need help, obd not ready for emission

[bmw4chris]

i went to emission center and they plugged in the obd and they say its not ready and cannot perform the emission, they say that it needs a drive cycle...i dont understand please help...i have a 1996 993 non turbo

[Don Plumley]

Drive cycle is another way of saying readiness indicators. The idea is you can't take a freshly reset DME (i.e. by resetting the MIL codes or disconnecting the battery) right into a smog test because you might be hiding a problem. So the car has to undergo a certain number of cold start drive cycles until the DME says, "I'm ready to be tested."

There are some posted routines for drive cycles - I had problem getting my 96 993 to set the readiness indicator (see sticky on the 993 board). The trick is to have a few cold starts, and sit on idle for at least 60 seconds, then drive without going much over 3K rpms and hold speed constant at 50mph for 5 minutes or so. Basically, drive the car normally for a week or so and see if the readiness indicators are set (use an OBD reader, go to Autozone and borrow theirs, or the smog test place might check for free).

Hope this helps,

Don

[bmw4chris]

(see sticky on the 993 board). !!!!!!!!!!!