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Failed CA smog inspection with aftermarket items!

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5akman

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I had the '99 that was for sale in the classified section a week or so ago. I met the buyer today at AAA, did the title transfer and was told we needed a smog check, bummer!

First shop hooked up theircomputer to the OBDII port and popped the hood. He immediately noticed the A Team turbo, no vac pump, cat etc. and told me without CARB stickers for the mods, he would fail the vehicle. I quick called a buddy who directed me to another shop. They had 3 techs looking at it, two underneath saying "well, since it doesn't call for a muffler, that big long thing must be the cat, we'd pass it!" The third tech wasn't buying it and since he was the sign off guy, said he'd have to fail it.

Another call and I ended up at another shop. The guy hooked up the computer to the port, popped the hood and looked at nothing, answered some questions on the computer screen and literally 6 minutes after driving in, I had my smog cert for title transfer! What a bunch of BS!

This is what appears is happening. The sticker on the air box shows egr/ vac pump etc. They are mandating that those items be there. Along the top of the sticker it says "Catalyst" meaning that the cat needs to be there. The 1/3 page of info in the smog book shows the details needed for the 6.5 and unfortunately it shows the egr/vac pump/cat. Unless you find someone willing to turn a blind eye, I believe we're all in trouble if mods have been made. One tech did say that any CAI should not be an issue as the smog requirements don't address the intake at all. The Heath ECM did not however alert the computer................

Advice, move out of CA!):h
 
Depends on the shop, and what was the vehicle? A 3500? Shouldnt have had EGR, a Cat or any smog requirements at all. Dont know what those guys were smoking.
 
Turbine Doc said:
CA & NY are 2 places you will not fine me residing, PERIOD far too left, unfortunate these great locations are populated with too many libtards
Click to expand...

You got that all wrong.
Upstate NY very low emmsions standards.
Long Island,NYC No problem. Just bring it in for some unnessicary repairs that you could easily do yourself(Legal Bribe)at a local repair shop that does emmisions. About a 4-500$ repair gets a sticker without issue. Just need to know the MAGIC words...
Well I don't want to spend 4-500$ on repairs if it won't pass emmisions...
Viola...It passed.....:eek:
IN fact CT is much tougher on vehchile that "Need" emmisons. Of course once it is 25 yrs old, it is exempt no matter what it is.
Just didn't want you to confuse liberal with corrupt...:D
 
It was my '99 K3500. It shows all the specs on the air cleaner cover and in the smog "bible". Egr, vac pump, cat, its all shown even for the 3500!
 
Yeah, here in Upstate NY - they dont even plug the diesels into the computer, while anything 96 & newer gas must be plugged in, and pass all the smog tests...
 
Well, the sticker on the air box is interesting. Mine had a portion scraped off where I guess the schematic showing the vac pump/wastegate etc was. According to the most friendly/knowledgable one of the techs (one who wanted to call the muffler a cat and let me pass :thumbsup:), the sticker on the air box is "God" and the smog manual is the "Bible". The sticker/God over rules the Bible. He told the anal tech that since the sticker just mentioned "catalyst" and didn't show any vac pump/wastegate and there was a muffler/"cat" under the truck, it meets the requirement of the sticker. The anal tech wasn't buying it however.

I really thought it would be easier than it was. Sure, the third guy passed it no problem, but the other two weren't having anything to do with a non stock truck. Just beware guys that that grim reaper lurks in CA. He also mentioned that they are looking at requiring smog on either motorcycles or boats next. Its all just a scam to raise tax dollars while looking "green". Move the illegals out of CA and we'll have plenty of money to run the state without having to take my kids Honda powered go carts in for a smog check.............
 
wow cali is strict. Both times when I went for emissions I had no cat, muffler, egr(didn't have it factory and doesn't show it on the sticker either). I even had the stacks on my truck that you see in my sig pic. Both times it passed. Never been plugged in to the computer. They just do the "diesel snap test" here. the truck blew a 1.9 out of 40 percent the first time and 2.9 out of 40 percent the second time.

Never had to take my Blazer as it's 25 years old, but if they went by the sticker on it, I'd be screwed as none of the emissions system is hooked up, or even remotely functional. The EGR doesn't even exist anymore.
 
In NYS, if it's a diesel less than 8500 lbs., just a $10 safety inspection (brakes, lights, wiper blades, headlight aim, etc.). I always ask for new wiper blades so the shop makes SOME money off me...
 
