California Smog Test Question
Thread Starter
SUBVETTE
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 3,841
Likes: 93
From: San Diego CA
California Smog Test Question
Those of you that live in CA and have to get your Vette smoged after the five year old point, and have installed headers, what difficulties have you encountered?
Safety Car
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 4,711
Likes: 3
From: Middle of No where AK
I used to live in cali and that will fail visual every time depending on your shop. If you take it to a slightly shadier shop they may let you slide through. Maybe you can get lucky and find a tech that thinks newer vettes came with headers. I know the new stangs with the 5.0 are coming with them.
Safety Car
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 4,359
Likes: 6
From: Los Alamitos California
St. Jude Donor '09
My WRX has an intake, front mount intercooler and other mods. The only thing the local station was looking at were the smog numbers. I failed with aftermarket pipes and high-flow cats and installed stock pipes with stock cats. Passed. The local station isn't "shady". YMMV. My 2007 Vette has headers and high-flow cats. I don't anticipate any trouble passing, if I'm still here.
San
San
Safety Car
Joined: Nov 2006
Posts: 4,023
Likes: 266
From: San Jose California
And they have recently become more aggressive with the visuals after busting quite a few smog shops that were "shady" (to say the least.)
I just had our Toyota RAV4 smog tested this past week and the guy really spent some time scanning the engine compartment ("for what?" one might ask.) So that was another clue that they have upped the ante a bit.
Z//
I just had our Toyota RAV4 smog tested this past week and the guy really spent some time scanning the engine compartment ("for what?" one might ask.) So that was another clue that they have upped the ante a bit.
Z//
Drifting
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 1,952
Likes: 6
From: Palos Verdes Peninsula California
Even my 1981 Vette needed to have everything correct as far as the emissions equipment for it to pass.
On my 07 I went and put the headers back on after passing emissions.
Team Owner
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 27,420
Likes: 64
From: San Clemente CA
Ask your friends to recommend a station. I've read and heard of Corvettes passing with headers. As mentioned above the tech might assume it came with them. Call some Corvette repair shops and ask them.
Thread Starter
SUBVETTE
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 3,841
Likes: 93
From: San Diego CA
You will absolutely not, no way, pass. Just taking off the stock manifolds and putting the headers on is enough to fail you, and that's before you fail the emissions badly. I just went through this last year.
Even my 1981 Vette needed to have everything correct as far as the emissions equipment for it to pass.
On my 07 I went and put the headers back on after passing emissions.
Even my 1981 Vette needed to have everything correct as far as the emissions equipment for it to pass.
On my 07 I went and put the headers back on after passing emissions.
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Burning Brakes
Joined: Aug 2008
Posts: 802
Likes: 6
From: Oro Valley AZ
I used to live in southern California and worried about this issue. I have an '07 Coupe with a complete '07 ZO6 exhaust from manifolds to bimodal mufflers. I had the car to ARCO for an oil change and the tech recognized that cats were not the same. I asked him if he would fail me on the visual test and he said no, it's all Chevy stuff. The Chevy dealer said the same thing. The ARCO tech says he fails everything with aftermarket headers. Doesn't want to lose his smog check business!
Burning Brakes
Joined: Feb 1999
Posts: 1,157
Likes: 3
From: Encino CA
Sorry to barge into the C6 group but when I used to have my 95, there would have been no problem passing with shorty headers that had the proper AIR attachments and a CARB number. I believe the problem would have been more with long tubes.
Doug
Doug
Thread Starter
SUBVETTE
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 3,841
Likes: 93
From: San Diego CA
Team Owner
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 20,800
Likes: 59
From: Tellico Village, Tn
St. Jude Donor '08
I would strongly suggest that you make a few of the Corvette GTG's in San Diego, then ask the question. Perhaps you might get some pointers!!
Thread Starter
SUBVETTE
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 3,841
Likes: 93
From: San Diego CA
Thread Starter
SUBVETTE
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 3,841
Likes: 93
From: San Diego CA
So, what you are saying is that the original cats have to be retained; which means shorty headers. Is that right?
Melting Slicks
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 2,360
Likes: 59
From: San Jose California
Shorty headers with a carb o.e. and stock cats are emissions legal. Long tubes (No o.e. #) and relocating cats, should not pass a visual. If you use high flow cats and pass the visual, it will probably be in range but the nox's will be higher to a noticable level to someone who knows what they are looking at.
My bassani cats were no where in the same range as the stock cats.
I suggest keeping your stock exhaust and put it on every two years. It's not that bad.
My bassani cats were no where in the same range as the stock cats.
I suggest keeping your stock exhaust and put it on every two years. It's not that bad.
