Auto Emissions laws

[GM Dude]

Can I ask you guys a question?

I am currently thinking about making a RB26-powered sports car out of an old Datsun Z.

I live in Texas, and even though our state repealed its official automotive emissions laws about 20 years ago{as most others have except for NY and a few other northeastern states}, I am wondering if the EPA will get on my ass for it if they don't approve of it.

They still have some political power, you know................

[ANANAMOOSE]

How old is the Z

[GM Dude]

I'm getting a late 70's model.

[ANANAMOOSE]

If the car is more than 25 years old emissions laws don't apply to it at all. So you have no worries.

[GM Dude]

But they still apply on newer models?

Man, the EPA and NHTSA are s**t.

But then again, my cousin did know a guy who owned a monster 750-hp '84 Chevy pickup{modified}.

It was in California, though.

Probably the one state they're not allowed to even go near.

 

Oh, and I just remembered:

Talked to a couple of car guys over in California a long time ago {while I was visiting relatives}, one owned an R32 Skyline, no emissions or anything.

I asked my cousin if that was legal, and my cousin said it was the law. Not really sure if I believe it 100%, but I doubt he would lie to me.....

 

Edited August 4, 2006 by GM Dude

[fuckindumass]

CA has the strictest emissions laws in the states. They have more advanced smog controls sooner, compared to the rest of the country. They do have some interesting licensing options though.

One thing to keep in mind, There were no emission standards for cars manufactured 1965 and earlier in CA, 1967 and earlier 49 states.

 

Thats one reason I have kept a 67 Dart GT for so long. It never has to go for inspection, as there is nothing for them to inspect

[tuff_luv_capo]

In my county, there is no emissiones testing. So I am free to run a stillen headers WITH the test pipes (no cat). Having it done soon.

[GM Dude]

CA has the strictest emissions laws in the states. They have more advanced smog controls sooner, compared to the rest of the country. They do have some interesting licensing options though.

One thing to keep in mind, There were no emission standards for cars manufactured 1965 and earlier in CA, 1967 and earlier 49 states.

 

Thats one reason I have kept a 67 Dart GT for so long. It never has to go for inspection, as there is nothing for them to inspect

Oh really?

Damn, the EPA must have more power than I thought.

They have got to stop blaming the automobile for most pollution, when our real culprits are power plants, and I think air travel is to blame as well.

 

Tuff Luv Capo: Where exactly do you live?

[kevin2006rhs]

If you keep your milage under 5k miles a year, you can just blow off the emmisions. Atleast thats the way we do it here in my shop under Pennsylvania laws.

 

Anyways, most of the parts you get from tuners that are ment for big HP and street use are ment to be emmisions legal. Usually if you break emmisions you have a car that is already past the 25 year mark, broken something, or illegal parts for your area. From what I ahve seen going on in normal states, no emmisions crazy states like Cali, guys are havin no problem makin big hp for street use.

[GM Dude]

Yeah, but still, I wanna know; who exactly came up with these unnecessary emissions laws?????????

 

It hasn't helped cut back on pollution, that's for sure.

 

As a matter of fact, pollution's gotten worse..............

[fuckindumass]

lol GMDude......

Emisions have done a lot for air quality. Take a trip to Mexico City to see what I mean.

You would choke on every breath you take if they hadn't begun reducing vehicle emmissions before any of us here were born. By the late 70s, NYC, Las Vegas, Chicago, most of CA and a lot of other places were obscured under a brown smelly cloud visible from space. When the sun shone brightly, people were incouraged to stay indoors, and people with breathing problems lagged out.

A funny thing about catalytic converters too. They don't harm power at all if sized properly, and the backpressure created by a properly designed exhaust will actually boost power. No sh*t.

The biggest source of polution from automobiles is unburned fuel passing through the exhaust system. That is where a catalytic converter comes in. It simply gets rid of the unburned fuel that has tried to get in your lungs.

[GM Dude]

It may have done wonders for the automobile, but despite that, pollution from other sources has increased.

 

And it's not the fault of the catalytic converters, either.

 

My cousin has told me that he thinks that the real reason pollution is still really bad is because of more heavy industry and increased air travel.

I don't know if I believe that 100%, although he has done a lot of research on pollution.

 

And, can you be arrested for not following these emissions laws{like having a race-built V8 in a late 80's Chevy compact or something}?

After all, it's not like you're harming anyone.

 

[ANANAMOOSE]

No you can't be arrested. If the cops in your area are dicks than you might get fined. I emphasize MIGHT.

[GM Dude]

@Ananamoose: Ok, that's good.

