Hi folks. I recently purchased my first Subaru, a 1996 Outback (red and gray). Love it, except for the fact that I can't pass inspection. The previous owner had reset the computer because of a CEL for a knock sensor malfunction. When I purchased the car, I replaced the knock sensor, and there hasn't been any CEL, but now I am getting incomplete readings on the Catalyst, Oxygen Sensor, and EGR System monitors and so cannot pass NYS inspection. I spoke with several Subaru dealerships and they told me I just have to keep driving it to reset the monitors, but I've already driven it for two months and over 800 miles and the monitors are not clearing. I've now received 3 tickets because I don't have a valid inspection sticker and I don't know what to do. Can anyone help? Has anyone had luck with any specific driving pattern to get the monitors ready on an Outback? Thanks in advance!!!
westminster
Catalyst and EVAP are usually the hardest to clear.
I drove 300 miles to clear my BMW, I just kept the scanner hooked up and kept checking it until it cleared.
Search Subaru emissions drive cycle and you get some hits. Here's one .
Subaru recommends the following conditions and drive cycle to get the monitors on its vehicles completed in the shortest amount of time:
1. Make sure the fuel tank is between one-quarter and three-quarters full; half a tank is ideal.
2. Start the engine and immediately drive the vehicle for at least 15 minutes at a speed greater than 50 mph. During the warmup, try to avoid sudden acceleration, hard braking and/or lane changes.
3. Drive the vehicle at a steady 55 mph for three more minutes. During this stage of the drive cycle, it's crucial that you keep throttle angle changes to a minimum.
4. Bring the vehicle hack to the shop, hook up the scan tool and look at the status of the readiness monitors. Repeat the drive cycle, if necessary.
Other than that, for me, varied driving helped. I did it in 15-20 minute cycles, 5 min stop and go to the freeway, 15 minutes at about 65 on the freeway and 5 minutes back to the house.
Did you ask the emissions place if they could give you a temp pass or If all the systems had to be ready ? the article seemed to suggest that they could do it with 2 not ready for pre 2000 cars.
I drove 300 miles to clear my BMW, I just kept the scanner hooked up and kept checking it until it cleared.
Search Subaru emissions drive cycle and you get some hits. Here's one .
Subaru recommends the following conditions and drive cycle to get the monitors on its vehicles completed in the shortest amount of time:
1. Make sure the fuel tank is between one-quarter and three-quarters full; half a tank is ideal.
2. Start the engine and immediately drive the vehicle for at least 15 minutes at a speed greater than 50 mph. During the warmup, try to avoid sudden acceleration, hard braking and/or lane changes.
3. Drive the vehicle at a steady 55 mph for three more minutes. During this stage of the drive cycle, it's crucial that you keep throttle angle changes to a minimum.
4. Bring the vehicle hack to the shop, hook up the scan tool and look at the status of the readiness monitors. Repeat the drive cycle, if necessary.
Other than that, for me, varied driving helped. I did it in 15-20 minute cycles, 5 min stop and go to the freeway, 15 minutes at about 65 on the freeway and 5 minutes back to the house.
Did you ask the emissions place if they could give you a temp pass or If all the systems had to be ready ? the article seemed to suggest that they could do it with 2 not ready for pre 2000 cars.
Link to Federal EPA document readiness exceptions (page 5)
http://www.epa.gov/otaq/regs/im/obd/regtech/420f08009.pdf
Read Appendix D
http://epa.gov/otaq/regs/im/obd/r01015.pdf
1996 Subaru vehicles - Vehicles will clear readiness at key-off. There is no reprogramming available for this line of vehicles. These vehicles should be scanned for MIL illumination without regard to readiness status
http://www.epa.gov/otaq/regs/im/obd/regtech/420f08009.pdf
Read Appendix D
http://epa.gov/otaq/regs/im/obd/r01015.pdf
1996 Subaru vehicles - Vehicles will clear readiness at key-off. There is no reprogramming available for this line of vehicles. These vehicles should be scanned for MIL illumination without regard to readiness status
Brain farted on that one, I read it as 98 [his car]. I saw that key off clear thing too for the 1996 but disregarded it.
The Inspection board should know about this, Might be able to fight those tickets based on that too.
The Inspection board should know about this, Might be able to fight those tickets based on that too.
Apparently we are now talking to ourselves ... he either figured it out and jumped ship or ... forgot that he posted ;]
Maybe useful for someone else though.
