Acura RL 2001 3.5 Owner's Manual

Emissions Controls

The burning of gasoline in your car's engine produces several byproducts.
Some of these are carbon monoxide (CO), oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and
hydrocarbons (HC). Gasoline evaporating from the tank also
produces hydrocarbons. Controlling
the production of NOx, CO, and HC is important to the environment.
Under certain conditions of sunlight
and climate, NOx and HC react to
form photochemical "smog." Carbon monoxide does not contribute tosmog creation, but it is a poisonous

gas.
The Clean Air Act
The United States Clean Air Act*
sets standards for automobile
emissions. It also requires that
automobile manufacturers explain to owners how their emissions controls
work and what to do to maintain
them. This section summarizes how the emissions controls work.
Scheduled maintenance is on page 208.
* In Canada, Acura vehicles comply
with the Canadian Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (CMVSS) for
Emissions valid at the time they are

manufactured.

Crankcase Emissions Control

System

Your car has a Positive Crankcase
Ventilation System. This keeps gasses that build up in the engine'scrankcase from going into the
atmosphere. The Positive Crankcase
Ventilation valve routes them from the crankcase back to the intake
manifold. They are then drawn into
the engine and burned.
Evaporative Emissions Control

System

As gasoline evaporates in the fuel tank, an evaporative emissionscontrol canister filled with charcoaladsorbs the vapor. It is stored in this
canister while the engine is off. After
the engine is started and warmed up,
the vapor is drawn into the engine and burned during driving.
Onboard Refueling Vapor
Recovery
The Onboard Refueling Vapor Recovery (ORVR) system captures
the fuel vapors during refueling. The
vapors are adsorbed in a canister filled with activated carbon. Whiledriving, the fuel vapors are drawn
into the engine and burned off.

Technical Information

Emissions Controls

Exhaust Emissions Controls
The exhaust emissions controls include four systems: PGM-FI,
Ignition Timing Control, Exhaust
Gas Recirculation and Three Way
Catalytic Converter. These four
systems work together to control the
engine's combustion and minimize
the amount of HC, CO, and NOx that comes out the tailpipe. The exhaust
emissions control systems are
separate from the crankcase and
evaporative emissions control
systems.

PGM-FI System

The PGM-FI System uses sequential multiport fuel injection.
It has three subsystems: Air Intake,
Engine Control, and Fuel Control.
The Powertrain Control Module (PCM) uses various sensors to
determine how much air is going
into the engine. It then controls how
much fuel to inject under all operat-
ing conditions. Ignition Timing Control System
This system constantly adjusts the ignition timing, reducing the amount
of HC, CO and NOx produced.
Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR)

System

The Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) system takes some of the
exhaust gas and routes it back into
the intake manifold. Adding exhaust
gas to the air/fuel mixture reduces
the amount of NOx produced when
the fuel is burned.
Three Way Catalytic Converter
The three way catalytic converter is in the exhaust system. Through
chemical reactions, it converts HC,CO, and NOx in the engine's exhaust
to carbon dioxide (CO2), dinitrogen (N2), and water vapor. Replacement Parts
The emissions control systems are designed and certified to work to-
gether in reducing emissions to
levels that comply with the Clean Air
Act. To make sure the emissions remain low, you should use only newGenuine Acura replacement parts or
their equivalent for repairs. Using
lower quality parts may increase the emissions from your car.

Technical Information

Three Way Catalytic Converter
The three way catalytic convertercontains precious metals that serve
as catalysts, promoting chemical
reactions to convert the exhaust
gasses without affecting the metals.
The catalytic converter is referred to as a three-way catalyst, since it acts
on HC, CO, and NOx. A replacement
unit must be an original Acura part
or its equivalent.
The three way catalytic converter must operate at a high temperature
for the chemical reactions to take
place. It can set on fire any com-
bustible materials that come near it. Park your car away from high grass,
dry leaves, or other flammables. A defective three way catalytic
converter contributes to air pollution,
and can impair your engine's per-
formance. Follow these guidelines to protect your car's three way catalytic
converter.
Always use unleaded gasoline.Even a small amount of leaded
gasoline can contaminate the catalyst metals, making the three
way catalytic converter ineffective. Keep the engine tuned-up. Have your car diagnosed and
repaired if it is misfiring, back-
firing, stalling, or otherwise not

running properly.

Technical Information
THREE WAY CATALYTIC CONVERTER

State Emissions Testing

Testing of Readiness Codes If you take your vehicle for a state
emissions test shortly after the
battery has been disconnected or
gone dead, it may not complete the
test. This is because of certain "readiness codes" that must be set in
the on-board diagnostics for the emissions systems. These codes are
erased when the battery is disconnected, and set again only
after several days of driving under a
variety of conditions. If the testing facility determines that
the readiness codes are not set, you
will be requested to return at a later date to complete the test. If you must
get the vehicle re-tested within the next two or three days, you can
condition the vehicle for re-testing
by doing the following. Make sure the gas tank is nearly,
but not completely, full (around
3/4). Make sure the vehicle has been
parked with the engine off for 8
hours or more.
Make sure the ambient
temperature is between 20° and 95° F. Without touching the accelerator
pedal, start the engine and let it
idle for 20 seconds.
Keep the vehicle in Park (automatic transmission). Increase
the engine speed to 2,000 rpm and
hold it there until the temperature
gauge rises to at least 1/4 of the scale (approximately 3 minutes).

