I need advice!
 

I bought my greddy turbo used and the seller did not have the CARB sticker any more. So, when I got pulled over and had no proof that the turbo was legal, I got a ticket. After a lot of persistence with Greddy USA, I FINALLY have the CARB sticker. I made an appointment with the referee for tomorrow thinking that this was a visual inspection, sign the ticket sort of deal but they told me on the phone the ref is going to do a full smog test.

Now, this has me worried a bit because I really want this thing to pass smog and I'm unsure of the condition of my cat since I was running rich for a while before I switched to the MSPNP.
I'm going outside to pull the MSPNP and plug in the stock ecu as well as remove the Intercooler pipes and reinstall the plastic crossover tube. Basically I'm putting it back to greddy spec for the smog inspection. I also think I will disconnect the wastegate arm so the turbo is not in the equation at all for now.

Are there any tips/advice on getting the car to pass smog? My biggest question is what should I do with my timing??

Thanks a ton guys
-Ryan

Why cant you just tune your MSPNP so you can pass normally. You arent the first that had to smog his car in the great communist state of california with a turbo.

Do you have a wideband? I have a feeling you were probably running rich in boost, but idle and 2000rpm (or whatever they test at) before wasn't rich. Which would be fine for smog. But yea, your cat may or may not be healthy. Do you know anyone with a known good cat you can swap with for the weekend?

The timing will need to be set at 10* for smog. You may be able to retard it slightly. But the techs will generally disqualify it if the timing is too far from factory spec.

Saml01 - my MSPNP is not a piggyback it is a standalone which means I need to swap to the stock ecu so the tech can plug into the diagnostic plug.

BenR - yes I have a wideband. The greddy turbo just runs really rich as it comes in the basic kit due to the vortech fpr. I'm not worried about running rich during the test, just that having run rich in the past may have messed with the cat.

I will set the timing to 10* thanks for the info there.

On swapping back to stock ECU - i plan to just plug the vac line that runs into the interior for the MSPNP's MAP sensor, should that be ok?
Also, do I need to put the ST SIGN fuse BACK in the fuse box now that I am going back to stock ecu? That is the fuse you MUST remove from the fuse box when installing MSPNP.

Thanks
-Ryan

I dont know about your ST fuse but I when I swap back and forth between my MS (diy standalone) I just pull the MS out of the car and tie the hose in a decent reversable knot. Also, you could plug a golf tee or something in it.

On the Cat concern, i've known plenty of people even without standalone engine management that have passed catless easily. I knew a guy that was running open header on a crx and they just stuck the sniffer right in the header and he passed.

This is washington though but I think our emissions are similar.

That's why it would be a good idea to swap with someone local who has a good cat for the weekend. If you were local I'd let you borrow my spare cat, but I'm not about to ship it off.

I wouldn't try it without a cat.

unless you're running a greddy kit on 95+ your 90-93 is OBD1 and has no port for them to plug into, all they should use is the tail pipe sniffer.

There is no diagnostics port for OBDI. However, the MS won't produce a CEL on its own.

+1 on you are OK with MS. DEQ here on obd1 is sniffer only. OBD2 is later cars.

Well shit, I just finished the swap back to stock ecu and now I have a CEL. I THINK it may be related to the fact that I had removed the charcoal canister which the MSPNP didn't car about at all but MAYBE the factory ecu needs that little thing on the pass. side of the engine bay that vac lines run from the charcoal canister into...?

I'm worried even if they do sniffer only about using the MSPNP as I have to go to a referee not just any smog shop.

and this is one of the reasons I no longer live in Cali. I had to go to a ref a few years back and it was the biggest pain in the ass. It wasn't with my miata, but a toyota truck. You are right to be concerned about every little detail. So my advice would be to put everything back to stock, as it would be with just the greddy kit as descrbed in the greddy carb exec. order paperwork. there is a slight chance that you may stumble across a cool and sympathetic ref, but it is highly unlikely so I wouldn't chance it.
most of them are very ---- and their license depends on it.

how long do you have until your appointment? and what parts do you need to get back to stock?

BTW I was failed for not having the proper pcv valve. not one that was not working just not the proper part number.

I have all the parts for taking it back to regular old greddy spec. The appointment is tomorrow - I made it today thinking there would be no problems but now I have the CEL to worry about and may have to get an extension if I can't figure it out.

Update: Fixed!

JoePerez linked me to the list of CEL codes and how to check them and it was "code 15 - Oxygen sensor (output too low)" and I remembered that when adding the wideband to the MSPNP you have to disconnect the stock o2 sensor so as to not confuse the MS. Plugged it back in and voila!
Thanks for your help guys. Now wish me luck on getting a ref that is not an a-hole because my Intercooler is still installed I just removed the pipes and put the stock crossover tube and greddy U-pipe in isntead...

-Ryan

-Ryan

correct, however there is a backdoor to getting a CEL to appear as though its a working unit.

On my Haltech'd Escort, I just wired the CEL to the "Check Coolant" signal wire. Problem solved!