I dont like the sound of "diesel snap test". If thats a quick snap of the throttle, I think I'd be producing some coal smoke
 
Prior to DPFs the smog test on a Diesel was/is very subjective to the tech/shop doing the job, just in case I saved one cat removed from both vehicles just in case I ever needed it, Cats on F VIN vehicles were more common than one would think, as were EGRd F 2500s, I have yet to figure out the rhyme or reason other than CA & Canada vehicles under X weight seem to be the ones that have the extra equipment installed on them.

I'm not sure how test for DPF equipped vehicles are tested but the "snap test" is way too open to interpretation to be a valid check.
 
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Turbine Doc said:
Prior to DPFs the smog test on a Diesel was/is very subjective to the tech/shop doing the job, I saved one cat removed from both vehicles just in case I ever needed it, Cats on F VIN vehicles were more common than one would think, as were EGRd F 2500s, I have yet to figure out the rhyme or reason other than CA & Canada vehicles under X weight seem to be the ones that have the extra equipment installed on them.
Click to expand...

Interesting.

My 98 Vin F 8600 lb K2500 has a cat installed.....never thought too much of it. So, other vin F trucks don't have a cat?
 
great white said:
Interesting.

My 98 Vin F 8600 lb K2500 has a cat installed.....never thought too much of it. So, other vin F trucks don't have a cat?
Click to expand...

It is odd GW, political stuff sometimes, I've talked to some of you guys up that way that have the exact equipment as my K1500 came with yet is badged in Canada as a 2500 truck. Many South of the border 2500s were sans cat from the factory, possibly the ones un-officially classed as HD 2500 (I'm thinking ones with 4:10 gear option) were non catted exhausts down here. I have seen no official documentation just putting 2 & 2 together from those who report on the forums over the years their 2500s were without cats when new.

The HD official option did not come about IIRC until the 1500 Diesel option went away with advent of DMax, and only Diesel option in those was the HD2500 & 3500 DMax truck, I'd want one of the Dmax guys to verify that assumption that there was/is no such thing as a non HD 2500 with a DMax, all DMax are considered to be HDs from factory.
 
This is why my fleet is mostly old; '64, '67, '70, '94.
My sticker is original California and says catalyst (not accurate, it's a soot trap), but the book says none;
the filter box moved into the shed, S&B filter says nothing.

The whole smog thing WAS necessary in CA when the smog was killing us with asthma and emphesyma.
The factories have been moving out of state rather than comply, but some have grandfathered out of the reg.s and are gross polluters.
The vehicles should be tested by tailpipe only; RESULTS matter, not the means.

Example; my '69 passed the tailpipe sniffer in 1974, my Mom's new smog motored '73 polara did not, hers had so much congress-mandated smog equipment it was almost impossible to see the motor, and it was misadjusted from the factory.
Mine had headers, a mid rise short runner intake, a non original 4bbl, Accell dual point dist... the list goes on. mine was more efficient, and more powerful.

Herr SchwarzenNAZI stopped the 25 year exemption right before my '78 volvo would have rolled over to exempt, after I had ripped the worn out Bosch injector system off and adapted a carburetor.

Nah, I'm not sore about this CRAP, not at all.:mad2::nono:

Maybe I should post this on the Rant thread instead.
 
Detroit Dan said:
I dont like the sound of "diesel snap test". If thats a quick snap of the throttle, I think I'd be producing some coal smoke
Click to expand...

They call it a snap test, I heard my truck getting redlined about 3 or 4 times and being held there for 3-5 seconds a piece... poor girl was screaming!

2 days later my flexplates bolts loosened up and caused havoc.... Maybe would have happened anyhow eventually, but maybe it wouldn't have. I'll never know. Regardless, I don't like to bring RPM's over 3k... I don't think spinning the engine that fast is necessary, and even though everything is specced for that or more, its unnecessary.

The last time I redlined my engine was 4 years ago when PMD was stalling me hard and I was so frustrated driving to the jobsite with it stalling 10 times to get there (Can't push this pig alone either) I use to hold it at the governer trying to get it to blow up or fail completely so I could find out what was fixed. I did know it had a governer as most if not all electronic injected diesels do.

I think that test is BS, whether its bad for the engine or not.

Do they check the oil before this test? What if there is a slight upper issue with the oil pressure or drivetrain? This will for sure blow up an engine or 2 for some poor person.
 
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