Maybe useful for someone else though.
Don't worry, I'm still here! My first child was born last week and he has been keeping me busier than the Subaru.
Thanks for all of your replies! NY state allows 2 incomplete monitors for pre-2000 cars, but I had 3 not ready so there was no way to get through inspection without clearing 1 more monitor. Also, NY will give you a one year waiver in this situation, but only if you've spent more than $450 in repairs to the emissions system (not sure where that rule comes from...).
So after calling several more Subaru dealerships, all of which said either to keep driving the car, or that I would need to bring it in so they could look at it (for a charge, of course), I finally found someone who seemed to know what they were talking about -- at Koeppel Subaru in Queens (if I have issues in the future, I will definitely be going to them). A woman in the service department there said I could drive until I'm blue in the face and the monitors will still read incomplete unless I complete the following drive pattern: accelerate to 50 MPH, drive for at least 3 minutes without braking, decelerate to 30 MPH, then accelerate again to 50 MPH, and drive for at least 3 minutes again without braking. If I end up having to brake, then I have to start all over again. I did ask her whether I should then check the OBD before keying off, and she said, it didn't matter, once the monitors are ready they will stay ready -- so I could drive the pattern at night when traffic is lighter and then just bring it to my mechanic the next day (which was good news, because trying to drive at 50 without braking during the day in the middle of Brooklyn sounded like a recipe for disaster!).
Then I read the information posted above about the monitors clearing on key-off and got worried that even if I followed her advice, it might not work unless I tested the OBD while my car was still running. So I decided it would be best to try to complete the drive pattern during the day so I could take it directly to my mechanic (I really do no recommend trying this at home, at least if you live in NYC!).
Anyhow, yesterday I drove the car for about 15 minutes of normal city driving to get to a highway, then accelerated to 50 and drove for 3 minutes without braking, decelerated to 30, then accelerated to 50 and drove for 8 minutes (for good measure) without braking, then decelerated again to 30 (for good measure) and then drove at 50 for 2 minutes before being forced to brake in order to avoid risking my life. Then I drove another 15 minutes of normal city driving to get to my mechanic, LEFT THE CAR RUNNING, and had him check the OBD and ALL MONITORS WERE READY
So, I'm not sure exactly what did the trick, the drive pattern itself, or just driving for a while and then not keying off before running the OBD test, but if anyone has this problem in the future on a 96 I would suggest following the same routine that I did and hopefully you will get a similar result.
Thanks again for all of your*advice! Hopefully I will be able to contest those tickets since it wasn't really my fault. Oh well, now back to my little Oliver...
Thanks for all of your replies! NY state allows 2 incomplete monitors for pre-2000 cars, but I had 3 not ready so there was no way to get through inspection without clearing 1 more monitor. Also, NY will give you a one year waiver in this situation, but only if you've spent more than $450 in repairs to the emissions system (not sure where that rule comes from...).
So after calling several more Subaru dealerships, all of which said either to keep driving the car, or that I would need to bring it in so they could look at it (for a charge, of course), I finally found someone who seemed to know what they were talking about -- at Koeppel Subaru in Queens (if I have issues in the future, I will definitely be going to them). A woman in the service department there said I could drive until I'm blue in the face and the monitors will still read incomplete unless I complete the following drive pattern: accelerate to 50 MPH, drive for at least 3 minutes without braking, decelerate to 30 MPH, then accelerate again to 50 MPH, and drive for at least 3 minutes again without braking. If I end up having to brake, then I have to start all over again. I did ask her whether I should then check the OBD before keying off, and she said, it didn't matter, once the monitors are ready they will stay ready -- so I could drive the pattern at night when traffic is lighter and then just bring it to my mechanic the next day (which was good news, because trying to drive at 50 without braking during the day in the middle of Brooklyn sounded like a recipe for disaster!).
Then I read the information posted above about the monitors clearing on key-off and got worried that even if I followed her advice, it might not work unless I tested the OBD while my car was still running. So I decided it would be best to try to complete the drive pattern during the day so I could take it directly to my mechanic (I really do no recommend trying this at home, at least if you live in NYC!).
