[vllctsdrncrm]

I was wondering if anyone works at any Las Vegas smog check places or knows the clark county smog check guidelines.

Basically, my car is a '95 neon dodge and the check engine light wont turn off. My dad and I have fixed a ton of stuff on it. So the OBD codes coming up are 12, 35, and 37. which is-

12; Direct battery input to PCM was disconnected within the last 50 key-on cycles (My dad took the battery out to fix the radiator)

35; Radiator fan control relay circuit problem (my dad rigged it so the fans stay on constantly (so i don't pass out in the 110+ getting to my classes) then when it starts getting cold I'll switch to the old relay, which doesn't turn on the fan- we've tried a bunch of relays and I think every single one we bought, were bad lol just my luck!)

37; Torque converter clutch solenoid circuit or park/neutral switch failure (We took the wiring out of the parking brakes and reverse light because something was draining my battery and we even took out the stereo! Once we figured what was draining it, we couldn't find the darn wires afterwards lol. But they DO infact work now! There's wiring problems with the car, so my dad says)


Are these going to make me fail a smog check? Will I automatically fail if they look at the check engine light and see its on? or do they go by the codes? They don't have anything to do with the engine itself. I've looked and looked all online for a nevada smog check forum or something to say what is required by clark county and can't find anything!

Thank you!

[AA702]

Originally Posted by vllctsdrncrm

I was wondering if anyone works at any Las Vegas smog check places or knows the clark county smog check guidelines.

Basically, my car is a '95 neon dodge and the check engine light wont turn off. My dad and I have fixed a ton of stuff on it. So the OBD codes coming up are 12, 35, and 37. which is-

12; Direct battery input to PCM was disconnected within the last 50 key-on cycles (My dad took the battery out to fix the radiator)

35; Radiator fan control relay circuit problem (my dad rigged it so the fans stay on constantly (so i don't pass out in the 110+ getting to my classes) then when it starts getting cold I'll switch to the old relay, which doesn't turn on the fan- we've tried a bunch of relays and I think every single one we bought, were bad lol just my luck!)

37; Torque converter clutch solenoid circuit or park/neutral switch failure (We took the wiring out of the parking brakes and reverse light because something was draining my battery and we even took out the stereo! Once we figured what was draining it, we couldn't find the darn wires afterwards lol. But they DO infact work now! There's wiring problems with the car, so my dad says)


Are these going to make me fail a smog check? Will I automatically fail if they look at the check engine light and see its on? or do they go by the codes? They don't have anything to do with the engine itself. I've looked and looked all online for a nevada smog check forum or something to say what is required by clark county and can't find anything!

Thank you!

As far as I know it will not pass with a check engine light. You may want to go to a smog place and ask them what they think you should do.

[Trash Can]

Originally Posted by AA702

As far as I know it will not pass with a check engine light.

True. A check engine light is an automatic failure.

[swagger]

CEL = Auto-Fail.

[MSchu]

^ Yeap... here is what you can do.

reset the ECU and fault code by disconnecting the battery for about 10 minutes..(not all cars reset in this fashion, but I think yours might).

drive the car for a day or two and see how long it takes for the fault light to come up again... most cars it will be under 25 miles but might be as long as 50 miles or more. after that when you are ready to smog, reset your battery and drive the car somewhere between 5-10 miles, go down the blvd and make sure to get on the freeway (go one or two off ramps), and then go directly to the Smog center before the light comes back on.

what this does is that it allows the cars computer/ecu to "learn" and have a history, as long as the CEL does not come on(three out of three codes) you will likely pass(even if you pull two of three codes). the reason you need to put some miles on the car prior to taking it to the smog center is so that you ECU will have recorded history... if they try and pull the codes and there is no history, they will not pass your car... but it's not a fail either.

[Trash Can]

Originally Posted by MSchu

^ Yeap... here is what you can do.

reset the ECU and fault code by disconnecting the battery for about 10 minutes..(not all cars reset in this fashion, but I think yours might).

drive the car for a day or two and see how long it takes for the fault light to come up again... most cars it will be under 25 miles but might be as long as 50 miles or more. after that when you are ready to smog, reset your battery and drive the car somewhere between 5-10 miles, go down the blvd and make sure to get on the freeway (go one or two off ramps), and then go directly to the Smog center before the light comes back on.

what this does is that it allows the cars computer/ecu to "learn" and have a history, as long as the CEL does not come on(three out of three codes) you will likely pass(even if you pull two of three codes). the reason you need to put some miles on the car prior to taking it to the smog center is so that you ECU will have recorded history... if they try and pull the codes and there is no history, they will not pass your car... but it's not a fail either.

Good info. I'd like to add a little.

The smog stations are required by law to test every vehicle as presented to them, meaning that they cannot tell you that your vehicle will fail even if they know it will (i.e. they see a check engine light staring them right in the face). They face heavy fines or loss of license for failure to comply. Also, keep in mind that many of these stations are privately-owned businesses. They may offer a free retest if your vehicle fails, but don't expect one. You don't work for free, and neither do they.

Source: my neighbor who owns a few smog stations in town

[Caltovegas]

Get rid of it now..Long term is't going to be a headache

[ScoopLV]

What's the mileage?

You're going to end up paying $200-250 every year, plus three smog checks, in order to get DMV to waive emissions until next year. Your car isn't old enough for classic plates. (I took the classic vehicle route. I have a car that was made before catalytic converters, and will never, EVER pass smog. But that's not my daily driver.)

If the mileage is low enough, and the engine is strong, take the car to Carl's Cool Cars and have them fix it right. Otherwise ditch it because you're looking at a money pit. If you decide to have it fixed, make sure you tell Carl everything you did, and why. Better yet, bring your dad along. The more information you give him, the less it's going to cost. But for putting a jury-rigged car back aright, I'd guess you're looking at a $1,000 or so repair bill. Maybe higher if they have a lot of diagnostic work to do. Time is money after all.

But it will be cheaper in the long run than spending a few hundred every year to try to pass smog.

Incidentally, my daily driver is a compressed natural gas burning truck that is smog exempt because it doesn't have emissions other than water vapor. If you decide to get rid of the Neon, I'd look for a CNG vehicle. Gas is $2.50 a gallon, maintenance is basically non-existent, you're good to go in every HOV lane in America, and no smog checks.

The downside to a CNG vehicle is the lack of filling stations. Long road trips are problematic. But if you're just motoring around the valley, there's half a dozen places where you can fill up.

[airics]

its 400. in service bills to get the waiver and don't take it to Carl.... Wouldn't give him anything more than an oil change.

[ScoopLV]

I'll bite, why wouldn't you take it to Carl? You're the first person I know who has said anything negative about him.