The opacity test I had to do with my Trooper was basically a 35mph roll on the dyno, not under any load really.
In CA, if you blow dark smoke for more than 10 seconds, it is a ticketable offense. There is some technical number for the opacity, but it's aimed at idiots with turned up 6BTs blowing smoke thinking they're making power.
Perhaps if you could have someone take a video of how much smoke you're making that would help with the diagnosis- Any diesel, especially an n/a will make some smoke under power, and unless you obscured visibility then the cop should ahve left you alone. If you do obscure visibility, then you need to fix your car or alter your driving style- Lugging the engine will make far more exhaust heat and soot than revving it out.

1984 MERCEDES TURBO 155K
USE STARTRON BLUE FROM A BOAT SUPPLY AND IT WILL KEEP THE ENGINE CLEAN AND MORE POWER DIY IT IS FUNGUS

Thanks for all the replies... Went to CHP station and the officer had me turn on the car and floor the accelerator. There was little smoke and he verified that the car passed visual inspection and stamped the ticket.
I think I'm still on the hook for $25. It's a bull**** ticket but it's not worth fighting.
I think I got pulled over in first place to fulfill some quota. I was in predominantly minority neighborhood and I think LAPD has to balance it's quotas since I'm white.
But, how do I prove the car was OK when I was stopped?
Oh well, at least I didn't get caught by a red light camera or something...

I bet there's plenty of new pickup owners that will give you there deleted DPF's and EGR'S.

I knew they could pull you over for smoke , but on a diesel Geez !
Must not have been many jaywalkers that day.

If you do have to smog it make sure you wash it.
Especially on the drivers rear. No sense in leaving what may be considered evidence.

__________________


Experience : what you receive 3 seconds after you really needed it !!



86 300SDL 387,000? Motor committed suicide
81 300SD 214,000 "new" 132,000 motor
83 300SD 212,000 parts car
83 300SD 147,000

91 F700 5.9 cummins 5spd eaton 298,000
66 AMC rambler American 2dr auto 108,000
95 Chevy 3/4 ton auto 160,000
03 Toyota 4runner 180,000 wifes

New fuel injector nozzles, and balancing them, solved a lot of smoke problems for me.

For some reason there is more smoke from my car if the transmission fluid is low. My fluid gets low after about 30K miles.

I haven't messed with ALDA, but I should check.

__________________
1991 350SD (updated rods)
Biodiesel B100 when I can find it.
Dino when really cold outside

A camera ticket will be over $500!

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'85 300D Cal 280,000 miles
'14 GLK 350 60000 miles

how much smoke does your car make up a hill? what color is it?
glad you got your ticket stamped, but you could have an issue. in my 79TD, I can never see smoke in the daytime up hills. if yours makes visible smoke in the daytime, there is something wrong. if it's black, doubly so.

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John HAUL AWAY, OR CRUSHED CARS!!! HELP ME keep the cars out of the crusher! A/C Thread
"as I ride with my a/c on... I have fond memories of sweaty oily saturdays and spewing R12 into the air. THANKS for all you do!

My drivers:
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5-5SPEED!!!

1987 300TD
1987 300TD
1994GMC 2500 6.5Turbo truck... I had to put the ladder somewhere!

My 85 240D will smoke black when I wind it out merging or on hills. It overfuels as the rev's wind up and it has to breath more. Wonder if the manifold is all slimed up.

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CC: NSA

All things are burning, know this and be released.

82 Benz 240 D, Kuan Yin
12 Ford Escape 4wd

You're four times

It's hard to

more likely to

concentrate on

have an accident

two things

when you're on

at the same time.

a cell phone.

www.kiva.org It's not like there's anything wrong with feeling good, is there?

I'd check your timing chain stretch - if you are worried about your inlet manifold look down into it when you change or check your air filter. I doubt if it will look as oily as this:-

OM617 manifold oil = broken valve guide

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1992 W201 190E 1.8 171,000 km - Daily driver
1981 W123 300D ~ 100,000 miles / 160,000 km - project car stripped to the bone
1965 Land Rover Series 2a Station Wagon CIS recovery therapy!
1961 Volvo PV544 Bare metal rat rod-ish thing

I'm here to chat about cars and to help others - I'm not here "to always be right" like an internet warrior



Don't leave that there - I'll take it to bits!

