A Few Smog Test Tips

Educating yourself on smog tests and how to pass them is one of those essential pieces of information that everyone in California should know. There are both pitfalls and tips involved in passing a smog test. A lot of people unknowingly kill their chances of passing a smog test thinking that they're doing helpful things that actually cause their vehicle to fail. The perfect example of this is people buying high octane fuel for their smog test. People have the idea that using premium 91 octane fuel is a good way to help them pass a smog test. Seems to make sense right? Very wrong. High octane fuel has a higher mixture of combustive chemicals, meaning that it's formulated specifically for high performance engines. When you use 91 octane fuel in an engine not built for it, the fuel won't be completely burned inside the chamber, meaning that every time your piston fires, some unburnt fuel will be released into the exhaust system as pollution, causing MUCH more emissions to fly out of the tail pipe. Using high octane fuel for your smog test can cause an ordinarily healthy engine to fail.

Now I'm just as environmentally friendly as anyone. Some people argue that altering your normal engine habits in order to pass smog is cheating and non-ecofriendly. To a certain extent I am forced to agree. But most vehicles that fail smog fail by only a slight amount. Not only that, but older, classic vehicles made before 1971 aren't required to be smog certified at all, which doesn't seem to make sense. It's my opinion that it's better to save your money in hopes of one day buying a better, more fuel efficient, low emission vehicle than to spend your hard earned cash fixing up the junker with outdated technology. If I had a choice, I would rather save up my money in hopes of buying an ecofriendly car than spend my money fixing up the junker. But that's just me. The good thing about these tips on how to pass a smog test is that they won't work for the truly polluting vehicle. Like the picture to the right, some vehicles will simply fail smog anytime. That's why these tips are so great, because they only help cars that are already clean, not the truly dismal vehicle. So lets get to them! Tips on how to pass a smog test:

1) Use low Octane Fuel -- The lower the octane the better. We already saw that using high octane fuel can cause your vehicle to fail its smog test. Go the other way. If you can find 85 octane fuel, use it. Don't use this sort of thing on a permanent basis though, just for the smog test. What happens is that lower octane fuels burn up faster while still in the combustion chamber, giving your engine the maximum amount of time to incinerate those pesky emissions, before sending them on their way.

2) Use Isopropyl Alcohol -- That's right rubbing alcohol. This step goes in conjunction with the first step. If you use a combination of rubbing alcohol and 85 octane gas, you'll be almost sure to pass a smog test with flying colors. Don't overuse the rubbing alcohol though. For safety, only use 1 part rubbing alcohol per 10 parts regular fuel. A rubbing alcohol, 85 octane fuel mix will also cause your engine to burn hotter, which is a plus because the hotter the engine, the better the emissions will burn.

3) Use a Fuel Injection Cleaner a Few Weeks Beforehand. It's definitely always recommended for both your engine and your fuel system to be as clean as possible before you take them down to the old smog station. A few weeks before your trip, pour a bottle of fuel injection cleaner into your gas tank when you go for a fill up at the gas station. This will hopefully take care of some of the gunk and grime clinging to your fuel system.

4) Use a Fuel Treatment System. If you're really worried about passing your smog test, buy a fuel treatment system that specializes in lowering emissions.

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<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC '-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN' 'http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/loose.dtd'><html><head><title>Articles Back Link | A Few Smog Test Tips</title></head><body><h3>A Few Smog Test Tips</h3><br><br> By: Ben Mester<br><br><p><p>Educating yourself on smog tests and how to pass them is one of those essential pieces of information that everyone in California should know. There are both pitfalls and tips involved in passing a smog test. A lot of people unknowingly kill their chances of passing a smog test thinking that they're doing helpful things that actually cause their vehicle to fail. The perfect example of this is people buying high octane fuel for their smog test. People have the idea that using premium 91 octane fuel is a good way to help them pass a smog test. Seems to make sense right? Very wrong. High octane fuel has a higher mixture of combustive chemicals, meaning that it's formulated specifically for high performance engines. When you use 91 octane fuel in an engine not built for it, the fuel won't be completely burned inside the chamber, meaning that every time your piston fires, some unburnt fuel will be released into the exhaust system as pollution, causing MUCH more emissions to fly out of the tail pipe. Using high octane fuel for your smog test can cause an ordinarily healthy engine to fail.</P><p>Now I'm just as environmentally friendly as anyone. Some people argue that altering your normal engine habits in order to pass smog is cheating and non-ecofriendly. To a certain extent I am forced to agree. But most vehicles that fail smog fail by only a slight amount. Not only that, but older, classic vehicles made before 1971 aren't required to be smog certified at all, which doesn't seem to make sense. It's my opinion that it's better to save your money in hopes of one day buying a better, more fuel efficient, low emission vehicle than to spend your hard earned cash fixing up the junker with outdated technology. If I had a choice, I would rather save up my money in hopes of buying an ecofriendly car than spend my money fixing up the junker. But that's just me. The good thing about these tips on how to pass a smog test is that they won't work for the truly polluting vehicle. Like the picture to the right, some vehicles will simply fail smog anytime. That's why these tips are so great, because they only help cars that are already clean, not the truly dismal vehicle. So lets get to them! Tips on how to pass a smog test:</P><p>1) Use low Octane Fuel -- The lower the octane the better. We already saw that using high octane fuel can cause your vehicle to fail its smog test. Go the other way. If you can find 85 octane fuel, use it. Don't use this sort of thing on a permanent basis though, just for the smog test. What happens is that lower octane fuels burn up faster while still in the combustion chamber, giving your engine the maximum amount of time to incinerate those pesky emissions, before sending them on their way.</P><p>2) Use Isopropyl Alcohol -- That's right rubbing alcohol. This step goes in conjunction with the first step. If you use a combination of rubbing alcohol and 85 octane gas, you'll be almost sure to pass a smog test with flying colors. Don't overuse the rubbing alcohol though. For safety, only use 1 part rubbing alcohol per 10 parts regular fuel. A rubbing alcohol, 85 octane fuel mix will also cause your engine to burn hotter, which is a plus because the hotter the engine, the better the emissions will burn.</P><p>3) Use a Fuel Injection Cleaner a Few Weeks Beforehand. It's definitely always recommended for both your engine and your fuel system to be as clean as possible before you take them down to the old smog station. A few weeks before your trip, pour a bottle of fuel injection cleaner into your gas tank when you go for a fill up at the gas station. This will hopefully take care of some of the gunk and grime clinging to your fuel system.</P><p>4) Use a Fuel Treatment System. If you're really worried about passing your smog test, buy a fuel treatment system that specializes in lowering emissions.<br></P></p> <br><br> <b>Author Resource:-></b>  <br><br><b>Article From</b> <a href='http://www.articlesbacklink.com/'>Articles Back Link</a><br></body></html>