From the reading I've done so far, it looks like putting a downpipe on a 7 in California is a deadly sin that will have Arnold looking to terminate me.

However, does anyone have any experience buying a vehicle out of state that is already modified with a downpipe (or other emissions related mods)? This gets pretty specific and it's hard to determine the legality of this. Seems like it would be hard for them to say you can't buy the vehicle, and it can't see them expecting it to be brought back to pre-cat state. So I'm probably looking at some (help us refinance cali-fornia) DMV fee.

Any info/experience would be awesome!

 

You can run a downpipe. Don't worry about it. Hundreds of us do it and we even pass emissions with it. Just avoid a polished one and you are all set.

 

downpipe is no problem whatsoever, if your cat is working fine. a midpipe WILL be a no-no in CA however -heath

 

Rynberg & RotorMotor, how's the smogcheck situation in NorCal now? You're on the rollers, rather than just the sniffer now, right (like the lower half of the state)? If so, has that been a problem yet? I'm thinking of slapping on a DP as well soon. So far my SoCal friends have told me to just slip the tech a $50. But they're way beyond smog legal.

And I was lead to believe there is an ECU difference in the 50-state cars. Anyone suppose an out-of-state ECU coupled with a DP would be a no-no? I'm aware people with cali. ECU's can get away with a DP, but not sure about the combination of the two. ...or if there even IS a ECU difference to begin with.

 

perfect perfect ... yes my car passed on the rollers (after 6 ****** months of tinkering). i had a DP on and it caused no problems. i have to warn you though, the car has to be tip-top. if its not tuned dead on you WILL have problems. after 6 months and 2 fails i finally passed.

i had to lower my hunting idle (did vacuum lines, intake gasket etc). then i tried again... still wouldnt pass!!! (and they VERY VERY nearly overheated my car...you MUST INSIST that they use a large fan in front of your car). too many HC's and C02 if i remember correctly. took it to a local rotary shop... they said all the work i did was fine but that they had to tune/adjust the idling screws etc. im pertty sure thats all they did. after that my idle was down from 1100 to a healthy 750, and the car passed w/ flying colors. -heath

 

I last passed just before the roller test was enacted. I passed with SMIC, intake, downpipe, catback on the stock NON-CALI ecu. All my numbers were well below the average. Apparently the roller test is significantly more difficult to pass, but I don't anticipate any problems. Just make sure your car is running properly and that she's good and warmed up before you go to the smog station (I mean get on it hard for several minutes to get the main cat working).

 

So can I do the test with my RS*R catback exhaust wothout having to put the stock exhaust back on?

 

My FD is a "49 state" model, and I passed with flying colors on the roller dyno test with a DP. I reinstalled the stock ECU, however, and made sure new plugs were in. The biggest problem I see is getting the operator to gradually get the rollers up to speed (rather than inadvertently dipping into the boost to get the speed up, and blowing your HC and NOx readings through the roof). Also, make sure your heat shield for your ABS unit is in place; it blocks a lot of the view of the DP, so that only a real stickler can fail you for a visual.

 

Catback exhaust has nothing to do with emissions, hence the term "cat-back".

 

Bus, A catback does not reduce emissons. It only acts to keep the car quiet. It doesn't reduce pollution, so it won't effect your smog check.

My car is a non-cali car. I passed smog with the mods listed below. If the technician was very careful with his inspection, he could have noticed the downpipe, and failed me on the visual inspection. We don't have the "roller" inspection here ........ yet.

 

thnx for the feedback