... turned out the trusty Ruthiemobile this morning, for my biennial California smog check chores. 210k on the clock, passed like a cool breeze! Cause for concern, check engine light popped up, back in late January. Real head scratcher, surveying the various exhaust treatments, so many half-baked testimonials, begging the CataClean? False positives, recidivism, numerous reports, check engine lights reappearing? Said to be a more comprehensive, more efficient all-around additive, went with the Duralube brand catalytic converter cleaner, instead. Don't get much good news these days. Pleasant surprise; difference, day and night! Gosh! Must be another 10 horsepower?My '04's now faster on the 190k rebuild, than it was, brand new. Poured out the first bottle, the whole thing on a half tank premium unleaded winter blend; set out on a two hour drive through the forest. After 50 miles, blink! Just like that? Poof-gone! Check engine light blinked out. Permanently. Never reappeared. Backed it up, a second bottle on a full tank, winter blend, for another fuel burn, going two hours non-stop, each way, refueling thereafter, fresh tank of regular pump unleaded. This morning, freshly refueled on summer blend, no additives presenting the vehicle for smog check this morning, sailed through, no drama. Drop-dead stupid thing to do? That I always use the same guy? He was quick to admonish me, harshly so this morning, don't do what I did last time, presenting the two-seater for its next biennial smog check, competition 101 octane racing unleaded! That California pump unleaded is specifically formulated to enable vehicles to clear smog check? I'm told, never-never-never submit your vehicle to smog check, boosters, additives, stabilizers, out-of-state unleaded. In my case? Under no circumstance present a vehicle to smog check, 101 octane racing unleaded! Duh? Dreamy, foggy, sleepwalking widower, scratching my head, never gave it a second thought, doing a fuel burn, blowing out that tank of 101? Last year, wheeling out my vintage two-seater for its smog check? Mercifully, it passed. Only, just barely. I'll do likewise, catalytic converter treatments on the 4WD and the two-seater, later this year, on winter blend, going in this summer with the Red-Line fuel system treatment, on summer blend. Crux of the dilemma for those of us with vintage or specialty vehicles? Democrats gone berserk here in California, DMV bureaucrats no longer allow unofficial smog checks. Dress rehearsals outlawed, no longer allowed to unofficially pre-test our specialty vehicles, prior to official testing? Any smog check we do, is automatically DMV data-based. Not good. You know the drill, pull out all the stops, exert undue caution, incur unnecessary expense squandering precious resources, racking up unnecessary mileage busying ourselves with redundant fuel burns, but for no good reason than to blow-out our additives and stabilizers, being over-conservative? America's best days, well behind her - best, - Samuel, '04 Ruthiemobile - /////////////////////
A check engine warning light by itself does not tell you what the problem is with the car. Are you just guessing what cause the check engine light to come on? Using a scanner to read the trouble codes is a better way to start diagnosing the problem with the car.
