6 replies to this topic

[kevindh]

Hi,

Ford guy new to Contours.

I was getting a lot of info about Contours from Contour.org but they have been off line for over a week now, and I really have to get this car past the emissions test.

I am helping my daughter fix a 1995 Contour GL 2.0L Zetec ATX that she recently bought for $450.00.

The body and interior are in excellent condition, however the mechanical has been neglected a little.

Repairs so far: new struts/springs, TPS sensor, Coolant temp. sensor, Exhaust leak repair, Cleaned MAF, new filters.

Now if we can get the NOX down, it will be an excellent car.

If you have any ideas about causes of high NOX please post in the thread I have in Under The Hood.

Kevin

Edited by kevindh, 18 December 2011 - 01:23 PM.

[Scorpion8]

Welcome! Do you have any CEL's or codes?

Edited by Scorpion8, 20 December 2011 - 11:01 AM.

[Terry Haines]

...vac leaks on the PCV system are a common fault..

[kevindh]

Whoops, I was checking the under the hood thread and I forgot to check this thread, or maybe I was spending too much time actually "under the hood".

It hasn't been too bad though, I have been providing the mechanical advice but my daughter has been doing most of the work on the car. It's her car she needs to know how it works.

This high NOX problem is making me a bit mad though. 2800ppm ,nearly 3 times the allowable limit.
The HC's and CO's are average.

We have checked nearly every system on this car.

Stuff we have already done:
New parts: Spark plugs - gapped to 1.1mm, TPS sensor, coolant sensor, air filter, fuel filter, thermostat, coolant inlet housing,serpentine belt, front struts/springs

Repaired: Exhaust leak before cat, cleaned MAF sensor

Checked: EGR valve and passages, vacuum system, intake system, Injector clean, Plug wires appear to have been replaced recently and are in good shape. Throttle body and intake are clean

We are getting an intermitant CEL with code 172 in continuos memory, an engine running lean code, when the code is erased and the car driven, it takes quite a while for the light and code to come back on.

The car has no drivability symtoms. It runs well and idles smooth and steady, has good power under load, accelerates smooth and fast, always starts on the first crank.

I am thinking it might be a cat problem, but I am trying to proceed step by step, making sure I have eliminated any engine problems first.

Please post what you think I should check.

[robdog]

I could not pass emissions in my turbo svt. I took 9 tests and did everything under the hood that I could. The thing that got me to pass was a new ODBII cat! Passed with flying colors. Also I tried the 1/8 -1/4 tank of fuel plus 2-3 gal of denatured alcohol. It burns cooler and lowered and make sure that the oil is changed.

[kevindh]

Thanks Robdog

I haven't quite made it to that many tests yet.

We are putting in a new cat.
The old cat was trying to be resistant when we were taking it out. The EGR pipe to cat connection did not want to move, so we had to cut it off the cat, remove the whole EGR pipe from the car, then clamp the fitting in a vice to get the nut to turn without damaging the EGR pipe.
Then as we were trying to hook up the EGR pipe to the new cat, the little pipe off the side of the cat for the EGR broke right off at the weld with almost no force. Defective piece of junk.
It was only a small delay. The next day the parts store replaced it under warranty. The new one is in the car now, almost done.

Just to be on the safe side, we also replaced the O2 sensor as well.

[kevindh]

Partial success, after replacing the cat and O2 sensor, we went from 2800ppm NOX down to 1200ppm, not quite enough to pass.

The HC and CO emmisions have dropped to nearly zero.

We have to go down another 200ppm on the NOX so we are going to replace the DPFE sensor since the voltage readings on the sensor seem to indicate something is not working quite right with it.