What is required on our cars that make them legal.I am not in California BTW.Just wanted to know so it'll pass inspection.

Thanks

Ron

 

Nice member name. Really motivates one to provide help.

The true answer to your question is, "Everything the factory put on it, or certified replacement components."

Any other answer is a lie.

 

So if I put a different engine,say 383 in her,it aint street legal?

 

The general rule of thumb is any stock replacement part, or anything with a carb EO number.

You can usually get away with a lot of things that don't fit the above, but the above is required by law.

Personally, I would not EVER drive a vehicle on public roads that I had removed the cats. It's common practice for police to give roadside vehicle checks, which consist of them looking for disabled or missing emmisions equipment. It's a 1000 dollar federal fine to drive a vehicle with the cat (or other devices like it) removed.

It's about a hundred bucks to get a cat that won't hinder flow in the least. Plus you can feel good about not being a goddamned ******* that felt they needed black smoke to pour from the tailpipes cause "I don't need that there emissions crap, Ahyuck!".

 

Is that true? Who can give federal citations like that out? Not local or state PD, right? MPs?

Seriously, this info might encourage me to get a "legal" exhaust system sooner rather than later to replace my "*******" system the previous owner (or previous to him) "installed."

I don't call catless systems "*******," but when you replace that section with gutter pipe, something's wrong.

Laters,
Scott

 

They can't give out fed tickets (thats usually only enforced against exhaust shops that remove them) but a lot of state/municipal governments have identical laws in place.

Around here, the police do it to vehicles "in areas of street racing activity". In other words, if you are coming down main street after 10 pm on a weekend in a sporty car, you'd better have a vehicle that at least appears to be emissions legal with a visual!

 

So I have to at least put converters on then huh...

 

"Legal" and "pass inspection" are often 2 different things. Just "passing inspection" doesn't exmpt you from the legal requirements regarding "tampering" with emissions controls.

But, I strongly agree, the high-flow cats you can get for about $100 have almost zero effect on performance, and will help you avoid the smog *****' wrath. A small price to pay for the privilege of driving your car on the street legally. In fact, you can often "tamper" your other emissions controls, and still "pass inspection" with nothing but a cat. And as mentioned above, a typical roadside emissions check (which a police officer might just subject you to if he doesn't like your hairstyle or whatever) consists of looking under the car for a cat, so if one is there, it's that much less hassle you have to deal with.

 

You guys need to move to a differnt state, thats just wrong almost makes the winters worth it!

 

Do they hassle out of state cars at the road side inspections or do they only check cars from your state. Around here there is no type of emmisson checking at all. I have had my car in a couple of other states with no problem but this info is good to have if they will hassle me in some states

 

Once again, just because you don't have to go through a yearly check to verify compliance, it doesn't mean that it is any less illegal to remove emissions equipment.

Furthermore, I think it a completely boneheaded move to yank emissions equipment on a street car. Why the **** does a 14 second car need that stuff yanked off? If you can't be bothered to keep a vehicle in smog compliance (it isn't that damned difficult), don't drive it on the street!

Jackasses yanking emissions equipment makes hot rodders the prime targets when new rounds of emissions legislature come around.

 

Man you are wound just a little tight there arn't ya!

Before you get name calling a little conversation might be in order or mabe go out and drive your car and enjoy it a little or mabe "they" don't let you drive for enjoyment where you live so a move might be good for you!

 

H'mmmm no response,
Well I guess its settled then all of us "rednecks" that have removed any emissions stuff at all and have no testing or road checks had better park our cars then go out and buy all that stuff and put it back on just to make this guy feel better, you wouldn't happen to be a law maker with campaign contributors to make happy would you cause this sounds familiar.

OH by the way that NOS system you have on your car I am sure that you never speed and only use that off road but then you threw the first stone didn't ya!

 

1. Whats the point of removing emissions eqiupment on a car that spends 99% of it's life driving you to the grocery store at 15% throttle? Especially when having a clean-burning car that performs at the same level is (once again) not difficult at all.

2. My car passes emmissions, including visual, with the nitrous installed. As N20 is a WOT system, and WOT emissions levels are exempted, it's not an issue.

