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CA Smog: Failed This Time. Need Help with Action Plan.

Burning oil said:
Was your inspection expired? Can you drive it on the street after it fails inspection or do you get a grace period.



I had a girl friend once named Grace and she would get her period!:eek1:
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My registration expired about a week ago. Paid for new registration and completion is pending the smog certification which gets sent in by computer by the test station. Save for tests and the smog test, I'm not driving it. This is not my primary driver. I use it to haul stuff up to Big Bear and to tow boats. All the heavy hauling of stuff up to Big Bear is done. We're down to carpet install and moldings. I assume I'm good in the Burb to and from a smog test.
 
OK, the turbo swap is complete right at 2 hours. The Truck is so used to the ATT that the GM 5 required some love from a big mallet to go in. Also, the studs on the GM 5 are a different thread size than on the ATT, but I found those nuts. I reacquainted myself with my favorite band clamp on the down pipe.

Truck runs fine, but it's up on stands because the next job is to install a new CV axle on the passenger side. In the process of doing this work we found the outside boot had split open and leaked grease everywhere.
 
sctrailrider said:
WOW, I'm glad I don't live on the left coast... don't have anything even close to this in SC....
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The fail was my fault for allowing my wife to take it in without the catalytic converter installed. Once the fail is entered into the computer, you have to go to a referee. I'm not taking any chances, so all the original stuff is going back on.
 
OK CV axle replaced,'took a break before doing it and moved furniture with Colbt ahead of carpet install. Axle took 30 minutes to replace. Just cleaning up tools and running Colby's sawsall back to him.
 
I drove it around the block and it runs fine, but it's such a dog that stock stuff will not stay on it long.
 
Did you replace the CV axle or just the boot?

I bet it's hard to go back to stock, one forgets about the anchor they drug around.
 
Replaced the whole CV axle.

Yes, the stock turbo will only be on for the referee. Everything they noted on the fail has been addressed, so it should pass.

That stuff will stay on until next Sunday as we have carpet being installed up at Big Bear on Saturday and possibly Paveltolz hanging his hat for the night. I'll probably borrow Colby's Burb so I won't be embarrassed by Paul's Lil hot rod.
 
I'll be trying for Barstow late Friday night as I have areas to look at on the way down. Vegas, Baker, Barstow...regardless, I'll be able to get up to you at Big Bear early enough to help with the carpet if you'd like an extra hand. Then we can change turbo's and go shooting, er, looking at potential training areas...yeah...that's the ticket. Appreciate the offer for a place to lay up for the night.

Good luck tomorrow. I have to get mine inspected and I'm sure I'm going to fail for no fender flares or mud flaps. Worth a try though and, fortunately, my county doesn't have the emissions tests though that may change with all the inversion issues we've had the last couple of years.:nonod:
 
We took adavantage of the Home Depot special $37 installation for the whole house. The only thing I'd need some help on is maybe moving some furniture and mattresses.

I think I'll just borrow Colby's Burb as I don't want to start in on mechanic work at Big Bear. I'll leave that for when we finish restoring Colby's '73 Bronco which originally was mine.
 
Paveltolz said:
I'll be trying for Barstow late Friday night as I have areas to look at on the way down. Vegas, Baker, Barstow...regardless, I'll be able to get up to you at Big Bear early enough to help with the carpet if you'd like an extra hand. Then we can change turbo's and go shooting, er, looking at potential training areas...yeah...that's the ticket. Appreciate the offer for a place to lay up for the night.

Good luck tomorrow. I have to get mine inspected and I'm sure I'm going to fail for no fender flares or mud flaps. Worth a try though and, fortunately, my county doesn't have the emissions tests though that may change with all the inversion issues we've had the last couple of years.:nonod:
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Paul, if you make it to Barstow, it's about another 45 minutes to an hour to Big Bear via 247 Barstow Rd through Lucerne.
 
JayTheCPA said:
Unless CA regs specifically called for them, IIRC cat's were OE only in 97 & 98's which is why I narrowed my search to just 99's.
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Ok, not looking to highlight the area where I was wrong . . . But I knew I had not completely lost-it in terms of my recollection on the 99 . . .


