MOT emissions help
 

So the old gal went for her MOT this afternoon and everything was okay except the emissions. She passed but it was VERY close. The MOT guy said its probably with standing those 2 years, and the fact that I only did 1300 miles in it myself. He said an Italian tune up would do it good.

The thing is, I am not a fast driver, I don't think I have it in me. Also, looking at previous MOT's before getting her, its been close to the limit for awhile.

What can I do to help this? Could it be the induction kit? Should I put some additive in it with the fuel? I don't want to be in fear of a fail next year for this.


Thanks. :)

Dawn, You dont have to drive like a Loon to give it an "Italian Tune Up" Just drive in a low gear say third and keep the revs up at about 3 to 4 k for a couple of miles, It may sound brutal butIt worked for me on my "F".

You need to get the CAT hot to do any good and this is the way to do it.

Ah right! I thought I had to boot it and go fast, its auto so I never thought of dropping it down like that, silly woman me! Thank you. :)

Hi Dawn,

I'm sorry but I have to disagree with John from personal experience.

Your catalytic converter is operating at low efficiency. That happens when unburnt fuel enters it. In other words, the mixture is not being burnt properly. In those circumstances, the first thing I would recommend is to return the induction system to factory standards.

No amount of "Italian tuning" is going to make any difference. The catalytic converter will get hot within a minute of starting the engine even if the car is stationary in the drive. I know that through trying to work on one! :o

The 1,300 miles is a red herring as well.

Fuel additives are a waste of money.

Simon

No amount of "Italian tuning" is going to make any difference.


All I can say is that it worked on my "F" It was borderline during the test, The tester told me to go and give it a good run and come back which I did and when it was retested the readings were well down and passed OK :shrug:

The induction kit has been on since it was 3 years old so not sure if it could be that.

A question to the OP, is the tester performing the full cat test to include pre-conditioning and oil temperature checks to ensure the engine is at proper guidelines temperature ?
If not, it would be well worth asking for this to be done, we know that nobody likes being advised on how to do their job, however if the full routine is being bypassed for the sake of time, the chances of a pass are much reduced especially on an older vehicle.
Presenting a car for test HOT always helps the tester if he is under pressure to rush through many tests that day and running behind.
Just a thought.

I always ask politely if the emissions test can be carried out before the rest of the test while the car is a full operating temperature.........rarely am I refused, and even rarer does the car fail the emission test.

I appreciate what John is saying about the car being presented hot ;)

Brian :D

It was nice and hot when I got there but they were behind and didnt test it for 3 hours. I guess that wouldn't help. And it was the last thing they tested as well. That being said the results on previous mot's done elsewhere appear to be as borderline as I gave them in her file. I shalll try Brian's suggestions next time!

Dawn.--Is your MPG normal.

If so there's no excess fuel going into the system.

Higher revs means the catalyser will be very hot which will increase its efficiency.

It will never get hot enough with the car just ticking over on your drive. If fact if it's going to foul up that's where it will do it.----:eek:

PS. Number 6 has it right.---:bowdown: