Blue S2

Damn! They finally remember my car! (its been like 4 or 5 years since its last required check)

Ok, are there any exotics "friendly" service stations in MD ???? The people at my local station scare me with their car handling. Is there any way to avoid the dyno? And if im destined to carry this test out, is there any tips for prepping the car prior to it?

Would they let me drive the car with an attendent inside?

Luis de Prat

Huh? If MD VET testing is anything like KY, all they do is ask you to put the rear wheels on the rollers and run the car through its gears with a sensor poked in the tail pipe. That's it.

You should see the kind of annual testing they put older cars through here in Europe! Emissions, lights, suspension, etc. It's a thorough check, not just emissions which you should pass with flying colors.

Blue S2

No no, here you have to step out of your car and hand it to a "technician" which tells you to go into a room behind a glass window. (so you can watch in horror and not be able to do anything til the test is done, or your car explodes...)

Then they proceed to enter your car and readjust the seat and mirrors... ( WHY!!!!!!!! they arent driving it anywhere!!!!!!!!! i hate this about some of those technicians! DO NOT GET COMFY IN MY CAR!!!!!)

Then is the fun part....they turn it on again. My friend's sister watched in amazment as they could not start her car and then called her in to disable her imobilization system/alarm so they could start it. She quickly said...did you try depressing the clutch?

Assuming they KNOW how to drive a manual, they then move your car over the dyno. They hook up their machines, and proceed to accelerate. This is the tricky part.... If the "technician" does NOT have familiarity with a manual...you may have to close your eyes. My friends car was almost bucked off the dyno from all the improper shifting and lack of clutch knowledge.

They then call you back, tell you that you failed and you need to come back and repeat this whole process really soon! JOY!

Im wondering if they would even realize that our cars have tall gearing and to dont need to be in 4th gear at 40mph. I would keeping the engine in low rpm affect the outcome?

Blue S2

It seems i dont fare well with state testing for some reason. When i bought my car and had to pass MD inspection which covers everything... they took my car for a test drive (which they shouldnt...) .....covered the whole right side in a caked on layer of mud (i dont know where the hell they took it, i live in the city and it hadnt rained in a while), put a 3/4 scratch at the edge of the wheel well (it touched up great, surprisingly), the interior was full of leaves and mud, AND they failed me cause my brake rotors were a millimeter too thin!!!!!!! When i asked them why my car looked like ****, they said i borught it to them like that!!!!!!! HAHA i had just detailed it! (With picture proof of course!) I went off!

BigRed

They hook up your cars to a dyno for emissions testing? I'm 30 and I've never been subject to that in Texas...they do, however, test it against a horse and wagon.

Blue S2

Yeah its a crap dyno! It doesnt even tell your your numbers! HAHAHA its just to get it rolling up to speed so they can see what you are spitting out the back with a monster hose and computer attached to the tailpipe.

HAHAHA, ide love to see someone run their car really rich and happen to..."burn a little extra" out the back! HAHA. That would be hilarious at the Emissions Center!

Mark Lue

I doubt they will let you drive the car during the test !

I've taken my car for the test 4 times and it failed once ( bad O2 Sensor), if the car is in good running condition and you have done the basic maintenance (oil and filter changes, spark plugs, wires, distributor/roter) you shouldn't worry they are pretty clean.

Apart from basic maintenance you can:
- check all hoses make sure there are NO vacumn leaks.
- add a bottle of your favorite fuel injector cleaner (Chevron Techron) to your gas.
- get the O2 Sensor and CAT hot by running the car hard before the test that will make it do its job better. Its better to go when you don't have to wait long before the test, ask the testing station when is their least busy time.

I hope that helps.

Blue S2

Im just waking my car back up now from winter sleep! Damn i KNOW it would not pass right now, my sense of smell has confirmed this! HAHAHA. I'll wait til next month so i have some driving done with it and its all back to normal.

Injector cleaner...hmm....Never tried those. Might have to do a little research now.

Mighty Shilling

B&G 44k Is a great injector cleaner. it cleans everything really well... go grab a can, and use a funnel, it's not something to get on your paint...

OriginalSterm

After some work in an emissions lab, I've learned a RECENT (aka the day of the test) oil/filter change with synthetic oil will reduce cold start emissions (Hydrocarbon) substantially. Keeping everything up to operating temps definitely helps as does a functioning O2 sensor, properly adjusted TPS, and functioning catalytic converter. Fresh sparkplugs wouldn't hurt either.

Rock

I should take my car to the emissions testing place just for fun...

I gurantee ill fail

Mike Buck

Tony,
You are worrying too much. Just because the dyno is there doesn’t mean they’ll put your car on it. I’ve never had any car I’ve driven put on the dyno. Heck, I’ve never even gotten out of the car. The most I ever had to do was hold it at 2500rpm for a few seconds while they sniffed it, usually I just drive right through.

Recently my dad took his newly acquired mint 968 cabrio in for testing. He just drove right through, collected his “pass” form and was out in 30 seconds

If they tell you to get out of the car, just ask for your form back and go somewhere else. I recommend the station on Rt.450 in Annapolis!

Blue S2

Wow, ive never had such luck with any car ive taken up there! If i just drove through, i would celebrate!

Jakerx

wes, most big cities in texas require emissions testing on their dyno thing. also, a certified inspector must drive it around and test it first. probably where you're from they don't do it like that. i believe for the past 4 or so years they've required that cars do that type of emissions testing on the dyno. good luck tony. i just paid someone an extra 40 bucks to get my car "passed" at the station.

Blue S2

Hmm...that sounds like a fine idea too...