Found it! GM's 1999 Vehicle Information Kit (http://gmheritagecenter.com/docs/gm...ion-kits/Suburban/1999-Chevrolet-Suburban.pdf) on page 9 (page 14 in the PDF): "[NEW] CATALYTIC CONVERTER has been eliminated from the exhaust system of the Turbo-Diesel engine." Sooo . . . unless the CAT is a CA / CARB requirement (or I somehow missed its presence for one of the configurations), I call BS on it's OE status for the L65 in a 99 ;)

And by the way, just say-in, not pick-in :)

But back to the goal at hand, this news-break is probably useless for this year's smog test seeing as it is now at a higher level, but probably more handy for the future ones.

Good luck with the Referee . . .
 
JayTheCPA said:
Ok, not looking to highlight the area where I was wrong . . . But I knew I had not completely lost-it in terms of my recollection on the 99 . . .


Found it! GM's 1999 Vehicle Information Kit (http://gmheritagecenter.com/docs/gm...ion-kits/Suburban/1999-Chevrolet-Suburban.pdf) on page 9 (page 14 in the PDF): "[NEW] CATALYTIC CONVERTER has been eliminated from the exhaust system of the Turbo-Diesel engine." Sooo . . . unless the CAT is a CA / CARB requirement (or I somehow missed its presence for one of the configurations), I call BS on it's OE status for the L65 in a 99 ;)

And by the way, just say-in, not pick-in :)

But back to the goal at hand, this news-break is probably useless for this year's smog test seeing as it is now at a higher level, but probably more handy for the future ones.

Good luck with the Referee . . .
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This is great! I'm printing a copy of this and bringing it with me to my appointment with the smog referee on Tuesday the 11th. As it currently stands, I have the catalytic converter in place on the exhaust where the muffler used to be. Actually it's just the catalytic converter shell with the core knocked out and a straight piece of 4" pipe welded in place. It was designed to be the same length as the muffler with flares on each end so that it could be easily swapped in for smog tests (just failed to do it this time). My greatest fear would be that the referee would tap on the converter and hear that it's hollow. Now with this document, I have no worry because I don't need the catalytic converter anyway.

Again, many thanks for posting this.
 
Big T said:
This is great! I'm printing a copy of this and bringing it with me to my appointment with the smog referee on Tuesday the 11th. As it currently stands, I have the catalytic converter in place on the exhaust where the muffler used to be. Actually it's just the catalytic converter shell with the core knocked out and a straight piece of 4" pipe welded in place. It was designed to be the same length as the muffler with flares on each end so that it could be easily swapped in for smog tests (just failed to do it this time). My greatest fear would be that the referee would tap on the converter and hear that it's hollow. Now with this document, I have no worry because I don't need the catalytic converter anyway.

Again, many thanks for posting this.
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The referee won't care what this document says, he will only care about what the emissions label says, and if it says it should have a catylist then it will have one to pass.
 
THEFERMANATOR said:
The referee won't care what this document says, he will only care about what the emissions label says, and if it says it should have a catylist then it will have one to pass.
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And where is this emissions label? The only one I see is for the vac lines. There is also a label for the routing of the Serp belt showing it going around the vac pump.
 
Big T said:
And where is this emissions label? The only one I see is for the vac lines. There is also a label for the routing of the Serp belt showing it going around the vac pump.
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The one on the air cleaner box that lists engine HP. At teh bottom it will ist installed emissions equipment. Look and see if it lists DOC at the bottom of it. If it does you must have a cat installed. And I just checked and the GM parts catalog lists the 99 SUBURBAN with a 6.5L diesel as having a cat converter. http://parts.nalleygmc.com/showAssembly.aspx?ukey_assembly=370011 #12
 
The diagram in your link show the converter connecting to the downpipe. If that's the case, then I have it in the wrong position (back where the muffler was) and they'll fail me again.
 
Does your emission label have the word Catalyst on it? If so it will have one on it to pass. They WILL look the sticker up by VIN. CA emissions are usually worse than the rest of the country and world. Weight and a whole bunch of other laws determine what standards the engine has to have leaving the factory.
 
WarWagon said:
Does your emission label have the word Catalyst on it? If so it will have one on it to pass. They WILL look the sticker up by VIN. CA emissions are usually worse than the rest of the country and world. Weight and a whole bunch of other laws determine what standards the engine has to have leaving the factory.
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This Burb was first sold in Delaware. It spent time in Pennsylvania, then Illinois, which is where I bought it.
 
Post up a pic of your emissions label(the one that says this vehicle conforms to the emissions standards for 1999).
 
I checked it this AM and it says Catalyst.

I'm going to reinstall the muffler and cut the Diamond Eye to insert the cat converter up front. Just don't want to take anymore chances.
 
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