The rear a arm mount was in the way of the exhaust manifold outlet. In post 107 or so you can see where I trimmed the mounts. This was possible only because I already had tubular a arms.

The cats still need repositioning after the mounts are trimmed. The secondary ones are the more difficult ones if you go with the auto trans, but the manual should provide plenty of room for both. All four cats need re-adjusting to clear.

I've heard that some e rod kits come with vette manifolds. Mine were camaro manifolds, I believe. Either way I think the manifolds will need modifications. Im hesitant to mention online what I had to do to make mine fit, but they are tweaked a bit. I think it's kinda visible though in those pics posted.

Any mod to the kit is an automatic fail. Thankfully, the ref didn't catch it

 

Malaka, i noticed in your inspection report there is a line item "Inspection Reason: High Emitter Profile". Does that mean that California pays closer attention to performance cars?

Congratulations on passing the test.

Fred

 

Speaking for myself, thats typical for older cars in Ca, im guessing. Ive seen that same reason on my smog inspections. Prior to and even after the eng change, ive also noticed "change of ownership" on other smog certs.

 

Do you think running a tubular k member would help with cat clearance?

 

Not much, if any. To me the k- member isn't really an issue with the primary cat. Its the firewall. The a-arm rear mount on the k member is the issue with the exh manifold outlets. Once you resolve the mounts/manifolds interference and can bolt up the cat assembly, the primary cat will contact the firewall. So it needs to be adjusted, once that's sorted. Then the secondary cat becomes your next issue to resolve.

Once i got the a-arm mount/manifold sorted. I cut the front weld on the primary cat without cutting into the exh pipe. This let me pivot/rotate/change the angle on the cat to avoid contacting the firewall. From there i worked my way down. Cutting away the welds w/out cutting into the exh pipes. Rearranging the pipes/cats to avoid contact with whatever was in the way. Every weld on both cats had to be cut so i could change the cats and/or pipes configuration.

You going manual or auto?

 

I bought the lsa used with a 4l80e automatic, the car it's going in is an auto. I'm probably going to try and use the 4l80.

 

Might be a tighter squeeze with 4L80e. It's bigger than the 4L65e isn't it? Basically a turbo 400 with OD, right?

 

I've looked into it and I think the 4l80e will require more tunnel work than I want to do, so I'll probably get a t56 magnum. If I can get them to let me use an f body ls manifold, will I still need to modify the cats?

 

Yes, the 4th gen manifolds still require cat relocation. The manifolds will clear the a-arm mounts and the starter (another issue with the e-rod manifolds), but the flanges (3 bolt) on the 4th gen parts differ from the e-rod (2 bolt) parts. That said, i tried the 4th gen exh manifolds too...no go. The refs didn't care the instructions say you can substitute other OE Ls exhaust manifolds. Both said i have to use the ones that came in the kit, Maybe you'll have better luck, but id ask first.

Which version kit did you buy? Auto or manual? They have different part #s. If you have the auto version the ECU will be looking for the TCU (so will the ref). The ecu harness has a bulkhead that connects to a female bulkhead on the TCU harness. You cannot change from auto to manual transmissions (or vise/versa). It voids the EO certification. Just like swapping the exh manifolds will do. That's what caused me to fail my first referee inspection.

 

I bought a used lsa erod kit with a 4l80e.

 

If the original buyer didnt swap from manual to auto and you want a smog legal swap. You should probably stick with the auto, even if your car is currently manual.
Ive never had an issue with my 4L65e, but the 70e would of been a nice upgrade at the time.

 

Thank you for all your help. I'm reading the install instructions pdf PN 19369384 the first paragraph on the second page says if it wasn't purchased as a connect and cruise that the vss must be the 40 tooth. After reading all of it it seems like it only requires the vss signal to work, which is part of the engine harness.

 

I dont have that part# on either my manuals, but the VSS part on the erod says the ECU is looking for 40 pulses/rpm (40T calibration) from the VSS input. Required for emission compliance.
There's also the VSS on the TCU harness for the speedo (optional). Its on the bulkhead connector. Im using it on my dakota digital CC module since my speedo is GPS.

 

That part number is the lsa erod instruction manual. your manual is for the ls3, but I believe the exhaust is the same.

 

Yeah, but Its mostly the same information with 1-2 paragraphs added/omitted/rearranged or on different pages.

 

What motor mount set up are you using?

 

Hawks LS swap mounts and GM clamshells.