Preparing your vehicle for
inspection/maintenance testing
In some localities it may become a
legal requirement to pass an
Inspection/Maintenance test of the
On-Board Diagnostic (OBD II)
system. If the vehicle's powertrain
system or battery has just been
serviced, the OBD II system is
reset to a not ready for I/M testing
condition. To ready the OBD II
system for I/M testing, the law
specifies that additional mixed city
and highway driving is necessary
to complete the check of the OBD
II system.
The driving modes required to
reach the ready condition consist
of a minimum of 30 minutes of city
and highway driving as described
below:
²20 minutes of driving in stop
and go city-type traffic with at
least four idle periods.
²10 minutes of driving on an
expressway or highway.
Before completing the above
driving modes, the engine must be
warmed up and at operating
temperature. Once started, the
vehicle must not be turned off
during the above driving modes. If
the vehicle owner is unable to
meet the I/M requirements by
using these driving patterns, an
authorized service center can
perform a detailed OBD II Drive
Cycle as it would any other type of
repair work.
Maintenance and care
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