Cobra swapped Mach 1 CA smog woes (tune)

[Reloaded]

I am currently having problems getting my Mach 1 to pass the CA smog test. It does not pollute (passes the sniff test), but unfortunately, the sensors are not showing as ready, so it fails on that part.

The car is an '04 Mach 1 with an '04 Cobra longblock. The car has a long list of mods, including a 2.76" upper, 2lb lower, 63lb injectors and so on. The car was tuned at AED in Sacramento. There was a problem with the O2 sensors, so the car was tuned in open loop, and ran that way constantly. I thought the problem was fixed, and the car would not pass smog this way as all of the sensors were turned off. So, I e-mailed and got the closed loop tune with all of the sensors on and flashed it onto the Mach. Unfortunately, after driving around 300 miles in varying conditions, not all of the sensors have come back on. The tuner believes it to be an electrical wiring issue, but I don't even know where to start really.

Here are the readings from the Snap-On scan tool:

Oxygen Sensor: Ready
HTD O2 Sens: Ready
Exhaust Gas Rec: Not Ready
Evaporative Sys: Not Ready
Catalyst: Not Ready
Comprehen Comp: Ready
Fuel Sys: Ready
Misfire Monitor: Ready
MIL Status: Mil OFF

Previous to getting this tune, the car was tuned via e-mail using Sniper, with the Eaton swapped onto a stock Mach 1 block. It passed smog then just fine with no problems with the sensors.

Any suggestions, places to start, or requests for more info welcome.

Also, all emmisions equipment is hooked up and plugged in. Nothing there has changed since the car was originally tuned with Sniper after the Eaton swap.

 

[oldmodman]

Is there any way for you to have the factory tune flashed into your computer. You should be fine as long as you stay out of boost. You may have to put the stock injectors and pulleys back onto the car for the duration of the smog check. Or you can try to get a referee station to pass the car. I had a failure to reset code problem on my 2002 Toyota, but it was clean and passed at the tailpipe. No local SMOG station was willing to pass the car so I went to the referee and they passed it with no problem.

 

[95PGTTech]

Your not ready status are related to the EGR and fuel evaporative emissions systems, not the 02s or anything to do with closed/open loop. I would start by getting electrical manuals for your stock vehicle and whatever vehicle you pulled the motor from, figuring out what wiring comes from each car, and comparing. It could be something as simple as a connector that needs to be re-pinned.

 

[Wishing4Cobra]

Damn I can already feel your headache.. passing smog in CA with a modded car is such a PITA.

 

[Reloaded]

Is there any way for you to have the factory tune flashed into your computer. You should be fine as long as you stay out of boost. You may have to put the stock injectors and pulleys back onto the car for the duration of the smog check. Or you can try to get a referee station to pass the car. I had a failure to reset code problem on my 2002 Toyota, but it was clean and passed at the tailpipe. No local SMOG station was willing to pass the car so I went to the referee and they passed it with no problem.

Due to a previous ticket a few years ago, I ended up having to go to the state ref. Put simply, it didn't go well. At first he tried to tell me it wasn't a legal engine swap ('04 Cobra engine in an '04 Mach 1), which he later ended up saying was ok after talking to his "boss". He refused to pass it due to it not having the entire wiring harness swapped over from the '04 Cobra. I didn't do that because the car was originally just an Eaton swapped Mach 1, which I later put a reman'd Cobra long block in when the stock Mach block gave up the ghost, and the car runs perfectly fine without swapping harnesses.

About the electrical; I am going to guess that's a good possibility. The only thing that confuses me is the fact that the car didn't have any problems with the sensors when it was an Eaton on the stock Mach block with the Sniper tune. I will get the wiring diagrams for both models and see if it is in fact a different pin out for the emissions sensors.

And yes, quite a headache. I spent a good couple of months when I got a ticket a few years ago for no cats (which I understand was my own fault), and now the car's been without reg for a year (which is partially due to me not wanting to deal with this). Thus is CA though...

Thanks for the suggestions so far.

As an aside, I don't have any stock parts for the car, but I imagine that the stock tune could be flashed, though I don't see that really fixing anything since the tune is based on an '04 Cobra.

 

[sabotage]

Just have your tuner ...turn off the readyness monitors for the egr and the evap..it makes it say not available when they do that ...the smog machine will not fail it if if disabled that way. ...I would know it's what I do for a living......clean California air but pollute it with my cobra lol

 

[95PGTTech]

Due to a previous ticket a few years ago, I ended up having to go to the state ref. Put simply, it didn't go well. At first he tried to tell me it wasn't a legal engine swap ('04 Cobra engine in an '04 Mach 1), which he later ended up saying was ok after talking to his "boss". He refused to pass it due to it not having the entire wiring harness swapped over from the '04 Cobra. I didn't do that because the car was originally just an Eaton swapped Mach 1, which I later put a reman'd Cobra long block in when the stock Mach block gave up the ghost, and the car runs perfectly fine without swapping harnesses.

About the electrical; I am going to guess that's a good possibility. The only thing that confuses me is the fact that the car didn't have any problems with the sensors when it was an Eaton on the stock Mach block with the Sniper tune. I will get the wiring diagrams for both models and see if it is in fact a different pin out for the emissions sensors.

And yes, quite a headache. I spent a good couple of months when I got a ticket a few years ago for no cats (which I understand was my own fault), and now the car's been without reg for a year (which is partially due to me not wanting to deal with this). Thus is CA though...

Thanks for the suggestions so far.

As an aside, I don't have any stock parts for the car, but I imagine that the stock tune could be flashed, though I don't see that really fixing anything since the tune is based on an '04 Cobra.

If you know for a fact that these monitors were ready with just the Eaton swapped stock block and now they are showing not ready, it's a mechanical issue, not an electrical one. If it just "ran fine" but you had no idea of the monitors, they were likely disabled/not ready back then too - they will not affect drive-ability if the PCM is commanded not to look for them.

Don't take this the wrong way, but the easiest solution for most people in this situation would be to pick up and entire Cobra harness and PCM at this point and set it up as an OEM 04 Cobra in a non-Cobra chassis. Then you are simply trying to tune a stock 04 Cobra with bolt ons (and get a stock 04 Cobra with bolt ons to pass emissions). With the amount of donor cars out there and the value you can get back for your stock stuff, it's just a little effort in labor.

 

[hotcobra03]

i say drive to another state and get inspected....

my son just joined marines..he took his car with him to califorina,,,being registered in texas they had no problem inspecting him..

i think you have to re register but not re inspect in a certain time..


where we live no nothing test...every thing goes thru unless you have a light out or ripped wiper

 

[Cali03Cobra]

this is why I am glad I no longer live in California bunch of fruits and nuts. That is so damn gay I love Florida where you can put whatever engine in your car you want and they dont give a SH*T . cat.. whats a cat lol.