Might be worth a try before throwing money at it?

Do an "Italian Tune-Up" ? :D

Don't be afraid to get the RPMs high. Get the car up to normal operating temp, usually 10-20 minutes @ freeway speeds should do the trick.

I believe most smog places give you 1 free re-test. If you want to be absolutely sure it's not the CAT or O2 sensor, borrow a known-good converter from a fellow pelican (it's what I did a couple years ago) with a brand new O2 sensor.

In most instances, a new CAT will get the car to pass with flying colors.

Did you check if the O2 sensor was disconnected? I've seen a number of mechanics disconnect the sensor claiming that it was a performance boost. (It isn't...)

If it isn't the O2 then it is almost certainly the CAT. It wasn't meant to last 230K miles. I think we could come up with a good loaner CAT for the weekend but with rusty bolts putting it in is a little more time.

I'll get under it today when I get home and check the O2 and spray down the bolts with PB to hopefully make them easier to loosen. I'm leaving for the weekend so won't be able to get any work done on it until Tuesday. I really appreciate everyone's help.

55rag, clean out all the breather hoses and inside the big rubber boot (for lack of a better word) that attaches to the throttle body. all these collect oil residue and raise your HC. also change your oil and filter before the retest.

These are all good suggestions above. At least your '85 failed the test due to measureable readings. I had a Smog'n'Go shop do my biannual test last year and the readings came out well within the limits, but he failed it anyway because of some arbitrary visual "puff test"... essentially, it they think that they see ANY puff of smoke from the tailpipe when rev'ing it up high from an idle, they can fail it. Trips to both my private Porsche mechanic and the dealer, met with incredulity on their part, the "puff" was nearly invisible, and the concensus was that the smog test dude was an *** hole. I decided against going back to him for the free retest, and pony'd up another $59 bucks at another shop, explained the sitch, and he passed it... voicing much the same opinion about the first guy. Ain't it lovely to live in CA???

230K miles is well past the general working life of a cat, esp. to pass Cal smog.

There have been some low mile Carrera cats in the parts section here for sale recently for very cheap ($100 or so).

Ya, I'm not sure if it's the original cat but it wouldn't surprise me. I do have one more chance to pass smog before I have to pay for another so I'll do a quick check to make sure everything is connected and go for a freeway drive. If it doesn't pass then I'll go to Muffler Mike's and have him throw on a high flow one and give it another try.

That $200 new replacement Cat sounds like a deal. A good used one is OK..... just don't tell anyone about it. I believe it is illegal to sell one in our state.

I have a new Bosch O2 (for an SC or BMW 740i, need to check) and plan on visiting S J Capi at least once next week.

I think my 02 is different than an SC. Thanks though.

Instead of throwing money and parts at it, why not make a simple mixture adjustment if too rich? The CO mixture adjustment screw is on the air flow meter. It also lowers the HC's as you back it off.

Where's your Chiltons or Haynes manual?

Thanks, I'll look that up and lower it a little. I'm going to try to retest tomorrow after doing a warmup on the freeway. Wish me luck.

Connection
 

I will check that tonight when I get home. Thank you.

Thanks for everyone's advise and offers to help out. I didn't find anything unplugged or loose so I went for a blast on the freeway and went in for smog today. Couldn't believe it when it came back as passing. It was close and I'll probably need to put a new cat and/or O2 sensor next time.

As a side note I called Mesa Muffler to see about putting a high flow cat on and they told me they cannot do that anymore. It has to be a stock part so I'm not sure how people replace their cats anymore. I'm sure a high flow cat would run just as clean as a stock unit. And who could afford a stock unit?

Thanks again,
Jason

How odd, I just had a CAT installed by them in May before selling my Carrera. :eek:

Stock is ridiculously priced. Also, our host sells a CARB legal OEM replacement for a decent price.

I'm happy the "italian tuneup" worked for you.
Sometimes I think 1/2 of all the problems reported here are due to a lack of spirited driving of our production race cars...:D

well, there you have it. worn guides and the accompanying worn valve seats. can't expect it to go on forever with clean emissions and running like new. comes a time for a top end or a complete o'haul.

Does anyone know how much I could expect to pay for an overhaul on a good running engine in Orange County? Is it basically bearings and machine work if everything else is in good shape. Are P/C's normally reused after so many miles? I've built VW and Chevy engines in the past but don't think I tackle this one myself.

Thank you,
Jason

5 to 10k depending on how much you do yourself.
Read threads and ask questions on the engine rebuilding forum to get a good idea.