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Thank for the input! I somehow neglected to mention that the only code I'm getting from the OBD box is 2-3-2. "Fuel trim too lean or too rich at idle". According to the brickboard, lots of stuff can cause this, including the cat and the o2 sensor, as you gents suggest. I cleared the codes and took the car for a few long city and highway drives, with no codes appearing. After the second failed smog test, I recieved the 2-3-2.
Since I only have until the end of the month to get this resolved, I figure my options are these:
1. Keep searching for problems and/or replacing parts, them keep bringing it in to get smogged and paying for that until it hopefully works out. This could be expensive, time-consuming AND I might never figure out the problem.
2. Take it to a smog repair shop (where they have emissions-measuring machines), have them diagnose the problem, pay them for that, and then determine if I'm better off making the necessary repairs myself or letting them do it. This could be expensive too, but it seems like this option has a much more foolproof chance of resolving my car registration issue by the end of the month.
I've decided to go with option 2 for now. I've pretty much exceeded my skill level at this point. I couldn't find any vacuum leaks with starting fluid, and I don't have diagnostic tools to do any real testing. I try to do all the repairs I can, and the brickboard has been invaluable over the years, saving me literally thousands of dollars in labor. There's a good Volvo mechanic that I trust, and that's where I've brought my bricks when they've needed work I can't handle. He highly recommended a smog repair place, and I'm taking it there Monday for them to diagnose. If they determine that it's something relatively easy to fix (like the AMM), I'll do it myself, but if not, I'll leave it to them.
(What also sucks for me is that California will give people up to $500 bucks to make smog-related repairs, but I don't qualify because this is an out-of-state car being registered in CA for the first time.)
I finally and just barely started working (as a substitute teacher) after over a year of unemployment, and I desperately need my brick to pay the bills! I guess I'm just acknowledging that this thing has me beat, and even with all the great free advice that you fine folks have provided me with, I don't yet have what it takes to tackle this smog thing without paying some professionals.
I also want to be a good citizen and not a gross polluter. I remember back in the 70s when I was a little kid, how brown the air was, and how it hurt my lungs to breathe. Seriously. It's nothing like that anymore.
Thanks much for the input, and please don't judge me too harshly for wussing out.
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Wine Red 1989 240 Wagon
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