MiltonV Posted March 10, 2020 Report Share Posted March 10, 2020 Hi, I always wanted a CO meter to measure the exhaust gases, after a look on ebay I found plenty but I have the impression those are not for automotive purposes or do they? Any recommendation? I don't want to invest a lot of money in a professional unit, just for use it very occasionally Quote Link to comment
datzenmike Posted March 10, 2020 Report Share Posted March 10, 2020 CO is carbon monoxide and meaningless in a car application. I have a wide band O2 sensor in the exhaust. It measures the oxygen content and it's displayed on a gauge in the dash. A perfect mixture is 14.7. Higher numbers means too much oxygen and a leaner mixture. Lower than 14.7 is too little oxygen and a richer mixture. Quote Link to comment
MiltonV Posted March 10, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 10, 2020 Well I was thinking as a tool and not as a permanent display on the dash, but if CO is meaningless why the service manual mention it? Quote Link to comment
Crashtd420 Posted March 10, 2020 Report Share Posted March 10, 2020 1 hour ago, MiltonV said: Well I was thinking as a tool and not as a permanent display on the dash, but if CO is meaningless why the service manual mention it? What are you actually trying to find out? If the vehicle is running good at the proper air fuel ratio or are you trying to see if your within smog specs? Quote Link to comment
datzenmike Posted March 10, 2020 Report Share Posted March 10, 2020 1 hour ago, MiltonV said: Well I was thinking as a tool and not as a permanent display on the dash, but if CO is meaningless why the service manual mention it? The CO level is an upper limit for emissions testing. If you have to pass an emissions test, then it might be important. I would say that if your car is in good tune and running efficiently it won't produce much CO. What CO that is produced is converted by a catalytic converter or your emissions systems air injection. CO is produced by incomplete combustion or a lack of enough oxygen to form CO2. Quote Link to comment
MiltonV Posted March 11, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 11, 2020 40 minutes ago, Crashtd420 said: What are you actually trying to find out? If the vehicle is running good at the proper air fuel ratio or are you trying to see if your within smog specs? Basically what I want is to have a tool that serves me to tune properly the carburetor. Quote Link to comment
MiltonV Posted March 11, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 11, 2020 20 minutes ago, datzenmike said: The CO level is an upper limit for emissions testing. If you have to pass an emissions test, then it might be important. I would say that if your car is in good tune and running efficiently it won't produce much CO. What CO that is produced is converted by a catalytic converter or your emissions systems air injection. CO is produced by incomplete combustion or a lack of enough oxygen to form CO2. I am in Costa Rica, these old cars don't use catalityc converter here so I want a tool that can serve me the same way the timing light and tachometer/dwell serves me when I need to check or adjust something Quote Link to comment
datzenmike Posted March 11, 2020 Report Share Posted March 11, 2020 Just suppose your CO suddenly went up or was over that 'limit' in the manual... what would that tell you and what would you do to correct it? Outside of an emissions testing facility I don't know of anyone that measures CO. 1 Quote Link to comment
Crashtd420 Posted March 11, 2020 Report Share Posted March 11, 2020 11 hours ago, MiltonV said: I am in Costa Rica, these old cars don't use catalityc converter here so I want a tool that can serve me the same way the timing light and tachometer/dwell serves me when I need to check or adjust something Sounds like your just trying to tune a few cars... I would do something like this .... Exhaust clamp holds the o2 sensor... then the system is powered by the cigarette lighter, not sure if the rpm hook up is needed but it was part of the "frequently bought together " list.... 1 Quote Link to comment
5t341tH Posted March 11, 2020 Report Share Posted March 11, 2020 Just buy a "wideband o2 sensor and gauge" 1 Quote Link to comment
Idaho Hillbilly Posted March 12, 2020 Report Share Posted March 12, 2020 https://www.walkerexhaust.com/support/tech-tips/five-gas-diagnostic-chart.html 1 Quote Link to comment
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