3. Gutting emmissions on a street car is ****ing retarded. Thanks for bringing the hobby under fire, jackass.

 

My guess would be that most third gen owners get more enjoyment out of there cars than driving to get groceries but if that is what you chose to do with yours that’s fine and if you think my car which has been like this since 86 has anything to do with the tree hugging laws that get passed the you must live on a different planet. If you that worried about it you got the wrong hobby and you better go buy a bicycle

I suspect that I wont have to see you much more on these boards also if you can't refrain from calling people names sort of gives away your intelligence level

 

1. Not everyone removes smog equipment for "performance" reasons. I know several people that gutted their already bad converter instead of paying several hundred dollars to replace them. I also know of several people who have removed their A.I.R. injection systems due to locked up pumps/bad diverter valve. Cost and parts availability is a factor. And most who actually go through the trouble of removing the emissions items do not spend 99% of their time at 15% throttle

2. So does mine. Without A.I.R., without a functioning cat (the housing is still there). In fact, I fast passed Maryland's dyno test and qualified as "Fast Pass". A good tune is more important than all the smog crap. I'd also like to state that my car probably runs cleaner than yours, even with your emissions stuff intact. I have numbers to back this up...

 

My first topic here.This will be a memory.All I wanted to know was a list of things that the law requires you to have on a 1986 Camaro.Does anyone really KNOW?

Ron

 

That would be pointless. It would basically be a list of every emissions-related part that your car came with.

The law is, you can't remove or disable an emissions-related part, period. That's federal law. Fortunately there's no Big Brother apparatus to enforce that on private individuals, but that doesn't mean it's "legal" to do it. Different localities have their own laws about either how close they look, or how strictly they test, or whatever; but just because your locale is particularly strict with its own laws, doesn't mean it's "legal" by your locality's laws either.

Like I said, "legal" and "pass inspection" are not necessarily the same thing.

Since a cat and AIR create virtually zero performance penalty, and since (especially the cat) is a part of the exhaust system such that you can't buy an exhaust system that circumvents it, there's no point in hacking your car and being a jerk to the rest of the public ("You all have to follow the law, but I don't, and I intend to get away with it") over something that brings you no benefit, and which furthermore might keep you out of unwanted trouble someday.

I don't know where you get "several hundred dollars". For instance, here's the LG4 one.... $82.39. Hell, a "test tube", back when you could still buy one, was $40; it would probably be $75 today. http://store.summitracing.com/partde...art=CTO%2D4111

 

This is an interesting mix... my .02... I've seen too many posts by kids who bought a sh-t box and think they're a hot-rodder fast and furious type 'cause they took a hacksaw and cut out the a.i.r. the AC, and the charcoal can. which may have been the type of post that started this thread. I've also read the numbers that back up a well tuned, emissions compliant system runs better and stronger than the above idiot is able to cobble togeather with said hacksaw. I think the point is that idiots are going to be idiots and thier cars are going to run loud and slow, and get crappy milage. But we shouldn't jump all over someone's back 'cause they are willing to point this out. let's not get huffy taking the high road, or pissy defending the lowest common denominator. Lets explain to the people who haven't taken the time to research thier actions what they are really getting into and then let them make thier own decisions.

As for my car, the idiot who owned it before me chopped the hell out of everything he could get his gorilla mitts on, and I'm sure he boasted to all his friends about how cool he was making it. it's also VERY obvious that he neglected to change the oil at any sort of regular basis. so go figger. I'm looking for a good 350 to drop in, I'm going to run headers with no A.I.R. 'cause I don't feel like searching boneyards for the system or paying the money, but 'cause I've seen tests showing a good cat can out-perform no cat, I'm going to pay the money to do it right.

And then I'm going to dust the idiots, weather they drive hondas, mustangs, or poorly tuned hacksawed camaros.

 

As RB is trying to point out, you're asking the wrong question. In fact, my somewhat-tongue-in-cheek answer was intended to do the same thing.

The "law" requires you to have all the emissions equipment on the vehicle that was used to certify it. In some cases, you can replace specific components (like the cat) with something other than the exact factory type of equipment. In other cases, you can add equipment that has been independantly certified (nothing comes to mind for our cars), or equipment that the EPA has determined does not affect "normal" operation (like headers with A.I.R. that keep the cat in the original location, or nitrous).

If you wanted to know what equipment is required in order to pass inspection in New York state, you should have asked that question. If you had asked that question, you would have been told to call whatever agency controls that process in your locale, and ask them. Why? Because most of us don't live where you live, and aren't subjected to inspections controlled by the agency that will do the one you are required to undergo.

There may be a higher concentration of people that would know the answer to the "inspection" question on the North East Region forum. So, in the interest of precluding any more unproductive personal attacks such as we've witnessed above, I'll say if you want to continue this topic, do so on the Regional forum.