State inspection is over, my car is good for another 2 years or so....
 

My Protege just passed inspection here in jersey where it probably is the worst place to own an aging car. this is what i did. if your car smokes a bit like mine does then go to inspection on a really busy day where you have to wait in line for a while. once you get to the inspection station SHUT YOUR ENGINE OFF!!! and only turn it on to move up once a few car lenghts have moved up in front of you. my car seems to not smoke at all till its really hot so i needed to let it cool off. old engines with high milage burn less oil when they are cold due to lower temperature and also engine parts shrink at low temperatures too so everything seems to fit better. I honestly thought that i would have to go somewhere and buy a sticker just to pass but during my 4 hour wait in line i had alot to think. i practically detailed my whole car while i was waiting, it rained on and off so i had time to spray cleaner on the windows and stuff and the rain helped me wash it off. while i was doing that for the first hour or so i kept my engine running then i started thinking about what i can do to make the car burn less oil and less gas so i shut off the engine and 3 hours later my car passed. such a simple thing made a big difference in my pocket. if i had to go buy a sticker it would cost me $75 here in NJ. :mach: NJ State

That's interesting, usually you're supposed to get the engine good and warm before you smog test it. I wouldn't know personally, but my cars always 'smoke' more when they're cold.

Congrats, either way though :)

thanx for the congrats :) and yes its partly true. my car does have a puff of smoke for the first few seconds after starting it cold but thats the smoke from the oil that is left in the pipe cuz my valve seals are going on my valves. when the engine warms up vapor comes out of the pipe due to the cold pipe and engine itself. and for me the vapor kinda stays longer cuz i have aluminized pipe on my exhaust. i got aluminized cuz it resists rust better than regular pipe.

Move to Oklahoma, they did away with inspections about a year or so ago. It rocks!

Don't know how true this is but I've heard of people running the car very hard before the test. A few minutes of fast driving on the highway is supposed to help out with emissions. Don't know how true that is but is seems to be the exact opposite of what you did.:) Either way, congrats on passing emission........the Protege is now good for another 200,000 miles.:D

yeah Jersey is terible when it come to emisions .. God they make you go through so much , but you know that is just to force older cars off the road so people can go buy new cars .. bahhhhh .. older cars are faster hehe ..
Anyway in new york we do emisions , but my registration is upstate ny so I only do safty
bruce

i absolutely hate this state. i know iknow you guys are probably thinking here is another rant about jersey..........and you are right :) just to get to work it costs me 60 cents and to come back it costs 70 cents. for about 18 miles of driving to and from work. ya i do sound cheap but im on a mission to save up for my new car. now imagine when there are thousands of cars going the same distance if not more! the parkway (one of the largest highways in nj) was supposed to be paid off decades ago but hell no they will never get rid of tolls. car insurance is costing me approx 700$/6months just for liability. it is not a pleasant time being a driver here. i think if there was cheaper to drive a car in jersey i would actually have my p5 sooner :) but i think i will wait for a year or so. i would love that turbo engine from the mazda speed in that. i dont think its going to happen but who knows. mazda might surprise everyone? i test drive the p5 in mississauga, ontario, canda where my cousein lives when i wet last winter for my yearly vacation and i like that car. it drove ok and sturdy. it is a little loud when you step on it but that dont bother me. i put a mozart muffler on my dx so that is much louder than the p5. i like the white guages too!!! and finally i will have a tachometer. my dx dont have one cuz its automatic. but even the automatic in the p5 has a tach. just to think of it i think all new proteges have tachs. the stock 16s are ok too i might change them to something more sporty looking. getting back to the turbo. i would rather get a turbo engine than adding one myself. it must void all engine warranty if you put one on, right? also the non turbo engines wont last as long as the turbo ones. someone told me that turbo engines have stronger oil pumps and more piston rings than the regular engines. anyway im out to sleep. thanx for all of your replies. we will chat soon again. anyone wants to trade icq# or aim names? ive never belonged to a car forum before and it looks like i can learn alot here and i alreay did from the few threads that i posted in. Thanx

not to be the asshole here, but if your car isn't passing inspection, usually fixing that leaky head gasket works, so does replacing your 'f-14' sounding exhaust leak, fixing that nice thing you call a horn pad cause it's busted and you have no horn left, welding sheet metal panels to the floor of your car so you're not literally able to flintstone it to work if your car dies, replacing that crack in your windshield from your buddy dropping watermellons down on your car at a frat party... you know, the KEY things involved in most state inspections. pa has some of the worst state inspection laws around... here they can fail you on over tinted windows, accessory lighting like neons on your car that can somehow obstruct your vision at night... little bullshit. inspection sucks man, flat out. i might just have to move to oklahoma... but then again, i think the figure there was a 3 to 1 Pig to Person ratio, right? maybe for the bacon and no inspection laws... but what else is there in oklahoma? lol
peace