Dear Steve,

Thanks for your answer. I, too, had not heard of carbon problems in many years (at least since leaded gas was discontinued).

The car had no smoke, no rough idle, no hesitation, no driveablility issues BEFORE it was brought to the dealer. In fact, on a highway trip to Lake Tahoe last fall it averaged 25 mpg which I think is excellent, especially considering the elevation changes. The steady check engine / electronics light was the only reason for the visit to the dealer.

I have owned the car for about 12,000 miles and the motor has always run smoothly. During my ownership, maintenance was performed on schedule. It is driven in an 80/20% mix of suburban and highway driving in the SF Bay Area. No severe use conditions whatsoever (rare stop and go, no commuting).

I am hoping to pick it up today (with 2 new O2 sensors) but without the $5000 port cleanout. I have learned that $200 of the parts is for new oil tubes (they say this is precautionary for this engine). I have requested a copy of the diagnostic printout but don't know for certain if they will release it.

They say that the check engine light will still be on and that I won't be able to get it smogged legally while it is lit. They say only by cleaning the "carbon" can they get the light out. This apparently involves dis-assembly of the heads which is what requires lots of labor.

I'm hoping that regular use of Techroline and some long distance highway use may help clean out the bulk of the problem. If that doesn't do it I may have to succumb to today's version of highway robbery.