5 Not Readys When Trying to Pass Emissions
 

1996 Mitsubishi Montero LS

My check engine light had been on and so I had my throttle position sensor replace about 1 1/2 weeks ago in order to pass safety & emissions. When I took it to the emissions test site, it showed not ready for the CATALYST, EVAPORATIVE SYSTEM, OXYGEN SENSOR, OXYGEN SENSOR HEATER, and EGR SYSTEM. They adivsed I put more miles on it to keep the computer ready. Since that initial visit, I have visited the emissions shop 4 more times and driven over 400 miles. I even took a 2 hour drive straight freeway to the west desert to try to kick everything into ready after they advised that my stop and go commuting was probably not sufficient.

At this point, I'm thinking something bigger is going on. I researched and found the drive cycle for that year but the shop I called seems to think that with as much driving as I did, the drive cycle would be irrelevant. Has anyone else out there had this issue? Could it possibly be some drive cycle fluke or am I looking at replacing the entire computer -- which is probably way out of my price range. This car has been nothing but a money pit in the one year I've had it. :)

Thank you so much for your help.

Are you getting any error codes along with the not ready indicators?

I only scanned this document but you may have the problem referenced in this factory TSB (Technical Service Bulletin)
http://www.pansypatrol.com/people/he...tsb0013005.pdf

Unfortunately, it apparently requires a Mitsu scan tool ($5K+) to fix and toward the end it states that only the normal warranty applies. You should check with a dealer to find out how much it would cost to have them reset and/or if this TSB resulted in any extended coverage.

I've read about other cars that had known design faults that caused perpetual incomplete status (Porsche 993) and owners were able to use factory documentation like this to get the smog referees issue a waiver. Find out what the escallation & referee process is for your state or show this to your test station and maybe you can get a waiver. Especially since you already spent $ to fix the original TPS problem.

This all assumes there are no actual pending error codes - just the incomplete indicators.

Good luck.

Just to clarify. The $5K I mentioned above is the approx cost to buy one of the factory scan tools (Called a MUT) - not the cost to have the incomplete codes erased.

Thank you so much for your help. I'm heading to the dealership tomorrow to have them take a look and try to run the drive cycle based on your link. Hopefully that will solve everything, if not - guess I won't be driving my Montero anymore. I can't keep putting money into it - it's gotta stop somewhere. Thanks again for your feedback and assistance.

Hope it helps. That TSB is just out there on some websites so make sure - especially before spending more money at the dealer - that they can give you some level of confidence that the defect described is what is causing your problem, and that they have experience fixing it with the procedure in the TSB. If it sounds like they've never seen that problem before then at least get a firm limit on diagnosis costs before starting a fishing expedition.

I don't see a location in your signature so don't know what state you're in. In CA, I think you would have enough info already to get your case escalated to a referee who can issue waivers. If you have no other symptoms or codes -just imcomplete test cycles - and the emissions levels are OK, you might get a waiver by just showing them the TSB. Check your state's smog check website for FAQ about what happens if your car won't pass.

Good luck.