Kalifornia pre-smog guys...please explain this?!?
 

Has this happened to anyone (pre-smog) here?:

http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?showtopic=84042

it will start happening more. I see them setting up onramp road side sniffers, with cameras to get your plate, more and more around here.

They do this in Denver as well, got a notification in the mail that I failed and that my plates were suspended. (collectors plates btw) Cost me 5 trips to the smog referee to get it sorted. :mad:

But a '71 is smog exempt in California...?

No cars are exempt from federal smog requirements.

Pre-76 cars are only exempt from having to be tested. But it is still illegal to remove or tamper with the smog equipment on them.

:eek::eek::eek:

It's my understanding, they are sniffing and have been for years, but have yet to do any actual fining or inspecting.

How do they determine if an older car (<'75) is not conforming or just blowing oil past the rings? Is it constitutional to order someone to an inspection station based on a roadside sniffers results?

Why bother to have bi-annual smog inspections if they are going to monitor all of us at street level anyway? The redundancy is akin to admitting failure somewhere.

When did constitutionality ever apply to a "privilege"?

Remember the oft-touted mantra from your "friends" in government, "driving is a privilege, not a right". Just never mind the part where it's pretty much impossible to function in society today without a vehicle because the same policymakers touting that little aphorism refuse to adequately fund/improve public transit to the point of legitimate and viable usefulness as an alternative. . .

If your car is blowing oil past the rings, you're obligated to pay the $$$ and get it fixed. Unless you fall below a certain income level, then there's naturally a state (meaning "public) funded program to pay for the repairs for you. There's information available on this on the CA DMV web site. I'd get it looked at ASAP. You're likely to be hassled by the law or called in by a fellow motorist using the state's "polluter" tip line (800) CUT-SMOG

http://www.coalitionforcleanair.org/take-action-prevent-pollution.html

The bi-annual smog inspections are completely a money-making racket, nothing more. Especially the visual inspection part. If they were truly concerned about emissions and air quality, they'd only base pass/fail on what comes out of your tailpipe, regardless of how you get it there (e.g. cats/no cats, tuning, air pumps, etc). The "fair" way, concerned about air quality (which is a good thing) would be to set an emissions standard similar to what's done with the "sniffer" test thingy that goes in the tailpipe. If you can pass with carbs, radical cams and no cats, so be it, right? Not so here in Commie-fornia) The CARB (California Air Resources Board) makes a FORTUNE "certifying" parts to be considered "okay" during a visual inspection.

And yes, my understanding of the law is that regardless of vehicle age, you must have all originally-installed emissions equipment on the car in CA. Any replacements/modifications must be CARB-certified and bear a CARB exemption number (for which the manufacturer pays CARB a FORTUNE in "review fees" - a nice way of saying "bribe").

"Fairness" has nothing to do with this. Follow the money.

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Oh, by the way - don't think for one second that Johny Law can't demand access to your engine bay without a warrant. All they need to do is claim "suspicion that a vehicle is illegally modified" and they can (1) automatically demand an inspection right then/there and (2) automatically assume ANY modification is for the explicit purpose of street racing (regardless of actual reason) and (3) impound/seize your car on the spot. Yes, they can do this. No judge, no jury, no specialists, no nothing. It's all done right then and there by the P.D. There was a thread on this a while back.

When in doubt about something in CA, the safest bet is to assume the most draconian and anti-citizen point of view/action. It (unfortunately) usually ends up being the truth, or close to it.

I don't think there is a constitutional right to drive a car on a public highway, and have your emissions remain a secret. If they have reason to reasonably believe your car is not in compliance with smog requirement, I think they can order to you to an inspection.

Heck, they can order you to an inspection without any belief at all. Lots of states have mandatory inspections.

Excessive smoke can cause one to fail emissions; I doubt a worn out engine is considered a legitimate exception. People may have to start scrounging around to replace those ripped out and discarded air pumps and injectors, charcoal canisters, EGR valves, thermal reactors, odd heater boxes, etc. Some of these parts are NLA.

Of course! Otherwise how will they get people to continue to buy new cars every few years?

Naturally government (and the business interests that ultimately control it) want this - increased revenue generated from sales taxes, registration fees, etc. Benefits to insurance companies (in the form of higher premiums) because a "newer vehicle" is likely financed, requiring collision/comprehensive in addition to the higher rates for newer cars anyway, etc. Insurance companies love new cars. Cash cows. Banks/lenders benefit too since new vehicles are likely financed (they make money off the interest). All of these special interests ultimately influence policy decisions which manifest themselves in government doing everything possible to keep people spending that $$$ as fast (preferably faster) than they make it, 'cause they make a killing off it.

Follow the money trail. Always.

Government doesn't want to encourage either (1) people to stay in older vehicles or (2) mass-transit alternatives because they MAKE A KILLING OFF OF PEOPLE BUYING NEW CARS!!! Duh!!! Look at who the biggest campaign sponsors are to a lot of the candidates for local office - auto dealerships, insurance companies, banks, etc. C'mon folks, wake up!

Manbearpig attacks!

So, you have a nice long-hood (early 70's) 3.2 hot rod and get popped by the sniffer. Now what? You're screwed, no?

I am hoping the guy/car in the 914 thread was popped because of excessive smoke or something stupid. If they start pulling over everyone (pre-smog), there will be a lot of work to be done on these cars...

I think you would be screwed. You could get a BAR sticker for the car, but it would have to be inspected, have all the smog equipment on it (cat converter), etc., pass the appropriate emissions standards, etc.

Most hotrod early 911s aren't running in a smog legal configuration, but putting a 3.2 or even later 911 engine, it would seem that should be able to pass an inspection and get a BAR sticker, esp. if it uses the stock exhaust system. Can't see why it wouldn't pass.

A lot of the 914 3.2 conversions use carbs.

Yeah, that's NEVER going to be legal in Cal.

'74 and earlier 911s (and I assume 914s) have no smog equipment, so that defeats the Weber argument right off the bat. If there's no baseline from which to measure how polluting a '74 or earlier car should be, then there's no reason an owner can't have up to a jet engine in his car.

Now, if the car/engine is smoking excessively or the exhaust and/or induction is too loud, then you're inviting whatever trouble you receive by having a basically obnoxious vehicle on the road.

This is one of the reason I keep stock rain shields on my engine and replaced the odiously-noisy M&K muffler for a stock Bischoff. The one or two hp. trade-off and the incremental weight difference isn't worth the trouble of getting pulled over, ticketed and maybe impounded depending on the cop's mood.

I think the interpretation from the powers-that-be will be "it didn't come from the factory that way and it doesn't have a CARB exemption number, therefore it's illegal".

Remember their #1 goal - to make money. This interpretation makes them the most money, either directly (by forcing checks which the owners must pay for) or indirectly by getting the owners to say "it ain't worth it" and ponying up the big money for original equipment (injection systems vs. carbs, say) or other, newer vehicles.

Remember the rules:

1. Follow the money and
2. In CA, if you're a citizen and not a cop or a politician, you're scum, a liability and something to be looked down upon and controlled.

Applying those two rules generally puts virtually all of CA's laws in perspective.

In the end I got a waiver due to it technically costing me 15k to re-re-build my engine into a normal 80'

The US 68 911 has specific smog equipment to include a seperate air pump. Any valves/hoses/fuel equipment used for recirculating unburned fuel/emissions whether specifically labelled as "smog" or not are considered smog equipment as they comprise the system as a whole and are needed to pass the smog levels designated for that car for that year..