CONTINUED

Technical Information

State Emissions Testing

Select a nearby lightly traveled
major highway where you can
maintain a speed of 50 to 60 mph
(80 to 97 km/h) for at least 20
minutes. Drive on the highway in
D4 (A/T). Do not use the cruise control. When traffic allows, drive
for 90 seconds without moving the accelerator pedal. (Vehicle speed
may vary slightly; this is okay.) If
you cannot do this for a continuous 90 seconds because of
traffic conditions, drive for at least
30 seconds, then repeat it two
more times (for a total of 90
seconds).
Then drive in city/suburban
traffic for at least 10 minutes.
When traffic conditions allow, let the vehicle coast for severalseconds without using the
accelerator pedal or the brake

pedal.

If the testing facility determines the
readiness codes are still not set, see
your Acura dealer.

Technical Information

Warranty and Customer Relations

Customer RelationsInformation................................. 314
Canada Zone Office Map.............. 315
Warranty Coverages..................... 316 Reporting Safety Defects
(U.S. Vehicles)...........................317

Authorized Manuals...................... 319
Warranty and Customer Relations

Customer Relations Information

Acura dealership personnel are trained professionals. They should
be able to answer all your questions. If you encounter a problem that yourdealership does not solve to your
satisfaction, please discuss it with
the dealership's management. The
Service Manager or General
Manager can help. Almost all
problems are solved in this way.
If you are dissatisfied with the
decision made by the dealership's

management, contact the Acura
Customer Relations Office.
U.S. Owners:
Acura Automobile DivisionClient Services Office
American Honda Motor Co., Inc.

1919 Torrance Blvd.
Torrance, CA 90501-2746

or telephone: (800) 382-2238

In Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin

Islands:

Vortex Motor Corp.
Bella International
P.O. Box 190816

San Juan, PR 00919-0816
(787) 250-4327
Canadian Owners:
Refer to the Canadian Zone Office Map on the next page. When you call or write, please give
us this information: Vehicle Identification Number
(see page 300) Name and address of the dealer
who services your car Date of purchase
Mileage on your car
Your name, address, and tele-
phone number A detailed description of the
problem Name of the dealer who sold the
car to you

Warranty and Customer Relations

Canada Zone Office Map

CUSTOMER RELATIONSRELATIONS AVEC LA CLIENTELE
Honda Canada Inc.
715 Milner Avenue

Toronto, ON
M1B 2K8

Tel: 1-888-9-ACURA-9
Fax: Toll-free 1-877-939-0909
Toronto (416) 287-4776

Warranty and Customer Relations

Warranty Coverages

U.S. Owners
Your new Acura is covered by these

warranties:

New Vehicle Limited Warranty — your new vehicle, except for

covers the battery, emissions control systems and accessories, against
defects in materials and

workmanship.

Emissions Control Systems Defects Warranty and Emissions
Performance Warranty — these two

warranties cover your vehicle's emis- sions control systems. Time, mileage,
and coverage are conditional. Please
read the warranty manual for exact
information.

Original Equipment Battery Limited
Warranty — this warranty gives up
to 100 percent credit toward a
replacement battery.
Seat Belt Limited Warranty — a seat

belt that fails to function properly is
covered for the useful life of the

vehicle.

Rust Perforation Limited Warranty
— all exterior body panels are
covered for rust-through from the
inside for the specified time period
with no mileage limit.

Accessory Limited Warranty —

Genuine Acura Accessories are covered under this warranty. Time
and mileage limits depend on the
type of accessory and other factors. Please read your warranty manual
for details.

Replacement Parts Limited
Warranty — covers all Genuine
Acura replacement parts against defects in materials and workman-

ship.
Replacement Battery Limited

Warranty — provides prorated

coverage for a replacement battery

purchased from an Acura dealer.

Replacement Muffler LifetimeLimited Warranty — provides

coverage for as long as the pur-
chaser of the muffler owns the
vehicle.
Restrictions and exclusions apply to
all these warranties. Please read the
2001 Acura Warranty Information
booklet that came with your car for
precise information on warranty coverages. Your Acura's original
tires are covered by their manufacturer. Tire warranty
information is in a separate booklet.

Canadian Owners

Please refer to the 2001 Warranty
Manual that came with your car.

Warranty and Customer Relations

Reporting Safety Defects (U.S. Vehicles)

If you believe that your vehicle has a
defect which could cause a crash or
could cause injury or death, you should immediately inform the
National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) in addition to notifying Acura AutomobileDivision, American Honda Motor Co.,
Inc. If NHTSA receives similar com-
plaints, it may open an investigation,
and if it finds that a safety defect
exists in a group of vehicles, it may
order a recall and remedy campaign.
However, NHTSA cannot become
involved in individual problems
between you, your dealer, or Acura
Automobile Division, American Honda Motor Co., Inc. To contact NHTSA, you may either
call the Auto Safety Hotline toll-free
at 1-800424-9393 (or 366-0123 in
Washington D.C. area) or write to: NHTSA, U.S. Department of
Transportation, Washington, D.C. 20590. You can also obtainother information about motor
vehicle safety from the Hotline.

Warranty and Customer Relations