California emissions

[unccpathfinder]

Theres a chance in about 6 months to 1 year i will be coming to cali for 3-4 years...a lot of this decision is going to be based on if my pathy's can go with me and what not (the other reason is the gf got stationed at Edwards AFB)...

 

I'm not familiar with all of the emissions out there b/c in NC i just have to pass a safety inspection and i know my 87 was a "cali" model until the swap...so i wasnt sure how all of that stuff works etc etc...i went to the cali DMV and DOT sites s well as here and wasnt very successful in finding any info...and i know several of u are out there and could shed some light on it...

 

if i can do it my plan is to keep everything in NC (registration, license and all of that) but I dont know how the inspections would work out...

 

Thanks in advance

[Slick]

how often do you have to have inspections?

 

her in the land of money grabbers.... we have what we call "smog tests" where they kindly put a probe up the butt of oyur pathy. and jump inside and get her to different rpm's/speeds while she rolls on some roller thingies.

 

i can send oyu a copy of my emissions and what they test for.... that may help. the main thing is exhaust, and cat. if you have a bad either... you'll fail. also, a good o2 sensor. a good running motor, with none to very few afteramrket doodads n gadgets. )cams/open air intakes/etc)

 

after the thorleys and a new HG. my pathy barely registered on ANY of the tests lol... and pathy's out here are SMOG TEST ONLY. which means you have to take it to a smog only station, and they're bigger a-holes than average, and no sneaking around paying peeps under the table to pass yer pathy.

 

they don't check the body, they do check any aftermarket stuff, like my thorleys for the eco # or whatever it is (to show it's cali friendly).... they do a thorough check under the hood to make sure yer not pullin a fast one..... other than that..... it's a $50 PITA every 2 years.

[unccpathfinder]

our inspections are yearly...and getting an NC sticker is nothing but a thing bc i havent changed my front glass yet where its busted up and they wont pass it with that so i got a guy back home that passed it for me no issues...

 

would an out of state vehicle have to pass the emissions? or just cali registered 1s

 

so are the smog stations stated owned...here people program their ecu's for obdII tests so they pass...im not sure how they do it but i've got a buddy who removed all of the emissions off of his trans am and has his readings B4 he took it all off and as he pulls up he just loads everything and they get readings for the egr and all of that stuff thats not even on the car

 

so the 87 with the 95 engine would be able to pass as long as the sniffer doesnt detect anything out of the limits?...do they have different standards for different years?

Edited January 22, 2007 by unccpathfinder

[Slick]

our inspections are yearly...and getting an NC sticker is nothing but a thing bc i havent changed my front glass yet where its busted up and they wont pass it with that so i got a guy back home that passed it for me no issues...

 

would an out of state vehicle have to pass the emissions? or just cali registered 1s

 

so are the smog stations stated owned...here people program their ecu's for obdII tests so they pass...im not sure how they do it but i've got a buddy who removed all of the emissions off of his trans am and has his readings B4 he took it all off and as he pulls up he just loads everything and they get readings for the egr and all of that stuff thats not even on the car

 

so the 87 with the 95 engine would be able to pass as long as the sniffer doesnt detect anything out of the limits?...do they have different standards for different years?

as far as the years. they would test yours for 90-95, and if oyu went from the TB to MPFi they may snort a bit but hey... or they won't know wtf they are looking at.

 

your pathy would be fine, adn after being resident full time in cali for 6 months you HAVE to reg yer vehicle, and yerself here. and, then, abide by cali laws.

they are not state owned, but they do have a higher standard and NO CHEATING. their machines are directly linked to the dmv, so if oyu fail. BINGO. sacramento gets it. you are allowed to fail 2 times. then you go gross polluter. a "pre-smog" test is always advised. it's $30 and will tell you what, if anything your vehicle will fail on. it is "on the machine, but off the record".....

if it passes a pre smog, then BAM. get'er done right there........ why risk it?

 

at a smog test only station you will not get away with reprogramming ecu's or any funky stuff.. they LOOK for it here... they know with a smog only vehicle they will try anything to pass.. and they look for that stuff.

[mws]

Chiming in with more info for you....

In Cali, there are three levels of smog test:

1) On the rollers, true driving simulation.

2) No rollers, car just at idle and at 2000 rpm

3) No smog test at all.

