First things first, the previous owner of my 98GT Convertible opted to remove the catalytic converters for the "custom exhaust" that they installed on this car. This of course is why the P0122 code is coming up, as the O2 sensors can't connect to anything if there are no catalytic converters.
It appears the car is compensating for this "lean" condition by running extra fuel. Oddly enough this doesn't seem to drastically reduce fuel economy but it does smell strongly of unburnt fuel.
The obvious solution to this would be to rebuild the entire exhaust system and put new catalytic converters in. I'll point out at this time that my state does not have annual inspections, so I don't need to worry about that. Is there another way that I could approach this, so that the car doesn't run so rich? Of course it would be great to make the check engine light go away but the focus here is more on the pervasive gas smell.
Suggestions?
It may be worth adding that every winter the car gets put away in a garage with the battery disconnected, so I'm confident it's not a transient computer issue going on here. Every spring when it comes out the error comes back up within a few minutes of driving, even without flogging it.
It appears the car is compensating for this "lean" condition by running extra fuel. Oddly enough this doesn't seem to drastically reduce fuel economy but it does smell strongly of unburnt fuel.
The obvious solution to this would be to rebuild the entire exhaust system and put new catalytic converters in. I'll point out at this time that my state does not have annual inspections, so I don't need to worry about that. Is there another way that I could approach this, so that the car doesn't run so rich? Of course it would be great to make the check engine light go away but the focus here is more on the pervasive gas smell.
Suggestions?
It may be worth adding that every winter the car gets put away in a garage with the battery disconnected, so I'm confident it's not a transient computer issue going on here. Every spring when it comes out the error comes back up within a few minutes of driving, even without flogging it.