UPDATE to "Please Help: Failed Smog Test"

In case you forgot my post from a couple weeks ago, my Hyundai Accent GT failed the smog test in CALIF due to an OBD2 Communication/System Malfunction Light.

Hyundaitech, here, suggested it could be their equipment not communicating with my car as opposed to my car having a problem, so I checked for that on the net, even called the manufacturer of the smog equipment and both sources said that was not the case. I also called the testing garage to ask them if it might not be possible their system was not communicating with my car correctly, and they assured me that was not the case.

So, I took the car back in to the original testing place to track down the problem, because I didn't have time to spend a day down where the nearest Hyundai Dealer is.

Left it with the garage, and about an hour later they called me back and said, "The problem was with our scanner. We took it to another testing station and their system was able to read it."

So they refunded my money and I took it to the other tester and it passed with flying colors.

So Hyundaitech was right after all, and all the experts who told me it wasn't "their equipment" were wrong. Even the manufacturers of the smog testing equipment!

The downside of all this is:

1) I had to make several trips back and forth to the garage, some by bus since I had to leave my car behind with the garage, and I wasted all that time, and the time on the net and on the phone, before finding out it was THEIR mistake. 2) The place that could communicate with my car was a Test Only station so they charged me $60 instead of the $29 I could have got it done for at just any station. But I couldn't "shop around" because I had to go with the station that I knew could work with my car, and didn't have time nor patience to shop around for it. 3)I had to pay a $19 penalty for filing late, due to being jerked around by the testing station.

The upside is it could have been worse; I could have been cheated by a dishonest garage who told me I needed some expensive work when all I needed was to take it to another testing station.

So all in all, I'm just glad to be done with this sh*t and next year I just have to check with the cheaper testing stations to make SURE they will communicate with my car's computer.

Thanks to all the people who responded to my original post about what the problem was, especially Hyundaitech who wins the gold star for having had the correct answer.

Reply to
DanKaye
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