 

These vary based on the pollution levels of the county. Where slick lives, they have lots of problems so they have the most stringent.

In Butte County where I live, we have only minor pollution issues, so we get the middle level.

In some of the really rural areas with very few people and no pollution issues, they do not have to do any smog checks.

 

If you have a '95 engine in an '87 chassis, you will need to pass the test based on the '95 criteria. And will need to take it to a referee station the first time around.

 

What are the criteria?

Two separate parts to the inspection.

1) Functional. Sniffer must find the HC, CO, and NOx levels to be below the levels required for that year of vehicle.

2) Visual. This is the part that sucks. ALL of the equipment installed from the factory must be there and functional as originally designed. Period. Must be the exact factory part or a part with a CARB exemption (like the Thorley headers).

 

Take my van. Emissions were 1/100 of factory passed the first part), but since I had replaced the carburetor with a fuel injection system, it failed part two. No registration possible.

[Casey.T]

Military Personal do not have to transfer registration to the state they are stationed in... The problem you will have is getting new tabs once they expire... I have gone in with a Notarized letter stating that the vehical is out of state and purchased tabs for my parents when emmissions testing was required....

[unccpathfinder]

hmm very interesting folks...this is helping out a lot...so military personnel does that include Dod jobs (civilian working as a contract)...are there any exceptions for college students or residency? b/c I could always go back to school for a masters or another degree...im not planning on staying in cali for more than 3 years (if i end up for sure going) once i get there just till shes done her time we're(or at least I will) coming back east coast...

 

im going to have to dig thru all of this...i really dont wanna go thru all this changing registration and license crap...esp cuze it'd be a pain to come back to NC

 

so if u fail 2 times and u go pre smog whats that mean u have to pay a penalty or what?

 

i would be around California City/Boron/Lancaster Area

[Pavelow Leaks]

FYI, some bases require a local emissions test for your car to be registered on the base. Other than that, you should be golden, if you're not a resident, and your vehicle is registered, inspected, and insured in NC and you have a valid NC drivers license, you don't have to abide by CA vehicle laws.

[mws]

Maybe there is some uselful info in here:

http://www.smogcheck.ca.gov/StdPage.asp?Bo...eck/default.htm

[Precise1]

if you're not a resident, and your vehicle is registered, inspected, and insured in NC and you have a valid NC drivers license, you don't have to abide by CA vehicle laws.

 

Yes, but as was mentioned, that's only good for 6 months. I'm sure it could be played off a bit longer, but I doubt for 3 years.

I suggest moving here, bringing the Pathy, see if it is close to passing, fix it if it is, buy another one if not, swap any parts you want to keep, sell the old one and enjoy California...

 

B

[Slick]

so if u fail 2 times and u go pre smog whats that mean u have to pay a penalty or what?

 

i would be around California City/Boron/Lancaster Area

a pre-smog is just to determine if it will pass or not. it is purely optional.... if you are not sure if it will pass, a pre-smog is recommended to find out if, or what it will fail on. then you can go home and work on that failure.

 

if oyu fail 2 REAL smog tests, your pathy will be classed as a "gross polluter". this is not good as you then have much more work to do and stricter places you can take for the re-test.

 

my s-10 came up a gross polluter as the cat was SHOT. i should've know. a gross polluter is when yer vehicle fails by way more than teh highest recommended levels allowed.... if i can barely fail with a blown HG..... then your pathy would have to have something seriously wrong with it to fail and be a gross polluter.

[unccpathfinder]

well i just have a massive exhaust leak on my 95...my 87 has the 95 engine with the headers doesnt have a leak except for the lack ofo2 in the pipes

[Slick]

well i just have a massive exhaust leak on my 95...my 87 has the 95 engine with the headers doesnt have a leak except for the lack ofo2 in the pipes

welp, i will be finally upgrading the part of my exhaust that houses the o2 (to match the rest of my system) in the next couple months, you're more than welcome to it if you want. you'll definitely fail with no o2 sensor.

[unccpathfinder]

no its just im lazy to go and buy 1 for the 95...the 1 off of wheelmans refused (with plenty of PB and TLC would not come out....so i just need to go and get 1 and install it...but thanks for the offer...if i get lazy i'l take u up on the offer