failed state inspection - need to reset computer

[shihman]

ok guys, here is what happened and what i did with my car the last 3 months. my MY2000 Boxster S started with cel 1128, then had idling problem and white smoke at start up. so i had my throttle body and valve cleaned to fix the idling problem, replaced my AOS for the white smoke, found a crack in the middle section of the oil tube and replaced it, thinking that should be the cause of cel 1128 and it did. oh i also replaced the driver side radiator.

so now few weeks later after all that have been fixed and replaced, i get a cel 1130. so i cleaned my MAF with MAF cleaner and reset the cel by disconnecting the battery. after driving around for about a week and took my car to get the inspection done, surprise, it failed. the report said that the catalyst - not ready, Evap - not ready and 2nd sys - not ready. i was told that after you disconnect the battery the car will need to be driven around 40 to 60 miles at high speed for the computer to re-learn the driving pattern. i did that last night. i circled around my town and putting on about 85 miles on the highway last night. this morning i took the car back to get a second inspection, same thing came up. so now what do i do? i do have 15 days to get it done. should i just need to drive around more until the computer to finally register or is that something wrong that i need to take it to the shop?

please help.

[pk2]

I've had that problem several times. I pay a bit more and have my Indie do it. I've taken it to them with a cel light, they fix it, reset it and take it to there smog guy. Guess what...they don't put any mileage on it, certainly not 65 miles anyway. Had to do the same for my wifes car to, different make, different garage, still no milage.

My point is, how do they clear a CEL and smog it without driving it a 100 miles?

I've heard numbers more like 150-200 miles to resettle everything.

Maybe a PS2 needs to be involved.

Regards, PK

Edited May 8, 2009 by pk2

[Topless]

I just went through a similar experience. Cleared a CEL just before smog test and the car came up "not ready". Drove to the PCA breakfast with a little spirited country road afterward and I passed on the second inspection. Just go for a fun drive. :D

[Orient Express]

Every car has something call "readiness" in which all of the emission systems report that they are operating correctly. This is separate from the CEL warning that a component has failed or reported an out of spec condition.

You need to find someone that has a system tester that can reset the readiness test parameters and have the car re-run it. What you are seeing is a remnant of when the test was ran with the bad component reporting.

This is not a big deal at all.

[Loren]

ok guys, here is what happened and what i did with my car the last 3 months. my MY2000 Boxster S started with cel 1128, then had idling problem and white smoke at start up. so i had my throttle body and valve cleaned to fix the idling problem, replaced my AOS for the white smoke, found a crack in the middle section of the oil tube and replaced it, thinking that should be the cause of cel 1128 and it did. oh i also replaced the driver side radiator.

so now few weeks later after all that have been fixed and replaced, i get a cel 1130. so i cleaned my MAF with MAF cleaner and reset the cel by disconnecting the battery. after driving around for about a week and took my car to get the inspection done, surprise, it failed. the report said that the catalyst - not ready, Evap - not ready and 2nd sys - not ready. i was told that after you disconnect the battery the car will need to be driven around 40 to 60 miles at high speed for the computer to re-learn the driving pattern. i did that last night. i circled around my town and putting on about 85 miles on the highway last night. this morning i took the car back to get a second inspection, same thing came up. so now what do i do? i do have 15 days to get it done. should i just need to drive around more until the computer to finally register or is that something wrong that i need to take it to the shop?

please help.

Your (or they) need to read the fault code(s) AND pending faults.

If you still have codes (even pending) you will not pass smog.

[jmatta]

Same thing happened on my friend's '02 S. Took a little over a week of different driving patterns and time to get the system up to "ready".

Keep in mind, every time you disconnect the battery for a length of time, you clear all those codes and need to start the process over.

[shihman]

i hope cleaning my MAF will clear my cel P1130. the smog test didn't find any fault code and maybe is because i cleared it when i disconnect the battery. would the cel come back on once the computer resets itself if it's a bad MAF or is that a separate issue? how would i know if the car has reset itself if i don't take it to a mechanic?

anyway, i have 15 days to get it done so i still have some time for a little fun driving around the town.

thanks guy.

[shihman]

so i drove around the town running errands, my cel came back on. took car to auto zone got the code read and again is P1130. does that mean my MAF has gone bad? since cleaning it didn't seem to help.

[Loren]

so i drove around the town running errands, my cel came back on. took car to auto zone got the code read and again is P1130. does that mean my MAF has gone bad? since cleaning it didn't seem to help.

Very possibly - you need to check the air flow at idle and 2500 RPM to confirm.

[shihman]

how do you check the air flow at idle and at 2500rpm?

[Loren]

how do you check the air flow at idle and at 2500rpm?

You will need the Durametric software, a PST2 or PIWIS tester.

[shihman]

is there any other ways to determine whether is a bad MAF?

[Loren]

is there any other ways to determine whether is a bad MAF?

Change it out with a known good one.

[shihman]

should the cel clear itself after x-number of start cycles if i put a good MAF?

[Loren]

should the cel clear itself after x-number of start cycles if i put a good MAF?

Yes.

[shihman]

ok, i bought a new MAF and replaced it. after 3 days of driving around town, the cel went off on it own today. took it to get re-inspected and it passed.

just want to report back if anyone is experiencing the same problem ans code.

thanks everyone for your inputs.