California Emissions Test

[rpounds]

Well, this morning I went and had the dreaded California emissions test on my '75. This gets to be nervous time for me on these old cars. Most of the technicians are not familiar with old Corvettes, so it can be a little hit and miss as to whether or not they recognize what is or is not original equipment. So, the tech at the testing station intended to fail me because of the open element air cleaner!! I had to argue with him that this is indeed the original configuration (a dangerous thing to do, kind of like arguing with your wife on the color to paint the house). Long story short, he went "upstairs" to consult with "the book" before he would pass the visual on the air cleaner. Once we got past this disagreement, we went on with the test. Mr. Murphy decided to stay home this morning, so the car passed with flying colors.

I spent much time researching original California smog equipment on this vehicle over the course of the last year or so. I'm posting this for informational purposes, just in case anyone is facing a test in the near future and needs help with identifying what is needed to pass the test. As far as the sniffer test results, here they are:

15 MPH test

%CO2 = 13.7
HC = 117 (max allowed = 194)
CO% = .19 (max allowed = 1.26)
NO = 233 (max allowed = 1286)

25 MPH test

%CO2 = 14.0
HC = 67 (max allowed = 161)
CO% = .10 (max allowed = 1.06)
NO = 203 (max allowed = 1146)

I hope some of this helps others that are facing this challenge.

Ron

 

[Yoda]

Ron,
Great information, Thanks, and CONGRADULATIONS :J :dance

I've had Rare 5 years here in Kalifornia, and We've been smogged 5 times ad seems I should buy a lotto ticket since this suppose to be random testing..

Every other year (off year to be smooged) The state sends along with my registration a "SMOG ONLY TEST" is required to register the car.. ad that means to a state smog station, and dyno smogged.. Rare has only failed once (three years ago), a little tweeking on the carb got her through.

Enjoy the Ride!

BudD

 

[sscam69]

YOU GUYS HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!!

Its really that bad over there. VISUAL INSPECTION, WHAT?!?!? I have to go up for inspection this week but I am not sweating it because with an extra "donation" it will pass guaranteed!

It freaks me out how bad it is for you. Isn't it over when the car is over 25 yrs or so. I know it is here in Texas but how about California.

**Mental note----never ever move to california!! smog nazis are bad**

 

[rpounds]

Yeah, it's really that bad. The visual inspection is to assure that all of the original components, or aftermarket equivalents are on the car. They even look underneath to verify that the Cat is there. They take off the fuel cap and test it for it's ability to hold pressure and they check the filler neck with a 'go-no go' gauge to make sure that only an unleaded fuel filler will fit in the hole . . . even though unleaded fuel has been generally unavailable for years . . .

Then it's onto the dyno where they test the car at 15 and 25 MPH.

While I was there, a lady was having her IROC tested. Her first pass certified her as a gross polluter. I couldn't believe the hoops she had jumped through in order to finally pass . . .

Our cars don't have to be tested after they turn 30 years old. That's the law for now anyway. Except, if you sell it, you still have to get it smogged before the ownership transfer can be made. And BY LAW, it is the seller's responsibility to make sure that it passes . . .

Fun, huh?

 

[sscam69]

Fun, huh?

 

[BLACKDOG]

What Smog ??

Hate them SMOG NAZIS too !!

...BUT ... one of the secrets is to reside in one of the few counties that don't require smog testing at all, unless the vehicle is sold.

Tuolumne County happens to be one of those counties...so far.

 

[rpounds]

Re: What Smog ??

Tuolumne County happens to be one of those counties...so far. [/B]

So far . . . that's the magic word. Testing is supposed to dramatically expand over the next few years. Once upon a time, I could drive up to my grandmother's home town of Tulare and get smogged with no hassle at all. Boy have times changed. Although I only have a few more years to go before I am exempt, there is always the possibility that I will sell the car at some point in the future. Therefore, some of the modifications that I would like to make are impractical because of having to change it all back before selling. Headers for instance . . . nobody and I mean NOBODY makes CARB certified headers for 75's.

 

[sscam69]

Just hang tight Ron!!

 

[BigBrakeFuelie]

Rpounds-I`m in the middle of deciding whether or not to buy a 383 stroked engine.Most have advised me against it,I even talked to a referee at the BOAR he ofcourse discouraged me.One mechanic at my local Corvette Shop thinks I would pass as long as I have all the smog equip. hooked up and funtional.I would keep my original carb and intake.
Maybe even take the heads off of my old engine.Would this be too risky of a proposition?I`m not worried about the visual but am more concerned about the dyno test.
If it`s too risky is there a mildy modified option that I could turn to that would pass for sure?Like a happy medium? My current engine is a GM replacement motor that is kinda slow.Even say 220-250hp. would be great for my car.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[rpounds]

I wish I had a definite answer to that. I have toyed with the idea of building a 383 stroker and have not really given the smog stuff a second thought. I honestly think that my '75 still could be made to pass as long as I kept the original smog equipment and got the carb tuned correctly.

I was able to get a small block to pass with '69 camel humps with 64cc combustion chambers and a Summit 1101 cam. The camel humps had been pocket ported, port matched and polished up. According to desktop dyno, this combo with stock exhaust manifolds made 266 hp at 4000 rpm and about 400 foot lb. of torque at 2000 rpm. So, you can get some power and still pass smog.

Again, I wish I could give you an absolute answer, but most people tell me that it's not that big a deal to go stroker and still pass smog. The secret seems to be in correct fuel/air ratio and a good new design catalytic converter.

FWIW

Ron

 

[BigBrakeFuelie]

I do have a new cat converter on the Vette I just had it put on about 2 months ago.I`m wavering back and forth right now I just don`t need anymore headaches right now.If I were to fail,no big deal as long as there are adjustments I could make.

 

[lytemup]

i could never stand to live in CA w/all those regulations and everything they do to the auto industry. not that i'm not all for clean air, but until lawmakers are engineers, i'm sure i won't agree w/any of those clean air or CAFE regs.

i love michigan.

 

[Trixie]

The California Smog Laws are a joke. The cars 30+ years ARE the gross polluters! I have a '75 too, and I am counting the months to when she turns 30!

 

[sscam69]

until lawmakers are engineers, i'm sure i won't agree w/any of those clean air or CAFE regs

I hear that!!

 

[rpounds]

Oh man . . . don't get me started on Kalifornia politics . . .

Poly = many

Tics = blood sucking insects

 

[BigBrakeFuelie]

Well I decided against a stroked engine for a couple of reasons.One ofcourse was $$$ the other was because I found a machine shop that will build my rebuild current engine up to about 325hp. and guarenteed to keep me legal.That`s all I wanted.It`s amazing the amount of misinformation going around in Cali.People told me so many different things some totally the opposite.You guys in Michiagan and other states that are more reasonable be thankful.I heard some states are leaning towards Cali like regulations.

 

[MLGower]

One way to make sure you don't have a problem with the smog nazi's is to have a pre-test done before you have the smog test done for real. That way, if you do have a problem with passing, or if it come's up as a gross polutter, it doesn't get into the DMV computers. You can go back and straighten out the problem. Cost's a bit more, but IMHO, worth every dime.

Michael