Anyhow, yesterday I drove the car for about 15 minutes of normal city driving to get to a highway, then accelerated to 50 and drove for 3 minutes without braking, decelerated to 30, then accelerated to 50 and drove for 8 minutes (for good measure) without braking, then decelerated again to 30 (for good measure) and then drove at 50 for 2 minutes before being forced to brake in order to avoid risking my life. Then I drove another 15 minutes of normal city driving to get to my mechanic, LEFT THE CAR RUNNING, and had him check the OBD and ALL MONITORS WERE READY
So, I'm not sure exactly what did the trick, the drive pattern itself, or just driving for a while and then not keying off before running the OBD test, but if anyone has this problem in the future on a 96 I would suggest following the same routine that I did and hopefully you will get a similar result.
Thanks again for all of your*advice! Hopefully I will be able to contest those tickets since it wasn't really my fault. Oh well, now back to my little Oliver...
Congrats on the kid
Should have turned the key off and checked to see if it still read ok for next time [if you're going to keep it that long]
Should have turned the key off and checked to see if it still read ok for next time [if you're going to keep it that long]
Some good info here, the drive cycle worked on my boys 1996 outback legacy wagon. I did the drive cycle with my obd2 code reader hooked up and after the cycle I read it again and all were set. On the way home I stopes at homedepot and when I came out I figured I would double check it. The same 4 monitors that stopes me from getting it inspected were not ready again. So I drove it to 50mph droped to 30 mph and back to 50 mph but did not hold it at any of these speeds for 3 minutes this time and they all were set again. So I guess I will do this sequence and run it over and get it inspected without shutting the car off. Thank you all for this great info.
I just wanted to confirm that the 96 subaru impreza outback's obd monitors can be made ready by this drive cycle. All of them were flashing, after the drive cycle it was ready and passed CA smog. After key off, they were all flashing again.
According to a CA BAR publication it shouldn't matter in CA because the inspection system SHOULD ignore readiness status for 96 subarus, but non of the smog techs (or CA state referee) were able to confirm this.
According to a CA BAR publication it shouldn't matter in CA because the inspection system SHOULD ignore readiness status for 96 subarus, but non of the smog techs (or CA state referee) were able to confirm this.
Just to add my experience from today on a 2001 Outback 2.5L. about 5/8 tank of gas, 90 DegF. Only the EVAP monitor was not ok. Had an aged OBD monitor plugged in which updates very 10-15 seconds.
About 7 minutes at 60-65mph (trying to juggle traffic so that there was no one behind me). Some acceleration uphill, no braking.
Foot off the gas allowing car to de-accelerate to 30mph without braking,.
Followed by immediate (modest) acceleration back to 60-65mph.
On the next update, the monitor showed the EVAP monitor OK!
About 7 minutes at 60-65mph (trying to juggle traffic so that there was no one behind me). Some acceleration uphill, no braking.
Foot off the gas allowing car to de-accelerate to 30mph without braking,.
Followed by immediate (modest) acceleration back to 60-65mph.
On the next update, the monitor showed the EVAP monitor OK!
Thank you for all the info, I know little to nothing about the Foresters as I picked up a 1999 and a 2001. Both will not pass NYS inspection due to monitors not set. I've fooled around with a code reader for a couple of weeks now on the 99. I got the car with the check engine light on all the time. At first, clearing codes and trying to get the light off, the reader would shut the light off and as soon as you started the car, the light was instantly back on. I kept playing around looking for hose problems, as well as wiring problems on the Evap canister. I found that two wires were broken and soldered them together. The next time I had connected the OBDII reader, it gave the code P0466. cleared the code and the MIL light has stayed off and has not come back on. All that is left is getting the last two monitors to set.
I feel your pain in CA all sensors need to be ready.
I had disconnected the battery and was informed the evap sensor wasn’t ready by the smog guy.
I drove it up the freeway and back for 80 mi figured it was good but the guy hooked it up to the odb said it wasn’t ready still
Like others advice I drove it to work and back (40 mi each way) and did the recommended cold start and cycling through the steps coasting to a stop ect
and today after a week and 389 miles I tested w odb and all sensors are ready!
Keep on driving
I had disconnected the battery and was informed the evap sensor wasn’t ready by the smog guy.
I drove it up the freeway and back for 80 mi figured it was good but the guy hooked it up to the odb said it wasn’t ready still
Like others advice I drove it to work and back (40 mi each way) and did the recommended cold start and cycling through the steps coasting to a stop ect
and today after a week and 389 miles I tested w odb and all sensors are ready!
Keep on driving
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