well its that time of year again

realised on saturday that the mot on the scort is due in a couple of weeks, i remember last year it took a lot to get it to pass the emissions test, so much so the bracket for the dipstick snapped whilst getting it hot

so my question is....any hints or tips on getting it through the emissions test? or reasons why it wouldn't be getting through it in the first place?!

Cheers

 

Anyone?

 

Throw a tin of "cat-clean" through the fuel system when the tank is 1/4 or so. My MOT garage does that when the emissions are a little over and it seems to work.

Also, have you given it a good service recently? Oil and air filter? Are the breathers clean?

 

Cheers for that Ill give the Cat-clean a go!

The oil is constantly being topped up as it uses it, typical escort the air filter was changed a while back, and no idea on breathers!

 

There is your answer, if you are using oil then you are most likely burning it down the exhaust which will, in turn, force the emissions up. The "cat-clean" should help remove the oil deposits from the cat, but you still need to stop the oil being burnt.

 

sounds like its a bit broken and needs fixing/replacement engine.

how much are you topping it up by each week?

if in good working order any car should go through the emmisions with ease imho. if it doesn't then fix it.

 

it's not needing topping up weekly, its using/burning oil to what i would say was a fairly normal rate! roughly 800 miles ish between needing a top up!

when i got the car just over 2 years ago, it had had the engine replaced and was on 8k, the engine has now done about 37k

 

how much are you having to top it up by every 800 miles?

i've had a 1.6 zetec engined escort, 1.8 and 2l zetec engined focis and NEVER had to top up the oil EVER so i'd say theres a problem.

 

less than a litre normally, there are no issues with the drive of it either

tbh its always commented on how well it goes!

 

Less than a litre normally, so it is sometimes more than a litre? IMO that is a lot of oil to be burning in 800 miles so I wouldn't be surprised if that is the cause!

 

yeh when i said that i meant its never more than a litre, and 800 miles is at a guess, i really need to monitor it more closely i think!

 

Even half a litre every 1000 miles is too much for one of those engines Caz, especially if it had been rebuilt 30k ago.

I suspect your HC content is going to be far too high when tested as well.

 

Buy a car that's actually in a good state of repair and is not going to poison the planet for generations that follow

or

rebuild the engine so it runs properly and you don't have to worry when the MOT is due


Luciano

 

well i will monitor it closely from now and see what its using, but is there anything i can do that will get me through the MOT, last year it went through with a little problems, but got it nice and hot and it did it.....

 

Cross your fingers and hope for the best. Technically speaking though, the hotter it is, the thinner the oil is, so the more should be leaking into the bores.

It is just the cat that benefits from being really hot, as that is when it works best.

 

Only what I said above.

 

Thanks for the advice

 

even giving it the benefit of the doubt and saying thats a litre every 1000 miles or maybe a bit more thats 10litres a year on an average millage car. thats 2 bloody oil changes its using in the year!! there is something VERY wrong!

are you 100% sure theres no oil leaks??

is there much blue smoke coming out the exhaust??

 

no oil leaks that i know of, there was a leak from the oil pressure switch months back which i got sorted, but other than that there isn't a leak that im aware of, unless its not leaking enough to drip off under the car

nope no blue smoke either

 

thats weird then as i would have expected it to be smoking a little.

just have a look under at the sump and see if its wet with oil. my focus has been weeping a bit of oil from the rocker cover for months, gets the engine and sump coverd but never leaves drips on the drive as it doesn't leak that bad. i've sorted that now mind by switching to the silvertop rocker cover which uses a much better gasket imo.

 

Althought saying that, I know it has developed a very slight and i mean "slight" leak from my rocker cover, which was a new gasket when i painted it, I didn't mention that above as it is the very slightest of leaks!

I wont get a chance to get it in the air to have a proper look underneath before its on the ramp at the test station!

Ian, I think I will give that cataclean a try, ive been reading the reviews and it looks pretty good stuff tbh! Ive not read a single bad review, and even read a couple that failed emissions on the mot, then used the cataclean as instructed went back after 10-15 miles and about an hour and then passed!

 

find a friendly mot man who will let the emissions go,
plenty of them about,

 

good luck with the test, get a print out of the results.

 

Thanks Phil! Yeh I will do

 

Ian,

as you have used Cataclean, when would you advice to use it? on the day of the mot, or 2days/a week before?

 

I'd put it in when the tank is about 1/4 full (or a little less) and run it around, getting it nice and warm for about an hour and then put it in for the test.

 

ok, ill put it in when i leave to go for the test then, as im taking it to waltham abbey from chelmsford so will have plenty of time to get it warmed up and run through!

Cheers!

 

are you getting doug to do the mot?

 

yes, he done my mot last year and will be doing it again this year

 

his place is more waltham cross than the abbey.
dougs very fair, you'll be ok with him

 

Yeh I know Doug is, I wont have him risking his job though for something I can sort out before hand, and he also can't make the emissions testing machine pass if it wont, if that makes sense lol

I thought it was waltham abbey?! been there a few times lol

 

change that, dougs just messaged me back, he cant book it in as they fully booked! shit!

 

MOT booked tomorrow morning, with a no pass no fee garage, so watch this space

 

MOT passed

 

No pass, no fee? How does that work?

Do you have to pay full price for the re-test if it fails?

 

u only pay if it passes

 

so did it pass with or without the cat clean stuff?

 

Ask them to use someone else's emissions
results!!!

 

Yes i can lol

Glad it passed, never heard of a no pass no fee jobbie before though..... im away to look it up

 

congrats that it passed.

just monitor the oil consumption.