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1995 Ford Escort Transmission Problem Will it Affect Smog Check Results?

Hi I am planning to smog check a 1995 Ford Escort with 1.9L engine and 4 speed overdrive transmission.

The car starts driving in 2nd gear and shifts smoothly to 3rd if you place it in drive (D), but if you place it in low (L) it drives in 1st gear and then you can shift it up to (D) manually to get on the freeway. But then it won't shift to 4th (OD) at all. When you turn the key to the (ON) position but do NOT start the engine all the lights come on, including the check engine light. When you start the engine all the lights GO OUT, meaning the check engine light does not come on when the engine is running or during driving.

I am wondering if the fact that the transmission is not working properly will cause the vehicle to fail the smog check? In other words does the transmission communicate with the computer but NOT trip the check engine light to come, and should this fact not affect the outcome of the smog test? I know the test runs at 15 & 25 mph, so this should not be a problem for the lack of overdrive either, right? It's under 2,000 rpm at those speeds. Thank you for your help with this long queston.rusty...

Answer:

The California Smog Check procedure requires the smog inspection (on an automatic transmission vehicle) be conducted with the transmission in Drive (D) position only. The smog technician will not be allowed to shift in-between gears during the smog test. More than likey overdrive will not be needed but your Ford Escort might need to start off on 1st gear in order to get the wheels spinning to 15mph; while the dynomometer is appling a 50% load on the engine. As far as the check engine light, since it is not ON while the engine is running it will not cause a smog check failure. The only concern here is whether the vehicle will run/drive properly while the transmission is in Drive (D) position. posted by SmogTips Support

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