Checking Emissions Monitor Status

In many countries, a vehicle's on board diagnostics must complete government-specified self testing before they are allowed to report that the vehicle's emissions controls are functioning within legal limits.

Vehicles will not pass emissions testing until the required self tests are competed. Moreover, these "emissions monitors" reset whenever you clear DTCs, when the battery is replaced, and after some types of major maintenance. So, the vehicle will need to complete the self tests again after any of these events.

Follow these steps to verify that the emissions monitor tests have been completed:

1.

Physically connect your laptop to the vehicle. See Connecting to a Vehicle (Page 1).

2.

If VCM Editor is open, close it now.

3.

Open VCM Scanner.

4.

Start the engine.

5.

Click the icon in the toolbar to open a data connection to the vehicle.

6.

Click . The Diagnostics & Information window appears.

7.

Click Read DTCs. VCM Scanner will query the vehicle for diagnostic information. When finished, the status of the emissions monitors will appear in the lower half of the window.

The three tests in the left column are run continuously and should indicate completion shortly after the engine is started. The tests in the right column may take several drive cycles to complete.

NOTE: If you are using VCM Suite version 4.13 or later, you can use the Drive Cycle Panel to help ensure that the tests in the right column are completed as quickly as possible.