I got one of those years ago in Marin county in a merc 300D (about a '75), cop wouldn't listen.
Saw a cop in a mall carpark later that day, drove up and showed him the ticket and told him I had just had it checked and adjusted. He got me to start it, looked at the exhaust and signed off the ticket. Seemed like a nice guy. You get lucky sometimes. Not sure if the laws are the same in LA but probably.

__________________
1983 300SD with bad undercarriage rust, with old greasecar 2-tank conversion. About 200K miles, just an adolescent but with premature bone disease.

I got a letter in the mail back about July or Aug, from the Bay Area Air Quality Control Board, stating that my Datsun Diesel Pu was spewing excessive smoke. some one called in on their cell phone to tattle on me.

So far I just ignored it, and hope they just go away .

I usually don`t really see any smoke pouring out the back, except in the headlights at night. I think where I got called in was, I was on my way home from a hard day working at PNP. it was around 5:30 to 6pm and everyone is in a hurry trying to get home. i`ve got my load of goodies and tools etc, Iam giving her all she`s got to give. That last mile up HWY 17 to Santa Cruz really gets steep, and Iam at that point in 3rd gear winding her out. so sure I might be smoking out some organic in His/Her Prius .

The SF Bay Area and the LA area are 2 places that are touchy about about emissions. I think most areas where there are large groups of people, things get crappy. then most things in Calif are Crappy.

Charlie

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there were three HP ratings on the OM616...

1) Not much power
2) Even less power
3) Not nearly enough power!! 240D w/auto

Anyone that thinks a 240D is slow drives too fast.

80 240D Naturally Exasperated, 4-Spd 388k DD 150mph spedo 3:58 Diff

We are advised to NOT judge ALL Muslims by the actions of a few lunatics, but we are encouraged to judge ALL gun owners by the actions of a few lunatics. Funny how that works

Yep, Prius drivers can get a tad touchy. Last Saturday night, coming up the west side of the Black Mountain grade on I-40, there was this white Prius in the middle lane. Poor guy was struggling to make 45 or 50 mph, in a 65 mph zone, climbing to the summit before coasting down the other side. When I came blowing by in the fast lane at 65, in that Jeep diesel, it so irritated him that he flipped on his high beams on me, and left them on until I was out of range - the equivalent of flipping me the middle finger.

Coasting down the 5 mile grade on the east side at 50 to 55 mph, about a 1/3 of the way down, here comes that same Prius blowing by me like I'm standing still, his brake lights going on and off like he's sending Morse code trying to hold that car on the road, before he disappeared out of sight.

After getting off the grade, about 5 miles down the road, who do I see pulled off the side of the road broken down? Yep.

My thoughts as I drove past the guy - "Dude, if you can't drive any better than that, and won't treat your car any better than that, I'm GLAD you're driving a hybrid and not a diesel!"

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Just say "NO" to Ethanol - Drive Diesel

Mitchell Oates
Mooresville, NC
'87 300D 212K miles
'87 300D 151K miles - R.I.P. 12/08
'05 Jeep Liberty CRD 67K miles
Grumpy Old Diesel Owners Club

Where is that masked man ForcedInduction when you need him. He has plenty of hateful things to say about kalifornia emissions.

__________________
http://superturbodiesel.com/images/sig.04.10.jpg
1995 E420 Schwarz
1995 E300 Weiss
#1987 300D Sturmmachine
#1991 300D Nearly Perfect
#1994 E320 Cabriolet
#1995 E320 Touring
#1985 300D Sedan
OBK #42

The kalifornia Emissions bull pucky starts here, then polutes the rest of the nation.. An epidemic that there is no cure for.

Charlie

__________________
there were three HP ratings on the OM616...

1) Not much power
2) Even less power
3) Not nearly enough power!! 240D w/auto

Anyone that thinks a 240D is slow drives too fast.

80 240D Naturally Exasperated, 4-Spd 388k DD 150mph spedo 3:58 Diff

We are advised to NOT judge ALL Muslims by the actions of a few lunatics, but we are encouraged to judge ALL gun owners by the actions of a few lunatics. Funny how that works

I have plenty of things to say about it without hiding.