New to the California
10-13-16, 11:29 AM
#1
New to the California
Hello gents,
So I'll be relocating to the West Coast very soon. I think I understand what that means in terms...of getting my paperwork in line. My big question is about general ownership. I've done a ton of research online but keep finding conflicting information. I'll be moving somewhere around LA most likely and was wondering, how often do you guys get hassled by the police? How bad is it in terms of having a cat and not having a cat (I imagine the smell gives away the presence, or lack there of, of the cat).
If anyone can point me to any resource where I can find some answers to my questions it would be much appreciated.
So I'll be relocating to the West Coast very soon. I think I understand what that means in terms...of getting my paperwork in line. My big question is about general ownership. I've done a ton of research online but keep finding conflicting information. I'll be moving somewhere around LA most likely and was wondering, how often do you guys get hassled by the police? How bad is it in terms of having a cat and not having a cat (I imagine the smell gives away the presence, or lack there of, of the cat).
If anyone can point me to any resource where I can find some answers to my questions it would be much appreciated.
10-13-16, 12:06 PM
#2
Hey Supernaut, let me be the first to say Welcome to California! Great state, sucky rules though. Anyways, i can't speak for the LA area much while i live in Northern California but I've only been hassled in the big city (San Francisco) for no front license plate. I was running a high flow cat, my car was lowered pretty crazily and all but only received a no front license plate. That was with my rx8 too. The rx7, i have not been hassled with at all, i've had cops sitting behind me but never once pulled over for tail light or front license plate. Most cops are more lenient with things like that in my experience, wondering how many people have had the same
10-13-16, 12:28 PM
#3
Hey man,
Thanks for the response. It seems like having a high flow cat at the very least is a must for the FD. Your experiences seem consistent with what I read about NorCal. Are you still on twins with your FD? Fuel system uhh...still kosher? I'm super worried that my exhaust smell might give things away. I'm even starting to worry about my Lotus. I may be missing a cat for it as well but at least it doesn't smell like armageddon.
Thanks for the response. It seems like having a high flow cat at the very least is a must for the FD. Your experiences seem consistent with what I read about NorCal. Are you still on twins with your FD? Fuel system uhh...still kosher? I'm super worried that my exhaust smell might give things away. I'm even starting to worry about my Lotus. I may be missing a cat for it as well but at least it doesn't smell like armageddon.
Hey Supernaut, let me be the first to say Welcome to California! Great state, sucky rules though. Anyways, i can't speak for the LA area much while i live in Northern California but I've only been hassled in the big city (San Francisco) for no front license plate. I was running a high flow cat, my car was lowered pretty crazily and all but only received a no front license plate. That was with my rx8 too. The rx7, i have not been hassled with at all, i've had cops sitting behind me but never once pulled over for tail light or front license plate. Most cops are more lenient with things like that in my experience, wondering how many people have had the same
10-13-16, 05:34 PM
#5
Hey man,
Thanks for the response. It seems like having a high flow cat at the very least is a must for the FD. Your experiences seem consistent with what I read about NorCal. Are you still on twins with your FD? Fuel system uhh...still kosher? I'm super worried that my exhaust smell might give things away. I'm even starting to worry about my Lotus. I may be missing a cat for it as well but at least it doesn't smell like armageddon.
Thanks for the response. It seems like having a high flow cat at the very least is a must for the FD. Your experiences seem consistent with what I read about NorCal. Are you still on twins with your FD? Fuel system uhh...still kosher? I'm super worried that my exhaust smell might give things away. I'm even starting to worry about my Lotus. I may be missing a cat for it as well but at least it doesn't smell like armageddon.
On a side note, i love your 7, too bad i'm up north but will definitely need to stop by down there to visit and see the 7 in person.
10-13-16, 06:50 PM
#6
I'm going to be very honest here and I might get a lot of negative feedback but I have seen this happen many times.
It really has to do with what city you are exactly in (LA and surrounding cities) and your race / the color of your skin.
I have seen Whites and Asians with loud exhaust and riced out cars drive right by cops and nothing has happened.
I have also seen cops pull over Black and Hispanic drivers with an aftermarket exhaust on a mostly stock car for no reason except that their exhaust was loud. I have seen this happen in predominantly White and Asian neighborhoods.
