97 850 NA SAS woes

[dairyqueen814]

Hello again everybody,
I've just started the process of replacing my manifold with the OBX stainless one and my muffler (which had already been replaced by the previous owner) with the starla one from FCP
the 4 bolts/nuts that connected the manifold to the cat came out no problem
as did 9 of the 10 securing the manifold to the block
the last one holding it to the block is located right below the SAS injection port. After a few hours of different positions and tools and plenty of penetrating fluid still no luck.
finally I grab the cutting wheel and cut the bung right off the manifold and pull off the SAS valve assembly and get the last stud out.

In my cutting, however, I sliced a small hole in the metal tube going from the check valve to the manifold. and the thread on the nipple was destroyed because it took nothing short of a monkey wrench with a 1 foot extention to get the cut off bung off of the nipple.
After searching the internet for hours I cannot for the life of me find someone who sells this metal tube or the threaded nipple.
I'm thinking of just welding the small slice shut on the tube and im wondering if I could also weld the tube to the manifold while I'm at it. (Also taking into consideration I bought the OBX header and the bung is at a different angle.

Or should I avoid all this work and do the SAS delete with the pin soldering and so on? What would be the implications of doing the delete?

Sorry for the long winded question

Thanks
Nick

[erikv11]

My recommendation is SAS delete. Easier than your other options here, plus fewer problems down the road. And more space in the engine bay.

The implications of the delete procedure depend on where you are. As far as I know, only in CA will you fail at smog inspection for missing SAS equipment. The car will arguably produce more pollutants at startup than one without SAS, but it seems about half of the 850's don't have it (with little apparent rhyme or reason) so it is certainly not a crime. But not enough to make a difference on any smog test (do you have those in MA?). Moreover, how well is it even working now?

I prefer to put the diode in with wire connectors, but I have minimal soldering skills.

Oh and I may have one of those metal SAS pipes, I will go check. Although I may have just sawed it off to get the manifold off.

[mecheng]

Does the diode actually stop the sas from working or does it still work but tells the computer it functions perfectly? I still have my sas hooked up with the delete

[dairyqueen814]

My recommendation is SAS delete. Easier than your other options here, plus fewer problems down the road. And more space in the engine bay.

The implications of the delete procedure depend on where you are. As far as I know, only in CA will you fail at smog inspection for missing SAS equipment. The car will arguably produce more pollutants at startup than one without SAS, but it seems about half of the 850's don't have it (with little apparent rhyme or reason) so it is certainly not a crime. But not enough to make a difference on any smog test (do you have those in MA?). Moreover, how well is it even working now?

I prefer to put the diode in with wire connectors, but I have minimal soldering skills.

Oh and I may have one of those metal SAS pipes, I will go check. Although I may have just sawed it off to get the manifold off.

I'm leaning more and more towards the delete....
The system is in perfect working order, no loud noises or error codes. Which as we all know means it's only a matter of time until it craps the bed....
I've never seen the guy do any kind of smog test in MA. I've lived here my whole life and been a driver here for 7 years and every single inspection I basically wait in the garage while the guy checks stuff. Usually just pulls it in, beeps the horn, checks the lights and the brakes and makes sure my ball joints are good.
I'm just antsy about doing soldering and electrical stuff. But the more times I read the write up about the delete the more I wrap my head around it.

[dairyqueen814]

Does the diode actually stop the sas from working or does it still work but tells the computer it functions perfectly? I still have my sas hooked up with the delete

As I understand it the diode tells the ECU that the SAS system is working. You need to disconnect parts of the system. Almost like phantom limbs for amputees.... if you'll excuse the off topic reference.

[dairyqueen814]

Basically it stops the ECU from throwing a CEL at you when your SAS is either not working, not connected or not there.

[erikv11]

Does the diode actually stop the sas from working or does it still work but tells the computer it functions perfectly? I still have my sas hooked up with the delete

The diode provides the same voltage drop that would be present if the pump was working. So when the ECU thinks the pump should be on, it checks the voltage drop across those pins and if the drop is within spec, the CEL does not set.

I agree with DQ, I have read that you should not leave the pump or the vacuum plugged in, because it might lead to an out of spec voltage drop and trigger a CEL, although I don't remember seeing anyone actually reporting that. Also keep in mind that if the valve on the exhaust is leaking (as is very common and inevitable) and the pump was good when you did the mod, and you leave it all in place, then the pump will likely fill with water/condensation and fail.

If you don't want to remove the parts, you can just unplug the pump, and unplug the vacuum line from the tree and cap it off. No matter what, the solenoid at the fan, and the relay back at the fuse box, both need to stay, so that the ECU is happy about those being there.

Many ECU tunes provide "no SAS" as an option, that is another common way it can be eliminated.

[mecheng]

I have all my sas connected with the sas delete within the ecu and it has never triggered a code. I left it because if it still does some work while it is connected well the environment may thank me 0.00001%

[dairyqueen814]

Did the delete
no CEL or anything
car runs great!
Thanks guys!

[abscate]

Some pictures and part numbers of the exhaustvconnectio to the SAS system