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Advices on emissions reduction please
voucht - 29/3/19 at 04:56 PM

Here is head scratcher.

I built my Haynes Roadster in Sweden, where I was living at that time. The car has been inspected and approved for road use over there. Number plate, circulation papers, everything like a « normal car ». Same as your IVA.

Now that I’m back in France with the car, I need to have it registered here. But France is not kitcar friendly at all. They don’t fully recognize a car approval of an amateur built car from another country. So they ask me to take a series of complementary tests, including emissions.

Problem is, in France it is not the year of the engine that counts, but the year of the car. As the car has been approved the first time in 2014, the year of the car is 2014, and I have to comply with 2014 emission requirements. So it is Euro 5 !

Ah, I forgot to tell you: my car has a 2,0i DOHC Ford Sierra engine from 1992 in it. It has electronic injection and ignition. The exhaust is from a motorbike: BMW R1300RS which has an in-built cat converter.

However, according to the test centre it will certainly fail the emission test even with these specs (old engine, and cat converter from a motorbike might be too small).

So what do you think? How can I reduce the emission.
Should I add a proper car cat converter on my exhaust line?
Is there any thing I can do to tune the engine? ECU? Fuel pressure? Etc. ?
Knowing that the emission tests are not static like MOT. They simulate different road circulation conditions.

Do some of you have experience in the matter of emissions, and what is your honest opinion about that?

Other detail to some debates from the start
- I can’t keep the car registered in Sweden, because I needed to go to the MOT after 3 years, which was in February 2018. I can’t really take the car up there just for an MOT. And also, no Swedish insurance company will insure this amateur built car out of the Swedish borders, and no French insurance company will insure this amateur built car registered in another country.
- I can’t take the test “just to see if I will pass” because 1- there only 1 test centre for the whole country, and it is in Paris, 700 km from where I live. So it is a long and expensive trip over a couple of days with a trailer, hotels, and so on. 2 – the price is completely prohibitive, it is just a rip-off: 3000 euros for 5 tests (emissions, braking, retro-vision, EM emission and noise). And I have to go twice because they don’t do all the tests the same day.
- I can’t change the engine for a more modern one because it will be a major change to the car, and I would need to do the full approval process, which will be even more expensive.

All inputs are welcome.

Thanks.


Dingz - 29/3/19 at 05:20 PM

Sounds like you are on a hiding to nothing I’m afraid, the 8v Dohc engine here never had a cat fitted. Perhaps fitting the 16v head with a cat would help but you will probably need the ecu as well. I remember many years ago a friend moved over there and took an Austin 1100, he had to bring it back to the UK for an mot + the french had to inspect it in between times, they made it so complicated and difficult he gave up in the end. But the locals could drive around in complete wrecks with no problems!
Good luck.


ettore bugatti - 29/3/19 at 08:09 PM

CCK kempten are able to get to get a blacktop zetec through euro 6

http://www.totalkitcar.com/2017/06/09/euro-6-for-zetec-blacktop/

Maybe it could work if you bolt on a supercharger you can find and blow the air not in the intake, but straight into the exhaust.


snapper - 30/3/19 at 07:38 AM

Fuel injection, ecu tune and a car catalytic converters is probably your only way


obfripper - 30/3/19 at 02:23 PM

Sylvain,

As the use of a different engine has been ruled out, the best option with your current engine would be to upgrade it to the newest/most compliant version of your current engine.
This would be from a 2001-6 ford galaxy, engine code ZVSA.
This version is euro 3 compliant as fitted, the tested figures are nearly euro 5 compliant in a near 2000kg vehicle and would improve with a lighter vehicle (by what amount is difficult to say as they use a calculated factor to get to final figures from rolling road data, derived from vehicle drag and mass)

Have a look at the emissions data here:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/hzoorxmn595mefv/ZVSA%20engine%20data.jpg?dl=0

You would need the engine, ecu and all other emissions control systems as originally fitted, and the engine would need to be in good running order to have a chance at being compliant.
The later engine uses egr to reduce NOx, sequential fuel injection, and may have different combustion chamber swirl characteristics in comparison with your earlier engine. This means just bolting the newer ecu etc to your engine, even if possible, is probably not going to be good enough.
The test cycle you need to pass includes emissions from a cold start, so the catalyst wants to be as close to the manifold as possible to enable a fast 'light up' of the catalyst to bring the co and hc total emissions down.

Dave

[Edited on 30/3/19 by obfripper]


voucht - 1/4/19 at 10:53 AM

Thank you very much for all the answers guys.

quote:
Originally posted by Dingz
I’m afraid, the 8v Dohc engine here never had a cat fitted.


Yes it has. At least in Sweden. I removed the cat myself from my donor, a Sierra CLX 2.0i DOHC (8v). It definitely had an OEM cat.

quote:
Originally posted by ettore bugatti
CCK kempten are able to get to get a blacktop zetec through euro 6

http://www.totalkitcar.com/2017/06/09/euro-6-for-zetec-blacktop/

Maybe it could work if you bolt on a supercharger you can find and blow the air not in the intake, but straight into the exhaust.


It is a very interesting approach. I guess by adding more air in the exhaust, it does not reduce the quantity of polluting components, but just their percentage? And as it is what is measured during the tests, it gives lower figures? Clever!


voucht - 1/4/19 at 10:54 AM

quote:
Originally posted by obfripper
Sylvain,

As the use of a different engine has been ruled out, the best option with your current engine would be to upgrade it to the newest/most compliant version of your current engine.
This would be from a 2001-6 ford galaxy, engine code ZVSA.
This version is euro 3 compliant as fitted, the tested figures are nearly euro 5 compliant in a near 2000kg vehicle and would improve with a lighter vehicle (by what amount is difficult to say as they use a calculated factor to get to final figures from rolling road data, derived from vehicle drag and mass)

Have a look at the emissions data here:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/hzoorxmn595mefv/ZVSA%20engine%20data.jpg?dl=0

You would need the engine, ecu and all other emissions control systems as originally fitted, and the engine would need to be in good running order to have a chance at being compliant.
The later engine uses egr to reduce NOx, sequential fuel injection, and may have different combustion chamber swirl characteristics in comparison with your earlier engine. This means just bolting the newer ecu etc to your engine, even if possible, is probably not going to be good enough.
The test cycle you need to pass includes emissions from a cold start, so the catalyst wants to be as close to the manifold as possible to enable a fast 'light up' of the catalyst to bring the co and hc total emissions down.

Dave

[Edited on 30/3/19 by obfripper]


Thanks a lot. That is a very useful information. I like this approach. I will definitely have a much closer look at that.

Thanks again!


Angel Acevedo - 1/4/19 at 03:16 PM

A lot of american cars use air pumps to lower emissions.
I have not read about them used in UK or Europe, which means exactly that; I haven´t read about them.
Would it be possible to get a second hand one and test in a garage first?
If it is near, you may attack other solutions in order of complexity/cost?
HTH.