This is not always the case but from what I have seen it is mostly the case.
Obviously, this is during normal driving situations, not speeding or racing on the street.
It really has to do with what city you are exactly in (LA and surrounding cities) and your race / the color of your skin.
I have seen Whites and Asians with loud exhaust and riced out cars drive right by cops and nothing has happened.
I have also seen cops pull over Black and Hispanic drivers with an aftermarket exhaust on a mostly stock car for no reason except that their exhaust was loud. I have seen this happen in predominantly White and Asian neighborhoods.
This is not always the case but from what I have seen it is mostly the case.
Obviously, this is during normal driving situations, not speeding or racing on the street.
Last edited by ArmAnirx7; 10-13-16 at 06:55 PM.
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10-17-16, 12:27 PM
#8
Wow thanks for the welcome and wealth of info fellas. I also managed to speak with a friend of mine who's a former FD owner and a former Californian and he echo'd your statements as well. My only big issue now is getting a tune for 91 octane. HAA! I'll definitely be doing a tour of CA and would love to meet up with you guys.
It looks like I'll most likely be settling in Santa Monica so if anybody has any advice about the area I'd definitely appreciate it as well.
Thanks again guys
It looks like I'll most likely be settling in Santa Monica so if anybody has any advice about the area I'd definitely appreciate it as well.
Thanks again guys
10-17-16, 12:57 PM
#9
Wow thanks for the welcome and wealth of info fellas. I also managed to speak with a friend of mine who's a former FD owner and a former Californian and he echo'd your statements as well. My only big issue now is getting a tune for 91 octane. HAA! I'll definitely be doing a tour of CA and would love to meet up with you guys.
It looks like I'll most likely be settling in Santa Monica so if anybody has any advice about the area I'd definitely appreciate it as well.
Thanks again guys
It looks like I'll most likely be settling in Santa Monica so if anybody has any advice about the area I'd definitely appreciate it as well.
Thanks again guys
10-17-16, 01:29 PM
#11
Senior Member
Oh man. You're going to hate driving in Los Angeles just because of the traffic! You'll want to save the FD for those days where you have time to carve a canyon. The good part is that you'll be a lot closer to Willow Springs International Raceway than I am down here in SD!
As ArmAnirx7 says, a lot of it, sadly, does depend on your race. The LA cops do like to pull over "asian kids in rice rockets". Things are a bit different these days now that the fast and furious street racer crowds have kind of died off since the early 2000's but the cops are still on fairly high-alert for that sort of thing. Drive respectfully and you won't have a problem, but the CHP may still pull you over on the freeway even if you're going just a little over the speed of the rest of the traffic.
I see you have a front plate--that will help you a lot. They like to use the missing front plate as an excuse to pull you over, and also to issue you a fix-it ticket when they do, rather than let you go with a warning.
If you have a bunch of gauges in the car and they pull you over, they're going to ask you to pop the hood. If they do, and they see a lot of custom work and not a CARB sticker in sight, they will send your car to a smog referee. Being sent to the smog ref is pretty much the worst thing that could happen to you, so be careful with that!
Anecdotal evidence time: I had a DSM a while ago and CHP pulled me over. He was all set to let me go after writing me up for speed and a missing front plate, AND after looking under my hood. Everything was pretty good under my hood as my car was very cleanly modified. No front mount intercooler, no huge anodized aluminum pipes, etc. As he handed me my ticket though, he noticed my A/F meter (not even my wideband, just a basic bouncy digital A/F), got pissed and told me to pop the hood again. He then broke out a flashlight and started peering all over the engine bay. He finally saw my RC fuel injectors (why did they have to be black with their logo on a sticker? Argh) and sent me to the ref. I mean, geez... Thankfully it was easy to pass the smog ref on my car as I still had a high-flow cat on there and everything looked pretty stock, I just had to put the stock airbox on and reconnect the stock ECU. I didn't even swap the injectors back out because the stock ECU was able to control them just fine (I'm telling you, this car was a very mild build). Had the car had more work done though, this would have been a painful event. It was quite fun for the folks in my DSM club as they all knew I was the guy trying hardest to keep his car legal and clean, but there I was getting ref'd.
