UPDATE:2001 runner PASSED inspection
 

Anyone have their trucks inspected recently? Apparently it passed all safety tests but the emissions protion failed for some reason. They want $90 just to diagnose the problem and then to keep the truck for 2 days to fix whatever it may be. I was told that the sensor came up with a "failure of the malfunction indicator lamp" and a drivability diagnosis needs to be done.

Anyone with an experience like this? Know what this means?

i know this sounds shady, but i was 'recommended' a guy by a mechanic that ive been going to since i was 16 (got inspected in sept).

in and out in 5 minutes, passed with flying colors.

did you try taking it elsewhere?

wel I am currently looking for "that" guy now. I told them to give me the truck back and I will have someone else do the work.

What?

exactly

Well if you interpret it literally, it must mean the MIL burned out.

Are they trying to say your truck is throwing codes left and right and you just don't know because the light is out? :think:

maybe your CEL bulb is burned out??? LOL

I guess that is what he is saying. Cant I run the codes at autozone for free?

That's what I heard about Autozone. How's drivability and fuel effeciency? I'm not leaning towards their theory to be honest.

Did they give you a print out at least showing just how much above the limit you are?

That sounds like a bogus failure if I've ever heard one (the light should illuminate briefly when you turn on the key so if it doesn't just replace the bulb). It just burns me up every time I have to take it in for some sort of state mandated deal because you get some yahoo who knows half as much as you do working or doing diagnosis on your truck (last time one place told me I need new tie rods...I checked it out and sure enuf, BOGUS....went to another place and passed with flying colors). I would take it to another place to see if they will inspect it for you (I am not saying find a guy that will pass anything, just to try another place....you may be out a few bucks but believe me you are much better off than arguing with some idiot who failed you, they will never admit they are wrong and have no incentive to do so either).

I'd get a cheap OBD II tester (quite a few on eaby) or take it to a place where they read em free just to be sure there are no stored codes.

they are saying your check engine light is burned out eh? tell em you'll get right on that after you get a teflon muffler bearing and blinker fluid

that is why I love htis place....you all see garbage whne it comes flyin our way.

This dude started talkin to me in tongues..he couldnt even answer straight questions. He went in to babble talk.

I know if my truck has problems it will be fixed...just dont try and screw me with my pants on

if it turns out that he is lying to his clients, you should report him to the state authorities. you are entitled to a printed copy of the failure report and emissions report. get those and a second opinion. build your case and report the parentless turd.

hey now.. he may have parents, so lets not start throwing accusations around!

:laugh:

I aggree. Do you have a copy of his estimate? If not get it. If it turns out he was lying, send it to the Better Business Bureau, that is their job. Just think how many people he rips off all the time. Besides this guy is a real idiot, it is a Toyota man. Let him get back to ripping off Jeep Chrerekee owners.

i felt so bad for this one lady i saw getting her car inspected. it was a brand new ford explorer (probably 1 yr old) and the guy was sitting there telling her she had a hole in her exhaust and that one of the filaments in both tails were out. i could clearly see that both filaments were working, which lead me to suspect that there was no hole.

i actually told her that he was lying about the tails before i left the gas station... no idea what happened after that. hopefully she left.

NY state screws everytime
 

Hi
I am not to far from you. Was he doing the enhanced emmisions testing now required by NY State? If so you are pretty much screwed. Go to Autozone and let them run the code. If they try to sell you something and you are not sure, tell them you are broke. The bad news is that if that shop did the modified emissions test, all your info for that vehicle is now in the states computer. If you take it somewhere else, all the info from your previous attempt will come out of the states computer when they put in your VIN. I previously worked in a small repair shop that was ramping up for the new standards. All the shops that want to keep doing inspections in NYS must buy this system from the state. Now theres a chance that some other shops may not be online yet, but you have to be clever in how you ask, or just play dumb. The inspector you went to should have explained some of this to you, but they are not required to give you the codes. The diagnostic fee is what the state is telling shops to charge in order to recover the cost of the system they had to buy from NYS. If I can answer any more questions for you I am happy to try. Post here or PM me. :scared:

Heres the site for NYS inspections.


http://www.nydmv.state.ny.us/vehsafe.htm#einspect

Read all about it, it does say that the mechanic gets a print out of whats wrong, I would go back and ask for a copy.

we have a similar system in ontario, its been pointed out in the papers far and wide that the system is not working and fraud is rampant. one local operation had a chap doing certifications on the evening shift, they figure he made over 100k$ doing bogus certs. it was the secretary that noticed numbers werent matching up to what he was supposed to be doing, enter the police and the rest is history. good luck, when the gov't gets their hands in your pockets, its impossible to keep them out.

