YET ANOTHER FAILED MOT - EMISSONS!!!

[Anonymous]

My toyota mr2 roadster 51 reg (43000 miles) has recently failed its MOT on its emissions!!! After taking it to a Toyota Specialist he has told me it is blowing blue smoke out when he revs it high.  He has never seen a problem like this a belives it could be the LAMBDA sensor if not he has worryingly told me I may need a new engine!!! Anyone any ideas? It's due to go back to the toyota specialist on Thursday so I would really appreciate any feedback.  The diagnostic reading read no obvious problems however the emisson test shows differently.  All other test pass other than LAMBDA.  I have added a fuel additive which brought the reading down slightly.......Can anyone help...please!

[enid_b]

replace the air filter

replace the spark plugs

change oil

buy a can of carb cleaner and clean the MAF

thrash the nuts off it just prior to testing, make sure the cat is nice and hot

all these answers and more can be found if you merely took the time to use the search facility at the top right of the page

good luck

E

[muffdan]

good luck mate, hope it's not your engine. Get the toyota specialist to inspect the pre-cats through the O2 sensor holes when you take it back.

[Anonymous]

Ok so having now had Toyota look over my car they have assured me that it is the engine, a badly worn one at only 43000 miles on the clock which even toyota said it was strange.  Obviously their advice was to replace the engine!!! So having desperatly needing an MOT I took it to another garage where strangly enough it passed! I am over the moon however not sure what to do now as I LOVE my MR2.  Any advice??? My main concern is - will this engine blow out on me? Toyota seem to think not and they said I will just have to check the oil more regular.  

Points that may help make a decision on whether the MR2 should stay or go.....

*Toyota and one other specialist have both said when doing the emissons test and putting your foot down on the accelerater the car blows blue smoke!
*Air filters and oil filters have been changed in the service 1 month ago.
*Spark plugs havent, would this make a huge difference?
*Mechanic found a hair line crack on the head gasket and a very small amount of oil is leaking, however not enough to mark the ground when parked.

Please help me, I really do want to keep her however cant afford to replace the engine nor for it to blow out on mke and the car then to be near on worthless.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

[Anonymous]

Bit of back ground history for those not following previosuly.....My Toyota MR2 Roadster, 51 plate, 43000 miles on the clock failed its MOT on its emissons. Having put an additive in it, it didnt bring the emissons down as much as needed to pass. Oil and air filters were changed a month ago during service but not the spark plugs. I took it to a toyota specialist for the diagnostic machine reading where it read everything was ok no problems.  Thoughts around the lamba sensor however toyota assure me it is not the lamba sensor and if I replaced this I would be replacing it every year just to get it through its MOT.

Ok so having now had Toyota look over my car they have assured me that it is the engine, a badly worn one at only 43000 miles on the clock which even toyota said it was strange. Obviously their advice was to replace the engine!!! So having desperatly needing an MOT I took it to another garage where strangly enough it passed! I am over the moon however not sure what to do now as I LOVE my MR2. Any advice??? My main concern is - will this engine blow out on me? Toyota seem to think not and they said I will just have to check the oil more regular.

Points that may help make a decision on whether the MR2 should stay or go.....

*Toyota and one other specialist have both said when doing the emissons test and putting your foot down on the accelerater the car blows blue smoke!
*Air filters and oil filters have been changed in the service 1 month ago.
*Spark plugs havent, would this make a huge difference?
*Mechanic found a hair line crack on the head gasket and a very small amount of oil is leaking, however not enough to mark the ground when parked.

Please help me, I really do want to keep her however cant afford to replace the engine nor for it to blow out on mke and the car then to be near on worthless.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

[Anonymous]

If it really is blowing blue smoke from the exhaust then you are burning oil. The most usually reported problem for that on here is that the cylinder bores have become ovalised and let oil past the control rings on the pistons so it gets into the combustion chamber and burns along with the petrol. The acid test is are you using much oil?? If you are then that usually means a new half engine (just the block basically and all of the other parts are reused). There are quite a few posts on here about this issue; try searching excessive oil consumption or something like that.

[Anonymous]

Can we try and keep all Quinster's problems to one post please? Makes life soooo much easier (see the mess Deej made of his posts for an example  s;) s;)  ).

[Anonymous]

WTF have I done wrong now?

AAHHHHH, ok, just got it!   s:D s:D

[Anonymous]

Not you matey, the OP.  s;) s;)

[loadswine]

[MOD] Yes Dan has a good point there, please don't start duplicate threads for the same thing. I've put all the posts together now on the one thread.[MOD]

[Anonymous]

SANDSTRAIN - thank you so much for your reply, excuse me for being an MR2 beginner but what is the best way to measure exactly how much oil i'm using? I usually just check it fortnightly and top it up a touch to make sure I always have oil above minimum.

[roger]

Strongly suggest you do it the other way round, gives you much more room to catch problems before they do damage.

Top up until its at maximum, then if it drops top back to maximum. To check your useage take a mileage reading at full, then check again every so many miles.

Checking the engine oil level
1. To get a true reading, the vehicle should be on a level spot. After turning off the engine, wait a few minutes for the oil to drain back into the bottom of the engine.
2. Pull out the dipstick, and wipe it clean with a rag.
3. Reinsert the dipstick—push it in as far as it will go, or the reading will not be correct.
4. Pull the dipstick out and look at the oil level on the end.
CAUTION
Be careful not to touch the hot exhaust manifold.
If the oil level is below or only slightly above the low level, add engine oil of the same type as already in the engine.
Remove the oil filler cap and add engine oil in small quantities at a time, checking the dipstick.
The approximate quantity of oil needed to fill between the low level and the full level on the dipstick is indicated below for reference.
When the level reaches within the correct range, install the filler cap hand–tight.
Oil quantity, L (qt., lmp. qt.): 1.3 (1.4, 1.1)
NOTICE
Avoid overfilling, or the engine could be damaged.
Check the oil level on the dipstick once again after adding the oil.
ENGINE OIL SELECTION
Use API grade SJ, "Energy–Conserving" or ILSAC multigrade engine oil.
Recommended viscosity (SAE): SAE 5W–30 is the best choice for your vehicle, for good fuel economy, and good starting in cold weather.
If you use SAE 10W–30 engine oil in extremely low temperatures, the engine may become difficult to start, so SAE 5W–30 engine oil is recommended

Based on the above (a  copy from BGB maintenance) Low to Full is 1.3 Litres. Toyota reckon nothing is wrong if you use about a litre / 1000 miles, though I would be very concerned if it dropped to that level.

[StuM]

Are the precats still installed?