General: 70: lower emissions

[jack taylor]

My V70 petrol is due its ITV [ MOT ] this month and I was dreading a failure on emissions. last year it failed so I poured some Forte advanced gas treatment in the tank and drove for several hundred miles. Upon re-test it just scraped through emissions. I was about to order some more forte last month and came upon Cataclean in an article. I googled the stuff and it claims to clean the cat and lower emissions so I got a bottle from Amazon uk for about £16.00 plus a bit of postage. I had booked in the ITV and had left ordering a bit late so according to the instructions I poured the bottle into a quarter of a tank of petrol. I was only able to cover about 60 miles before the test.I could have cancelled and re-booked but it can take some time to get an appointment.
Anyway it passed emissions without any problems so I can reco this stuff to anyone with similar problems.
I would hasten to add that I have absolutely no connection with the manufacturers or suppliers of Cataclean.
Hope this helps. jack.

[tdidave]

I'm glad you got through the emissions ok Jack, with you're magic fluid..

I see you're in Spain. Is that all standard EU MOT directives there..?

I've got a 1998 V70 Tdi, and I must say I was worried about what appeared to be a concerted effort to get old diesels off the road. I asked my local MOT guy and he told me that at this present time because my car is not Euro categorised they can only test me on the original factory specs. Long may this continue..

Dave..

[jack taylor]

Hi Dave, Yes they apply here and are very strictly applied. I don't know what its like in the uk now but here people are buying petrol engine cars. The ITV centres are just trying to get all old cars off the road irrespective whether left or rhd, petrol or diesel. I hope you have many successful MOT`s in the future. jack.

[Cookeh]

The problem here is that you have no idea if it worked because you have no measurement of emissions from before you used it. That it failed last year doesn't mean it would have failed this year, and with no emissions data before using the cataclean it is just as plausible that the product did nothing.

[amazondean]

As for the TDI. Giving it a good old thrash up the road just before the test should get even the worst through the test. Not good for the environment but at least it will keep these older, simpler cars on the road!

[jack taylor]

Indeed there is a lot to be said for an "Italian tune-up."

[jack taylor]

cookeh, my car has failed MOT four consecutive years and therefore it was not unreasonable to assume that it would fail on emissions again this year.
The majority of people on this forum will not be aware of emissions problems until their car is tested and failed. My thread is aimed at those members in the hope that Cataclean might rectify the problem for them.
I am not suggesting that Cataclean is a new miracle cure but there are many write-ups which say that it does what it says on the can.
Can I be sure that my car would have failed on emissions; no, could I say that Cataclean would have restored emissions to correct level; no, but on the
the balance of probability I think I was right and I shall repeat the process next MOT.

[cyclogenesis]

Every time my 850, which is not too dissimilar to a V70, has failed on emissions it has been due to a leak in the induction of vacuum system. Volvo spent a lot of money to get these cars to comply and they are very sensitive to any leaks which will upset the fuel air mixture. Forget about additives and Italian tune ups. Check the security of all your hoses. Check for splits and cracks, replace any that are suspect and then check all of the vacuum hoses. I cannot emphasise enough what a massive difference a loose jubilee clip can make.

[tdidave]

Originally Posted by amazondean

As for the TDI. Giving it a good old thrash up the road just before the test should get even the worst through the test. Not good for the environment but at least it will keep these older, simpler cars on the road!

Yeah.. I always scream the nuts off it before MOT. She's as clean as a whistle when I drive on the rolling road..

I'm at my most nervous when they floor it with no load for the emissions test. I'm always glad when that's over..

My old gal is still doing 52mpg on a run though, and I'm averaging about 44/46mpg normal driving, so that's pretty damn good in my opinion..

[jack taylor]

Hi Cyclogenesis, I couldn't agree more. I have all hoses and clips checked every service and prior to MOT last week all were secure. I do think that additives have their place; having ruled out other possible causes for poor emissions. I can only speak as I find.