to oxidize hydrocarbons (unburnt fuel) at about 600 degrees. The air injection pump routes fresh air straight to the cat to aid in speeding up the light off time. once there, the cat stays warm enough to oxidize at all times. The oxygen sensors have heater circuits built in (4 wire vs. the earlier 2 wire O2 sensors, this is why they're referred to as HO2S; Heated O2 Sensors) As for the term "Not Ready" this applies to one of the monitors run by the PCM the Emissions Monitor. EGR flow, O2 sensor operation, catalyst temp are all monitored by the PCM so it can decide whether it will run in Open Loop (ignoring O2 sensor inputs) or Closed Loop (adjusting fuel trim by reading the O2 Sensor input) To change a monitor status from "Not Ready" to "Ready" is as simple as driving as per TRIP guidelines. Once a TRIP is completed (a TRIP is an acronym don't remember what it is right now, but a TRIP is different than a drive cycle) then monitors will have completed and be "ready" unless there is a problem in which a DTC will be stored along with freeze frame data (Mode 6) and if enough key cycles for the individual code (Some are instantaneous, some are 3 key cycles, some are 5, and some are successive key cycles), then a MIL or Check Engine Light will turn on as well.

 

from what i understand e/c turned off the rear O2 sensors when we got our dyno tune. contact tony at buckhead mports and have him turn them back on for emmissions. then you will need to do a drive cycle to get everything working again. same issue for me and i need to go down before dec.

 

I dont believe that the secondary cats being removed cause a problem, and that the not ready is indicating another issue. Was the car warmed up good before you pulled in to the test. I always heat it up well and never have an issue with passing the obdii tests. Woody I have many mods too.

 

-Woody, the car should have been warm enough, I drove about 8 miles from work to test with some 'gun-it' moments on the way. Do you think that is enough or should I drive for 30 min. The shop did say that if I come back within 30 days it is free to get re-tested.
- 32, I called Eurocharged and was told that the tune shouldn't play any role in emission systems.
-I'm still lost...

 

Go to auto zone and have them pull a free code. See if that error is present still.
Remember that if you ever reset a code in our cars that you have to drive about 100 miles to clear all the parameters for an emission test. I KNOW THIS FIRST HAND>
I will be replacing my stock stat cause I cant get enough heat with the 180 and it causes a code in the 33 degree mornings. Did you get the -10 degree mod??
What is your milage?? I dont have second cats and have no issue other than when I reset the codes cause I get on it when its cold. Woody

 

call tony at buckhead imports. thats who did our tunes. he can fix what you need. until the sensors are turned back on you will never get the ready codes. i haver the exact same issue and this is the fix . call tony

 

The only thing the scanner at the parts store says is that there are 3 monitors that are not complete/ready; the same three mentioned above. I called Tony and was told to pay $100 to get the o2's turned back on and that the ECU needed to be "sent out." I did not pay $800 for a tune that requires an additional $100 per year fix. Before my car went on the dyno I was told there would be no problems with future emissions tests as they were not modifying the emission control components. This is quite upsetting.

 

That does not seem correct, turn on the cats??? Did you reset the codes or ECM recently?? If so you will get not set fault codes. Woody

 

Woody, the last thing I did to the car was an oil change about 2 months ago. (did myself) Nothing has been reset to my knowledge, the battery has not been disconnected in over a year. Now, I'll admit, I have not driven it too much in the last couple of months (1-2 days a week) because I bought an old Bronco and have been having fun with it. When I went to O'reilleys Auto Parts last night the three aforementioned monitors plus the evap. is now showing not ready.

PS: Could any of this be related to my sluggish acceleration recently? I figured I simply needed an IC pump upgrade, but now I don't know.

 

Wow, $800 for a tune, and they can't help you out....well, that tells you a lot right there....I would warm that baby up with a long drive, and try it again...more than a 30 minute drive...

 

same folks that tuned yours doc. tony was with e/c when he came to atl and did a dyno tune. i have the same issue and 1 month to get it fixed

woody it isnt the cats its the O2 sensors were turned off

 

I have a good update. Although the guys at Buckhead Imports wanted to charge me to fix the issue, I spoke with Jerry at Eurocharged who gave the number of their Atlanta dealer, Malones Auto, and said we could set up a time to fix it for free. The guys at Euro will tune it remotely from home. Malones Auto will just be the intermediary.

Great News!!

 

when are you going? i need the same done and just pm'd tony with my displeasure!! maybe we could do it at the same time

 

I am most likely going tomorrow afternoon (Wednesday Nov.10) My birthday was on halloween so I am already late. I filed for an extension on my registration and tax and that extension expires this saturday. So I need to get this done asap so I can go through the drive cycle to get all the monitors ready again.
-Robert

 

let me know how you fair at the emissions station. jerry is sending me a cable and im going to do it at home!! mad props to jerry for fixing this pain in the a&& issue!

 

Just thought everbody should know, Jerry @ Eurocharged along with Adam (local MB shop) were able to correct my tune/o2 sensors (at no cost to me) before any late fees were applied to my registration. I have passed my inspection and am on the quest for more power.

 

Hey guys I just want to clear something up here, Robert I hope you understand at the time I did not work for Eurocharged anymore and for me to correct that problem so you did not have to get flashed every year for emissions it was costing me that $100 I was not trying to make money on you, I was just trying to help you out and get the issue fixed for good.

But you guys done the right thing and contacted Eurocharged and got the issue fixed for free which should have been done.

Just for the record I am no longer apart of Eurocharged and when I can help I will but when things like that happen I will do the best that I can to help but I now work for another business.

Sorry for any issues you guys had and I hope everything is all good now.