Be sure to drive it around for about an hour or more Dave, you want the cat good and hot when you hit the test bay.

Ok here is my report.

It turned out to be the EGR system. The tube and valve were completely plugged. After building a special roto-rooter tool. I was able to clear the tube out. The valve was easy to fix. I took it back for the re-test and it passed with lots of room to spare. I was really pleased. The idea of buying a cat was not my idea of having fun.

I have to admit that the Shiner Bock was consumed during a small celebration, but I have another case on ice waiting for you Jim.

Thanks for all the good ideas. This forum is great.

Way to go Dave
With all this talk of Shiner Bock I went by a store (the only one in town where I have found it) and picked up a six pack ($6.00) and consumed it through the weekend thinking about how much better it taste in TX.
Cats ain't cheap :)

Jim,

Dave is close enough that he can just run down to Yokum, TX and just draw some Bock straight from the vat for you :D.

Dave,

Did you use a speedo cable or find something else that worked as your rotor-rooter tool?

I know I'll be making one soon too as my E320 was borderline last time. I don't have scrap speedo cables laying around so I wondered if you found another solution.

Thanks,

DH - go to the nearest junkyard and tell the folks there what you need and what you want it for. I stopped by a junkyard and told the guy what I was looking for and he said go in and look around. It does not matter what kind of car it comes off of. Just make sure you cut the very end "hard" part off where it will make that last 90 degree bend at the manifold end.

I bought a generic replacement spedo cable from the parts store. $4. I cut it to length, and frayed the end strands so they would scrape the inside of the EGR tube. Then I gave it hell with my dremel tool. The cable was flailing around so much that it knocked all the carbon off the inside of the tube. Worked great. It took about 2 hours of fooling around to finally get it unclogged.

Help help...
 

<<engatwork says...The pipe on the 6 is a pain to get in/out too unless the cylinder head is off - . Remove the egr valve and rotoroot it from the egr valve toward the intake.>>

I am following this thread to clean out my hot inlet pipe because it is triggering a code 5. Now I can't wrench the tube off because there is no access so I take off the EGR valve and I can't seem to extricate it off the bolt studs. Now how do I access the hot inlet pipe? Is the entry on the underneath side of the EGR valve? Is there a small entry? As I cannot flip it over to see it, is there a small opening to insert my cable to roto-root the hot inlet pipe? Thanks, guys.

94 E320