lee

Lee, true to form, you give some people entirely too much credit. :laugh: the turdly inspector of vehicles in the afore posted comments is definately parentless. had it been otherwise, they would have kicked his greasy backside around enough early on to teach him better than to level a scam as impossible as this against a toyota. pllleeeeeezzeee, maybe a nissan, likley a ford, but never a yota. :pat:

seriously, though, most emissions and inspections stations are state authorized; hence the are governed by the state. they are regulated under some state department and answerable to them. it is a sever disinsentive to them to be exposed as bilking the citizens. the last thing the states(read politicians) want is for corruption to be so concretely linked to them.

personally i'm enough of an a-hole to build an teflon case and then extort the establishment with it :ignore:

Thanks guys...here is what I got from them.

"The on board diagnostic system of your vehicle indicates there is a failure in the Malfunction Indicator Lamp"
OBD Malfunction Indicator Lamp Check:
Key on Engine Off: FAIL
Key on Engine Running: Pass


They have put this info in the NYS system so I cant pretend it didnt happen. They attached a sheet telling me what some of the failures are. It says
1. The MIL fails to light when the ignition key is in the on position and the engine is not running. This will be displayed as "Key on Engine Off: FAIL" on the rcpt.

This is the problem. So they are saying the light doesnt come on.

Does it come on? $90 and 2 days to do a drivability diagnosis sounds a little extreme for what's probably a burned out bulb. Maybe he just wanted your rig for a road trip?

That's what I thought they did. First, I would check with the dealer and make sure this is what the 4runner is supposed to do (I don't have time to go out and check on mine). Then if indeed the bulb is not lighting when it should then you need to start taking apart the dash. Pull the bulb first and if you are lucky it is just burned out, but if not you may need to do some checking on the wiring with a volt meter to be sure you are getting juice when you should (ie key on / engine off). Once you have it fixed, just bring it back to the shop and they should only inspect that item and give you you're well deserved pass and a sticker to keep you legal.

I was with you right up to the voltmeter part ;)

I can check the bulb but if it doesnt seem burned out then I will have to have someone else look at it. Bottom line is it should be part of the inspection to find the problem then tell me what i need to fix it. I can find a place around here that will do that.

90.00 for a bulb r/r? i'm in the wrong business. i could never keep up with that kind of profit margin.....besides, since pimping is illegal, i need to change my occupation .......furry dashboard is getting a litte faded anyway:)

It's unclear...

So does the check engine light come on as it should when the key is initially turned to ON?

And did the truck pass emissions in the sense of what is coming out of the tailpipe? Or was the ODBII check issue the only cause?

OBDII was the only failure. It passed safety inspection as well. The light does NOT come on when the key is turned..that is why it failed the inspection.

Disconnect the O2 sensor or something like that to throw a check engine light to see if the bulb is working. The instrument cluster is pretty delicate, no need to take it apart when unnecessary.

Even easier would be to disconnect the MAF sensor to throw a code (no need to get under the truck).
It is also not that hard to remove the guage cluster either and check that way.

please explain

The MAF sensor is right up at the front of the truck by the airbox.
On your truck it should look like this:

http://www.top4runners.com/ja/cgi-bi...b_stock_in.jpg

Just disconnect the sensor on the tube leading from the airbox (there is only one), start the truck and it should throw a code.

If the check engine light didn't come on when the key was turned, then you might as well take apart the dash and check the bulb. Here in Cali they do a visual and even if it passed the emissions test, it would still fail.

Ok, I unhooked the sensor, and started the truck...light came onl . Truck stalled but light came on. I hooked it back up and now the light is still on and so are the vsc and vsac lights. I jst pulled the EFI fuse. Will that fix it?

:pat: in N.Y. they are using the OBD vehicle system to check the emissions level so if any issues come up when they plug in then you fail , it sucks but that's the way it is :con:

Yeah the truck should have run like crap with the MAF unplugged, but you are just checking.
Pull the negative battery cable for like 5 min just to be sure all has been reset.

That means your CEL is working so now verify with the dealer that it does come on briefly before startup. If it is working properly, then just get a letter from the dealer saying that this is the way it is supposed to work and you should be fine.

All check engine lights are now back off again. I just dont get what my truck could have failed.

I would take it back and show the dude at the station that it does work and that they need to pass you...... :readit: :pop:

I called the manager and told him this and he said...well it sounds like it would pass now. Let me talk to a tech and get back to you.

So now I am waiting by the phone for them to get back to me. Looks like I will be driving back over there today to retest this sucker.