Why did i fail smog?

[91cblx]

my readings at 15mph are:
HC(PPM) 124 max is 83
CO% 1.12 max is .75
NO(PPM) 1211 max is 559

and at 25 mph they are:
HC(PPM) 51 max is 65
CO% .62 max is .63
NO(PPM) 718 max is 516

some one help!

I cleaned out the egr ports and egr and had it retested and he said that now its close but not low enough to pass. He recommended a new catalytic converter. I went to the muffler shop next door(which is where they put my cat back exhaust on) and the owner said it will be 217.50 including tax for a magnaflow cat installed. Is this a good price? Also a few months back, i posted a thread as to why my catalytic converter was rattling on the inside, well a chunk of the honeycomb blew out the exhaust not much later. The piece wasn't big, maybe 2x2 inch. I didn't think it could have made that much of difference but I guess I was wrong? How can i get it to pass? I am in CA so the emissions are tougher to pass

[Darkcloud]

Change your o2 and cat.

Also do a full tune help

[Sarthos]

A tiny chunk like that can make your cat worthless. The exhaust air follows the path of least resistance so wherever there's a piece of filter missing is where the exhaust is gonna wanna flow.

Which cat is it? That will determine if it's a reasonable price. If the cat is 150 bucks wherever you look meaning the labor is 60 it's pretty reasonable. If the cat is 75 bucks so they want 140 for labor it's too expensive.

[91cblx]

Change your o2 and cat.

Also do a full tune help

Did tune up, air filter, oil change, cap and rotor, spark plugs, belts, fuel filter, pcv valve, and spark plug wires. Ugh CA smog is a pain, guess i gotta do the damn cat at least, I will pull the o2 plug and see if there is any carbon deposits.

[91cblx]

A tiny chunk like that can make your cat worthless. The exhaust air follows the path of least resistance so wherever there's a piece of filter missing is where the exhaust is gonna wanna flow.

Which cat is it? That will determine if it's a reasonable price. If the cat is 150 bucks wherever you look meaning the labor is 60 it's pretty reasonable. If the cat is 75 bucks so they want 140 for labor it's too expensive.

I am not really sure which cat, but he said its just going to be a 50 state legal magnaflow, i looked em up here http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/co...J1c3QmTnBwPTUw and 217.50 doesnt sound too bad for a catalytic converter but i may be wrong. My guess is that it is going to be the weld in one, that is what i already have on my car, but who knows the brand, proly cheap-o-depot

[Sarthos]

No not at all. I just wasn't sure how expensive the cat itself was. Some magnaflows are on ebay for less than 100 bucks though, but they all seem to say "new law in CA, these are only 49 state legal now". Not sure of the models of those ones at Auto Parts warehouse, they could be the same.

[wed3k]

yea, in ca you have to have a CA cat. 217 is a good price. i dont have a cat and my HC readings are very smiliar. whats the o2 reading?

[cloudasc]

I believe magnaflow makes a direct fit catalytic converter for our cars. There would be no welding involved, just bolt up and go. The direct fits are slightly more expensive then weld up ones. On my rx7 I faced emission problems, i just got a $70 catco cat, and paid $60 to have a shop cut out the old one, and slap that one in instead. Passed emissions with flying colors.

Ideally if your looking for a long term solution, then i'd suggest getting a metallic core catalytic converter over a ceramic, as the metallic cores last longer.

If you just need to pass emissions quickly and as cheaply as possible, then buy a cheap cat, have it welded in place of your old cat, then when your done with emissions, swap it out for a test pipe, and save it for the next time you need to do emissions, because cheap cats don't last very long, and you might end up having to replace it again the next time you do emissions again if you leave it on that long.

EDIT: The laws are only as stringent as the standards were the year the car was produced. It may be 2010, but the requirements to pass emissions for your car are/should-be the same as when it was manufactered. The newer the car the stricter the requirements are. Also theres only a few more years for these cars before they end up being emissions exempt. The car should only have to run through emissions 2-3 more times before its in the clear. You can also register the car outside of emissions testing area's / out of state.