 

 

 

[fuckindumass]

 

No you can't be arrested.  If the cops in your area are dicks than you might get fined. I emphasize MIGHT.

An older engine may be installed in a newer chassis if all emission control systems and devices are connected, including the exhaust system and catalytic converter, and the resulting engine-chassis configuration conforms to the engine configuration of the model year of the chassis or newer. It is illegal for anyone to change a vehicle into an older configuration.

So, forget about putting a small block chevy into any rice car.

 

A diesel engine may not be replaced by a gasoline engine if the manufacturer did not offer such an engine configuration for that model year chassis.

OK, forget about a hemi an a city bus......

 

A catalytic converter may not be removed from a motor vehicle that is currently being used only for off-road driving. This is considered tampering. Tampering provisions pertain to all self-propelled motor vehicles originally designed for transporting persons or property on a street or highway.

This is why chrysler sells 'body in white' thru their canadian branch. It is the only way to get a curent model for racing use, without commiting felonies.

 

A single exhaust system may not be replaced with dual exhaust unless the vehicle's manufacturer certified an identical engine-chassis configuration for that model year of vehicle or newer that includes such an exhaust configuration. The exhaust system configuration is specified by the vehicle manufacturer because engines and some of the associated emissions systems are generally affected by the exhaust system backpressure, which in turn affects vehicle emissions. Therefore, the installation of a dual exhaust system with two converters in the place of a single exhaust system would be considered tampering.

So, yeah, even if you are trying to keep it clean, big bro knows better

 

Really, what it comes down to, you may not 'hotrod' a modern vehicle without breaking federal laws. As ANANAMOOSE points out, you won't get arrested, but you could get a $2500USD fine for each violation. This is almost unheard of. If you do manage to collect such a fine, you would be considered a felon, which would seriously hamper your ability for gainfull employment, eliminate your ability to secure grants and loans for college, lose your right to own firearms, etc. Generally, when a cop is following you, and smells that distinctive stench of unburned fuel coming out your tailpipe, he may pull you over and order you in for an emission test. At the emission test station, they will fail you, and require you to document repairs from a 3rd party before testing you again. They aren't going to go all robocop on you. If you were to continue driving that vehicle without proper registration and licensing, you would eventually be jailed, and not be eligible for driving privledges for years.

In this day and age, you can usually get emission legal mods for your car, and enjoy endangering the public without excessively polluting the atmosphere. Keep in mind, no matter how clean your vehicle runs you are polluting and harming yourself and everyone on this planet every time you start your engine.

State laws are usually harsher than federal. Here in WI they have a law which states you may not change the profile of a vehicle, which makes adding a spoiler, wheelwell flares, fatter tires, changing the rake, all illegal.

If you own a modified vehicle, you will find that you attract law enforcement. I use a highway that takes me past a speedtrap. If someone drives past that cop with a jacked up vehicle, they get followed. The cop is trying his damndest to see a violation on your vehicle while he follows you. They usually spot something, and get to write tickets for things like non-DOT lighting, improper tires, low ground clearance, and if they smell alcohol on your breath, they'll throw in DUI too.

 

OK, enough of the doom and gloom. I have a 67 and a 73 dart, both have been modified quite a bit. The 73 passes emissions, the 67 never goes in. But either one will get me pulled over on the way to work

 

 

[GM Dude]

@f*ckindumass: Oh my God.

That should not be legal in any way.

To take away someone's rights just because you hot-rodded a car; come on! This is not China, you know!

 

You want pollution?

{I think my cousin may be right all along, I've visited several airports in my life and they smell awful, with me choking every third or fourth breath. And I've even been to the industrial part of L.A., and it is horrible, even without the cars}

I think I'm starting to agree with my cousin over here.

Look at all the airplanes flying all over the country and all the heavy industry in our cities.

Those are your REAL culprits.

 

Sorry if I sounded rude, but after reading your post, I was just steaming.

[fuckindumass]

Well, cars are a major source, but hardly the whole problem. It's a lot easier for them to go after individuals than corporations. And you can't just pass a law saying your local utilities can no longer have pollution, someone has to come up with a solution.

Mod your car carefully, your best bet is to speak with manufacturers regarding the legality of their products.

[GM Dude]

F.D.: I don't think they're the biggest problem in most countries, except maybe those that don't have lots of airports or heavy industry{You know, Nigeria, Samoa, etc.}.

True, they pollute a little bit{I'd say about 10-15 maybe 20% of overall}, but I think we should focus on the worst polluters first, like heavy industry or aircraft.

 

True, we can't just force utilities to just stop polluting, but we could try to find ways to make them be less destructive.

 

{And thanks for the mod advice}