trouble passimg smog on your KA? Look here

[singlecamslam]

So the most common issue with passing smog on a ka24de is NOx being too high. Even if you have a good cat you can still fail due to high nox. High NO is due to high combustion temperature and that is usually control by with the egr.

My problem was my EGR was fine AND clean and working properly, so WTF. So here is what you do:

Before cleaing
See this little allen key nut? Its a 10mm. Its on the intake manifold right about the throttle body.
Open that up and it leads all the way back to the EGR. What happends is those holes get clogged and the EGR cant allow air back into the engine. So here is what you do
Get a long pipe cleaner like thing
Shove it in there in a thrusting motion

and this is what your plug should look like
There is also a plug on each runnerThose should also be cleaned.

End result
BAM

[driftnuts]

perfect thanks i have a very good feeling thats whats wrong with my egr setup

[S-Nation S13]

good info...

[fakts13]

i wonder if using some seafoam would help making the scrubbing unnecessary... or at least make it easier to dislodge the carbon...

[joshchewuhh]

exactly what i need! was your throwing a CEL?

code 32 or no?

[sked707]

Good stuff! Got smog coming up so this is now on my to do list

[1on1]

I will do this once I replace my egr solenoid...

[Jonnie Fraz]

Thanks for the info. I will do this before I run mine down for smog.

[yaba94070]

what where the co2 #'s after that

[SmallTownDrifter]

Thanks man I'll do that tomorrow

[sincity_sil80]

i'll check that out.. im in the process of installing my egr so this worked out perfectly.

[dued]

I went to Lowes today and couldn't find a big pipe cleaner like the one pictured in post #1, where did you get yours?

[matts13vert]

Awesome info this is the most common reason these cars dont pass smog! code 32 is a headache...

[dued]

What tools did you use to get the plug off? I used a 3/8" 10mm hex socket with a 3/8" breaker bar, and I couldn't squeeze it into the small space required. I also tried a huge 10mm allen key & the combo of both of these tools resulted in a stripped plug


So now I have a stripped plug that is still on my intake manifold & I can't clean it.






































































One more time.

[SmallTownDrifter]

should I try to clean the tube that goes from the headerd to the egr

[singlecamslam]

ok that pipe cleaner is actually an oven cleaner, not sure where you get them, but i actually found it.

In order to get that plug off, you have to take the throttle body off, and upper hose out of the way along with throttle cable and stuff. Than i used a 10mm allen key with a breaker bar and used my entire body to break it lose, its really in there.

[562s13]

do the sohc's have those as well?

[dued]

Originally Posted by singlecamslam

ok that pipe cleaner is actually an oven cleaner, not sure where you get them, but i actually found it.

In order to get that plug off, you have to take the throttle body off, and upper hose out of the way along with throttle cable and stuff. Than i used a 10mm allen key with a breaker bar and used my entire body to break it lose, its really in there.

Thank you very much!

[sbkcrew44]

Originally Posted by 562s13

do the sohc's have those as well?

Yes they do.

You can also find something similar called an dryer vent brush or something like that at home depot.its not exactly the same, but close, and its the best alternative i could find at the hardware store.
It looks like this

[dued]

Bump. Tips from my experience - The bolt plug strips easily, so be careful. Also, my mechanic is using some sort upper engine manifold cleaner spray stuff to soak the manifold overnight, then he's going to use a gun barrel brush to clean out the port. Should help the process for those of you who can't find a dryer vent / oven brush thing.

[okinawadrifter]

I used a piece of hard wire almost like a coat hanger wire. I shoved it throught all the runners and then used my wifes vacuum cleaner attachment to suck out all the broken up stuff out. It was all caked up in there, even thought my EGR was clean. I guess after 20 years it would be clogged up. And yes first initial smog I failed, after scrapping everthing out went for smog and passed with flying colors, amazing what cleaning of the intake runners will do.

[yetijeff]

was this causing you to throw a code 32? ive changed almost every component in my egr system and its still throwing a code. im single cam tho does it have the same cleanouts?

[sked707]

Anybody try this on an sohc yet?? I was looking at mine and it looks like a pain in the ass to get the bolt off, theres a little pipe in the way there.

[sbkcrew44]

I did it on a soch. There is an identical bolt on the back, take that off and you can get to it from the back if you have a flexible handle on the pipe brush.

[darkslide92]

damn hella helpfull, my symptoms were same as yours egr and cat brand new but was still reading 800ppm @15mph.

thanks for the info

[Seriously]

Damn that sucks i looked at this after i failed ...

[dkim1985]

Originally Posted by Seriously

Damn that sucks i looked at this after i failed ...

...same here. i failed my test last night. looks like im gonna be doing some cleaning tonight. lol

how long does this take to do? is there any liquid cleaner that I can use instead?
i failed my NO by only about 40 points..

[dkim1985]

i bought this Dryer Vent Brush at 'Bed Bath and Beyond' for $10;
Casabella® Bendable Dryer Vent Brush - Bed Bath & Beyond

..and did all the instructions posted except for the individual runners because i didn't have the right size allen key(?). didn't know the runners had different size allen key nuts than the 10mm..anyways..hope it doesnt matter too much.
the 10mm allen key nut is REALLY on there..no joke. i used the short end of the allen key and put a metal pipe over the long end for leverage to loosen the nut.
after shoving the vent brush in and out multiple times..i stuck a small hose inside as far as i could that was connected to an air pump. gave it a few good pumps to blow out any little particles that was just hanging around in there.
looking inside the hole, it still looked a little dirty but definitely WAYYY better than it did before..so just reinstalled everything and put everything back the way it was. started the engine up sooner after..and you can tell it's running a little cleaner.

a few notes for people looking to do this method;
-do NOT do this process when your engine is running hot. this may be stupid but i feel as though it should be mentioned for safety reasons. let your engine cool down before you do this(cool down as in OFF for awhile). the headers that you're going to be working around will be hot as well as the radiator and especially the coolant since its going to spill.
-newbs(like me); at least wear disposable gloves when doing this cause u're gonna get sh*t all over your hands..go to your local auto store and u'll find a box of disposable gloves. easy.
-u have to pull out the hose that connects your radiator coolant so have a pan or something underneath otherwise u're gonna have coolant all over the ground.

i'll be going for my 2nd smog check later today..will keep everyone posted with the results~
im pretty sure im going to pass because i was only 40 points off the passing score..lol

EDIT:
..didn't pass. got gross polluter instead. loll
im going to go the carb cleaner route.

[ASheng89]

I tried this today with some carb cleaner and now my car won't idle, any ideas as to why? When I started the car after this procedure, it idled okay for maybe 3 minutes or so, and then it suddenly started sputtering and oscillating until after a while it just stalled out. After the first time it stalled, the idle was never really steady and it smelled like my car was running rich. The engine stalls out every time now, either immediately after starting or a minute or two after.

I actually managed to get the plug off and clean the passageway with some kind of trumpet cleaner brush thing my friend gave me without removing the intake or the coolant hose. I only had to remove the bolts holding the throttle cable in place and kind of set it off to the side. I'm pretty sure I reinstalled everything correctly...

Any help would be appreciated, thanks in advance.

[zerodameaon]

I wish that was what would help me. Fixed my egr system before my smog and i had NO numbers of like 9 and 3. Mine was high HC.