V2Rocket

Went back to smog the 944 today, everything was going well this time. Guy ran the car on the dyno and did the sniffer and the car passed with flying colors. Visual check went off without a problem.

Apparently CA now does an evap system test, by pressurising the fuel filler to see if there are evap leaks...apparently my car has one somewhere.

The evap machine said the allowable cutoff/leak was 0.040...didn't see units, but we'll assume PSI, and the machine said my system was .999 (or maxed out) leaking. We didn't smell any gas anywhere and there were no fluid leaks to be found.

I tried to nudge him to "forget" he saw the carbon canister because of how hard the evap lines are to replace but he said he couldn't do it.

Using clamps he seemed to narrow it down to the line from the charcoal canister to the tank, or the tank itself.

My options are:
A) Move from CA (before any of you say it)
B) drop the transaxle and fuel tank, seal the tank, and replace all the evap lines
C) find a smog guy who is slightly blind

I have til Feb 10 to figure this out...ideas on easy things to replace?

Fara

Disconnect line, plug line, reconnect line till you pass smog, then remove the blockage?

kev951

probably the canister hoses on the drivers side fender near the windshield are old and leaking vapor under the low pressure evap test. otherwise, did he tell you if your gascap failed?

KuHL 951

Buy an 85.5+ plastic fender liner and hide that charcoal canister and then go somewhere else. Hopefully your previous 'fail' is not attached to any retest info that will show up next time.

V2Rocket

gascap was good.
thats a good idea...will it work on an early car?

william_b_noble

there is a whole pile of vac lines right above the gas tank on the pass side - they are under a removable cover that goes over the place where the filler tube goes.

KuHL 951

It worked on my 83, what they can't see they can't test, that's the rule. I had to cut up a broken fender liner and sort of glomm it on there though. Drill a couple holes in the liner and use Ty-Raps to hold it in place wherever you can. The debris that gets stuck behind that canister on the early cars is amazing; mine had a rodent nest and about 1/2 cf of road grit wedge between the can and antenna.

odurandina

how bout a detroit e-rod crate under the tree?

V2Rocket

E-rod is way more than i want to spend, not to mention it still wouldn't cure the only smog problem i have (nothing to do with engine)

Also, E-rod is only legal for an automatic transmission from GM in CA

odurandina

oh jeeze that sucks.

Arominus

Drop the tank and replace the lines, its a bit of a pain but probably worth it. Hiding the carbon can won't fix your leakdown number. Don't forget the small tank in the pillar above the fill neck.

Funn944

Do you really need to drop the tank to replace the lines ? Can't they be reached by removing the access cover under the hatch carpet ? Dropping the tank is a PIA......

Arominus

Not really, there are 2 lines that run across the top of the tank in one way or another and as such it has to come out. Its really not that bad to get the tank out, after dropping the transaxle you drop the muffler/heatshield and then its 2-3 bolts. With V2's car being an early he will want to drop it to inspect for cracks on the top and the plastic expansion tank thats on top of the tank. It's really common to find cracks on the early metal tank. The real pain in the *** is the lines in the filler neck area. A few of them require that you buy the factory replacements due to the size difference between ends and the moulding. The ones on the top of the tank are easily sourced.

PerceptionProblem

I replaced all but the line from the fuel tank to the first hard line under the car and passed no problem.

kev951

doesnt matter if we can see the evap canister or not, I am a CA enhanced smog tech. If the evap lines are visible and crimpable, it must get an evap test. 99% of time its the canister lines . I contacted BAR directly about this test for our cars, and they told me all 944's are required to have an evap test in CA even though the canister is not visible, the lines are. So it's weather or not the smog tech knows that .