I saw a brief intro on local news but did not catch the story. Supposedly they say a new Ontario emissions test is coming early 2013. They will hookup the machines to your computer (ODB) and not use a sniffer for most modern cars. Older cars will still use a pipe test.
I don't get how this will work. Can I run an aftermarket tune and aren't the cars O2's less accurate then wideband sniffers?
Either way more of a money grab. Why the frak did they freeze the 15+ yr rule for cars. I want to keep my rides to pass onto the kids and hate having to emission a car that only get 200km / yr on it.
It's not a money grab ... this changeover is very costly to shop owners. All the equipment that they bought when Drive Clean first came into effect is now worthless (and for the dyno built into the shop floor, it will cost money to remove it!) and now they've had to buy a whole new set of equipment. You, the customer, pay the same as before.
Modern OBD-II systems are very effective at capturing when things go wrong - more effective than a dyno test. Gas cap leaking? Busted. Evap can leaking? Busted. Misfire? Busted. These things will get caught by OBD-II but might not necessarily be caught by the dyno test. There's a lot more to OBD-II than just the lambda sensor in the exhaust.
For each subsystem that OBD-II monitors, there is a logic bit called "readiness" that gets set when the subsystem checks out OK. If the subsystem has a fault, "readiness" goes off for that subsystem and if the fault persists, you get the "check engine" MIL (malfunction indicator lamp). You can have no MIL on but "readiness" not set - e.g. if there is a pending code or an intermittent fault - but this will usually be in a situation where you have a MIL that comes and goes intermittently. If your MIL operates normally (and isn't intermittently going on or off) there shouldn't be a problem.
As for that aftermarket tune ... It depends. If it preserves all of the OBD-II functionality and all of the emission control equipment is operating as it should, then you will be fine. If the tuner has tampered with stuff, then maybe not. If they've arranged for the MIL to not come on for a given subsystem by simply bypassing the function check, then sure, you won't have a "check engine" lamp, but you'll also not have "readiness", and that's a problem.
If you have a vehicle with an even model year (i.e. it's due for checking in 2013) and there is doubt about your "readiness" situation, you can always get the Drive Clean check done using the existing procedure until Dec 31st, as long as you do it after your birthday. The Drive Clean certificate is good for a year. This way it buys you another couple of years before you have to get it done using the new procedure. I'm in this situation ...
