I have my nephews 2006 Evo while he is in Afganistan with the Army. He just bought it in Key West when he found out he was being shipped out. He only had enough time to drive it to NH and leave it with me. When trying to get it through inspection, the computer will not "come ready" so the emissions portion of the test can be done. The car has a lerger turbo installed and when the turbo kicks in, the check engine light comes on which makes the computer stay "un ready". How do I get past this? The controller is set for just 6 pounds of boost and to kick in at 1600 RPM. Please send your thoughts to wayne.norcross@ge.com. I don't get in this forum very often.

Also, I want to add some foglights like PIAA or CATZ as his Chrsitmas present so when he gets back in February they will be installed. Any suggestions? Or would adding factory fogs be just as good?

Thanks, Wayne

 

I could really use some help on this.

 

I know you're not very active on the forums, but would you happen to know who tuned the car and what method was used to program the ECU? I would like to help you, but there are many other people here on the forums with way more information regarding tuning than my limited knowledge.

Can anyone help him out?

 

I'm a sixty year old "newbie" to the turbo world. I am a '94 Mustang Cobra,'90 Miata. and '68 Mercury Comet guy, all NA vehicles, so I'm kinda lost trying to help my nephew with his EVO. I'm all over the Mustang Cobra forums and intend to be more active on this one once my nephew is back home and we can actually use the car. (I'm thinking ice racing would be fun!) I actually told him not to buy it because his plan was to immediately drive it from Key West to Washington State. I said I wouldn't do that with a car that I had no history with. He's 23 and doesn't use the same logic as I having been stranded by a few vehicles over the years.
Which brings me to conceding that we know nothing about the car. The way the turbo kicks in is either fully on or fully off and it does it at the worse times like at red lights. If it was "tuned" at all, I would be surprised. I think the prior owner just did a DIY bigger turbo and controller install without bothering to have it tuned. In fact, the first thing we had to do was get the exhaust header welded back to the turbo inlet pipe as it was no longer connected.

The reason I am asking about how long do I have to drive it to make the computer "come ready" is that every car has a unique sequence of driving steps, on-off times, etc., for a computer to come ready. I was told by my mechanic who is trying to do the emissions test that each time the turbo kicks in the check engine light comes on. This is causing the computer to keep resetting. If I can drive the car "like a grandmother" long enough without the turbo kicking in, then the check engine light won't come on and the computer should "come ready". I bought a $90 OBDII scanner that will tell me if it does come ready. I drove it last night for 1/2 hour without any turbo boost. (It was tough because I wanted to put my foot in it. The car is "intense" when I want it to be!)
I will pop the hood when it stops snowing and write down the different components I can see.
Thanks for any help you can offer.

 

Let me move this to another sub-forum with more visibility. This might help get more eyeballs on this issue for you.

 

Is the CEL flashing and going away, or coming on and staying until the code is cleared?

If it is flashing it is more than likely due to the CEL knock flash routine in the TephraV7 rom mod. That is an ecu modification to allow for a bunch of features for the stock ecu. If this is the case, more than likely something is rattling and causing noise if it is just during spool. Is there a certain rpm range that it does it from? If it is happening in the same rpm/boost range everytime then it may be real knock.

If the CEL stays on, what is the code it is throughing?

I would ask if you had a cable and could pull the rom to post but from reading the post you more than likely do not. I would take it to someone in the area who knows Evo's, not a run of the mill mechanic.

 

Can anyone recommend a respectable shop in the New Hampshire area that can possibly take a look at this evo?

 

Bump for more visibility. Help this guy get his nephew's evo through inspection, people!

 

If you want, I can swing by and check it out myself some time this weekend. I'll bring the datalogging stuff and some other tools. I want to help you out. Your nephew deserves to come home to an awesome car

Also, Synergy Auto Lab in Manchester (http://www.synergyautolab.com/) are very reputable with the Evo's. If you do end up calling, ask for Jason. Tell him Decker referred you!!

 

To answer a few questions. I have not actually seen the CEL come on. The guy who repaired the front bumper cover and repainted it has been trying to help (he's got a 1987 600 HP Buick Grand National turbo car). He said when he took it for a ride, the CEL would flash when the turbo kicked in. I have been trying to drive it without the turbo to clear the computer so I have not seen the CEL. It is definately not on steady.

I will print out the EPA drive sequence and have my daughter come with me to read the instructions. It is pretty intense like "25 MPH for 7 minutes, gradually speed up to 35 MPH for five minutes, ...." Then repeat. How would anybody without these instructions know how to have the computer "come ready"? I suppose if you drove it long enough, you might hit all of the different components. I'm going to try this on Saturday and see what happens. I bought an OBD II scanner which will tell if the computer comes ready.

For the person offering to swing by this weekend, please send me your cell number via email to wayne.norcross@ge.com. I have been off to Pennslvania since last Sunday and have not been home, yet. Not sure what the weekend will bring but I know Sunday is tied up. Plus my daughter sent me a text that her Jeep Wrangler windshield has a crack in it. If doing the EPA drive sequence doesn't work, I will give you a call.

Thanks all, I feel like I'm making progress learning about how this car works.

Wayne

 

1. You don't need to do that computer come ready stuff.

2. Since it flashes, it is due to an ecu rom modification made by a gentleman on here, Tephra. It is a warning light when knock/detonation occurs. It could be false knock as these cars are quite noisy in the drivetrain and the knock sensor is very sensetive. It could also be real knock, but highly unlikely during tip-in/spool unless the timing is very aggressive.

Not to put down your mechanic with the turbo GN (I think their badda$$), but he doesn't know what he is talking about with the Evo. You're not going to pull any obdII codes if the CEL flashes. You either need to take it to the shop Decker suggested or have him come look at it.

 

Yeah, I think the best bet right now is to hook it up and datalog it. See exactly what's going on. I emailed Wayne (OP) about it, and told him if I can pull the ROM and send it to my tuner to look it over, that might be the best place to start. There's so much computer involved nowadays with cars that its hard to diagnose something like that without hooking it up to a computer.

I have the tephramod on my car, so I know exactly what you mean about the "knock flash". Its hard to diagnose anything without actually being there to look at it.

 

It's nice to see people come together and help people out. Good work guys, Hope you get everything figured out Wayne.

 

My job is done here.

 

Wayne, as far as the computer being ready, I just think you do not have enough data collected; typically, driving for about 50 miles should do it. It's the same when you have just cleared all the codes on the vehicle with an OBDII scanner and you take it in for a smog test; they will tell you there is not enough data to do a smog check and that you should drive your car for about 50 miles and then bring the car back.