I think the biggest thing is that you need to keep the volume down. Running a straight pipe and laying into the throttle will get you a lot of attention from the police. And then, if they look under the car and don't see a cat, off to the smog ref you go. So for that reason alone, probably good to put a hi-flow on there and a true muffler of any sort. Long story short, stealth is the name of the game.
Also, I hope you're not going to have to park that beauty on the street overnight. It may be a target for theft. I may sound paranoid, but well-built 99-spec RX-7s make a lot of folks drool in the greater LA area.
Not to sound totally pessimistic though LOL. I just know a lot of people that have been hassled in LA, including myself.
As ArmAnirx7 says, a lot of it, sadly, does depend on your race. The LA cops do like to pull over "asian kids in rice rockets". Things are a bit different these days now that the fast and furious street racer crowds have kind of died off since the early 2000's but the cops are still on fairly high-alert for that sort of thing. Drive respectfully and you won't have a problem, but the CHP may still pull you over on the freeway even if you're going just a little over the speed of the rest of the traffic.
I see you have a front plate--that will help you a lot. They like to use the missing front plate as an excuse to pull you over, and also to issue you a fix-it ticket when they do, rather than let you go with a warning.
If you have a bunch of gauges in the car and they pull you over, they're going to ask you to pop the hood. If they do, and they see a lot of custom work and not a CARB sticker in sight, they will send your car to a smog referee. Being sent to the smog ref is pretty much the worst thing that could happen to you, so be careful with that!
Anecdotal evidence time: I had a DSM a while ago and CHP pulled me over. He was all set to let me go after writing me up for speed and a missing front plate, AND after looking under my hood. Everything was pretty good under my hood as my car was very cleanly modified. No front mount intercooler, no huge anodized aluminum pipes, etc. As he handed me my ticket though, he noticed my A/F meter (not even my wideband, just a basic bouncy digital A/F), got pissed and told me to pop the hood again. He then broke out a flashlight and started peering all over the engine bay. He finally saw my RC fuel injectors (why did they have to be black with their logo on a sticker? Argh) and sent me to the ref. I mean, geez... Thankfully it was easy to pass the smog ref on my car as I still had a high-flow cat on there and everything looked pretty stock, I just had to put the stock airbox on and reconnect the stock ECU. I didn't even swap the injectors back out because the stock ECU was able to control them just fine (I'm telling you, this car was a very mild build). Had the car had more work done though, this would have been a painful event. It was quite fun for the folks in my DSM club as they all knew I was the guy trying hardest to keep his car legal and clean, but there I was getting ref'd.
I think the biggest thing is that you need to keep the volume down. Running a straight pipe and laying into the throttle will get you a lot of attention from the police. And then, if they look under the car and don't see a cat, off to the smog ref you go. So for that reason alone, probably good to put a hi-flow on there and a true muffler of any sort. Long story short, stealth is the name of the game.
Also, I hope you're not going to have to park that beauty on the street overnight. It may be a target for theft. I may sound paranoid, but well-built 99-spec RX-7s make a lot of folks drool in the greater LA area.
Not to sound totally pessimistic though LOL. I just know a lot of people that have been hassled in LA, including myself.
Last edited by eslai; 10-17-16 at 01:33 PM.
10-17-16, 03:15 PM
#13
If you have a bunch of gauges in the car and they pull you over, they're going to ask you to pop the hood. If they do, and they see a lot of custom work and not a CARB sticker in sight, they will send your car to a smog referee. Being sent to the smog ref is pretty much the worst thing that could happen to you, so be careful with that!
:0 that's absurd man.
10-17-16, 06:15 PM
#15
Senior Member
That's my biggest fear. My FD is currently being modded again. I think we are going to end up with just the center gauge pods holding 3 gauges. I hope that will be ok. Can you take the car to a place of your choosing when you get smog ref'd? Man you're making me worry.
A lot of it depends on the cop. If you're polite, your car is clean and not making a ton of noise, and it's just a routine speeding citation, they may not bother popping your hood just for having the three-gauge pod. "Not my job". If they're specifically out for CARB/modification enforcement, then you're hosed. I don't know how often that occurs. Stay away from illegal racing events, and don't take it to any of the ricey car shows where the police like to hunt.
