Ive been reading around and it looks like a mid-pipe is essential, but does the elimination of the pre-cat fail inspection?

 

You can pass with only a cat and air pump working properly if the car is well tuned.

 

... or if your buddy at the smog staton accepts your $150 offer and makes your car "run as clean as a civic".

 

Well I am not concerned with the smog portion. My worry is about it failing the visual inspection because the car is not the same as the "factory spec". You are not legally allowed to replace pollution reducing parts with non-pollution reducing parts. IE, if your car magically passed the smog test without a cat, and polluted less than a huge diesel truck that just passed inspection, you would fail simply because you do not have a cat. In certain areas of Texas.

So, I guess my real question is whether or not a typical inspection place will actually notice that the pre-cat is gone and is a downpipe instead.

 

Billy Bob, Habbib and Hassan have never worked on a Rotary engine to know enough or let alone to recognize if a part is missing or has been replaced.
When I was stock(except for basic bolt ons), the Techs doing the inspection did not know or had seen a Rotary engine. They were more interested in asking me questions about it, than the actual inspection itself.
So, don't worry Texas is not the CARB Gestapo, but it's getting close.

 

I passed the last three years with a very modded car, this year with single turbo.

They only worry about passing the dyno, brakes, and gas cap tests.

 

I don't know about Texas smog stations. But I've gotten my car smogged at 3 different smog stations in California with the mods in my sig, and the smog ***** never failed me for visual. They didn't even take peek under my car. Of all the things, one station made me replace the BOV for the stock one prior to testing.

 

You will not have any trouble if your tailpipe emissions are clean.
As far as I know, there is not a visual inspection in the state of texas.
I have 4 cars, one OBDII, one OBDI, one is pre obd and...

one is a WANKLE.

All of them are obviously non stock and no one has ever said a word about the non stock equipment.

 

When did your OBDI pass? That one a rotary?

 

One little thing...TX doesnt emisions test diesel vehicles. Go figure out the logic on that one...