i have looked and looked for what is "leagal" to do and what is not. All i have found out is that emissions can bite me! i want to put a lt1 or maby a tpi (love the looks) but since there wasn't any 130 in 83 i dont know if its leagel. does anyone know the rules for classifiing it as a hot rod? how hard is that, whats the requirements?

 

130....hmmm, im a retard.... it shoud say 350

 

i highly doubt that the emissions inspectors are going to check the engine block casting number to tell if you have a 350. aside from the casting numbers, a 305, and a 350 are extrenally the same.

the trouble your going to run into is, TPI or LT1 style induction was not offered in '83, only carb and TBI. I'm not sure how strict colorado springs is, but considering that the L98 and the LT1 are newer motors than your '83 came with, most states don't care about swaping out the old for the new.

California are ****'s

i know here in arizona, they are most concered with the sniffer #'s on the the dyno, not so much the presence of emissions equipment. might want to ask some people around your town what sort of things the emissions inspecters do during an inspection.

 

You can call the Colorado state emissions board. That's what I did, and talked with a tech there.

He told me that I could swap my TPI for a stealthram, even omit EGR, as long as I pass the sniffer, it doesn't matter.

I do not think you can go from FI to carb though.

(Also to note, the guy I talked to on the phone has a 88 RS Camaro, which he dropped a LT1 into, so yet, that is totally fine)

 

i was also thinking about a 400sb, what do you think emmisions would say

 

I want to do the same thing.

I would call the CO emissions board to make sure:

Colorado Springs Emissions Technical Center
1430 S. Tejon St.
719-633-2333

From what I gathered talking to (Denvers tech center) on the phone, it doesn't matter what I swap in, big or small block, as long as it's fuel injected, retains as much of the stock emissions systems as possible, and passes the sniffer.

Here is a another handy link:

http://www.aircarecolorado.com/passenge.htm

 

thxs, i couldn't get ahold of anyone. where in littleton are you, i ride bikes up there quite often. anyhow If i can get ahold of them maby i can get set straight. what i will probly end up doing is eather a 400sb or a 383. cant decide which, TOO MANY OPTIONS!! i would like to do the TPI just becasue the look so darnded cool! espachilly the way tehre set up on the vettes!

 

i worked at a shop that did emissions testing in colorado.

As long as it passed the tailpipe test, thats all that mattered. You can put in any engine you want to, but the emissions standards are set at whatever is newer, the car or the engine.
(however, we never checked the engine block, we didnt care if the car had a newer engine.)

there are some shops that do care if emissions equipment was removed or not, but just avoid them, or talk them into ignoring the rule.

Yet, the BEST thing to do is to find a friend that lives in a rural setting, (like Ault) and register the car under their address, and then you wont even have to test for emssions! Give em like 50 bucks and it should work, i did it!

 

I assume it was not Air Care Colorado, then. They do care, unless '81-older.

 

I live in Aurora. I have '92 Z28 that I'm getting rebuilt now. I bought it new and wore it out. The engine is out and at the machine shop. It's being bored 30 over, a new rotating assembly to convert it to a 383. The heads and intake are being replaced with Edelbrock parts, the runners will be SLP, Dyno Don headers, and either a CompCam or Howard cam with 112LSA and approx .49 lift (I'd have to go find the specs again). All the emission components will be in place. I expect this to be completely legal. AIR may check the VIN, may or may not check the EGR. Unfortunately you never know for sure. The pre-1981 exemptions were recently changed to pre-1971.