If you get sent to a smog ref you can take it to an official smog ref station only. They're not the type to be friendly, if you know what I mean. Something as simple as an aftermarket BOV can cause you to fail, and they won't accept greenbacks. I can't imagine any single-turbo setup, V-mount or what not passing at a ref.
Your best bet if you get cited for emissions violations may be to get the case dismissed by a good lawyer.
But hopefully others can chime in that have modded FDs in LA--I haven't had a modded car up there in about eight years and I don't know if they're more lenient or what nowadays.
Oh! Also, don't go fast on I-5 around Orange County, if you ever head south. I swear the CHP in that area are ruthless!!! I keep it below 75 at all times once I'm north of Oceanside/south of the I-405/5 split/merge, no matter what traffic is doing.
Public transportation in SoCal is pretty terrible. There are buses, but they're not very reliable from what I've heard, and they don't come around as often as one might like, nor do they take you as close to where you might want to be at all times. There's no subway either. Your best bet would be to use Uber/Lyft/taxis I think. You'll find that most people that have cars use cars, unless they're going out drinking.
Last edited by eslai; 10-17-16 at 06:20 PM.
10-18-16, 06:23 PM
#19
Senior Member
Impounding, thankfully, is a pretty rare thing that usually only happens if they catch you street racing.
10-18-16, 06:55 PM
#20
I've heard this said before but never quite understood it. Is it a recurring fine that you pay whenever you have to register your car? I assume they put a smog fail on your registration and I thought that cars have to be smog-legal in order to get registration.
Impounding, thankfully, is a pretty rare thing that usually only happens if they catch you street racing.
Impounding, thankfully, is a pretty rare thing that usually only happens if they catch you street racing.
Regardless of this, you will have to have the car smog checked every other year when renewing the registration. The only thing that would be different when you have this sort of ticket history, is they may (or maybe not) require you to smog check the car in a STAR certified shop when the time comes during the renewal.
10-24-16, 02:33 PM
#24
From my experience and being hispanic: Not about the actual race identity of the driver at all, it is more about how the car looks, how old you are, and how you project yourself.
Back in the day I had a low profile minitruck and boy did I get pulled over lol. As I got older, ditched the truck, and got into my RX-7 I haven't once been pulled over or asked to pop my hood due to profiling.
So I agree with eslai on:
So by the looks of your car Supernaut (clean and mature looking ride), I'd say you're pretty safe.
Exactly just don't go into the court hearing and be blatant and cocky. Instead pay the fine at the counter and the case will be closed.
The reason I say that is because we had one guy on here tell a judge that he'd rather pay the fine to get out of going to the ref. Well the judge got pissed and let him have it for exploiting a loop hole. Not very smart duh...
Back in the day I had a low profile minitruck and boy did I get pulled over lol. As I got older, ditched the truck, and got into my RX-7 I haven't once been pulled over or asked to pop my hood due to profiling.
So I agree with eslai on:
The reason I say that is because we had one guy on here tell a judge that he'd rather pay the fine to get out of going to the ref. Well the judge got pissed and let him have it for exploiting a loop hole. Not very smart duh...
Last edited by Montego; 10-24-16 at 02:38 PM.
09-13-19, 07:34 PM
#25
How to pass SMOG with aftermarket intercooler & air intake?
I've lived in CA since 2011 and have not changed any parts since then, however since 2015 no one will even SMOG my vehicle because they say it doesn't pass visual inspection. Basically I have a PFS intercooler with no CARB sticker and I can't locate an Exemption Order for the part.
I really do not want to change out the intercooler, nor the cold air intake box I have. I'm reluctant to take it to the Ref for fear they will flag my car in the system and force me to make the change.
Does anyone know how I can solve this problem, or if it's possible that the Ref would make some sort of assessment that would let them give me a pass or exemption?
(or a friendly inspection site in San Diego county)?
I really do not want to change out the intercooler, nor the cold air intake box I have. I'm reluctant to take it to the Ref for fear they will flag my car in the system and force me to make the change.
Does anyone know how I can solve this problem, or if it's possible that the Ref would make some sort of assessment that would let them give me a pass or exemption?
(or a friendly inspection site in San Diego county)?