California smog testing. Say what?

In reply to thashane :

Exemption date has been a football in California.  It used to be '66... then it was a rolling year... then it was 1975... then it was ???.

GTwannaB said:

But wait there's more (in CA anyway). According to Autoblog smog in CA will now check ECU to see if it includes non OEM software. If modified you fail unless the code is CARB approved. 
 

https://www.autoblog.com/2021/07/14/modified-engine-ecu-software-fail-california-smog-check/

 

if this is true many folks are hosed. I have a handheld SCT to set mine back to stock. But for folks who sent out ECUs or had a shop load, what then?

This just hit my IG feed. You guys are berkeleyed.

In reply to preach (fs) :

California no longer has a rolling emissions date. Testing is required for 1975 and newer. It's been that way for a long time.

IL has been a simple "plug in and check" for as long as I've been here, which is 8 years or so. Pre-OBD2 don't need to test. 

They do track your vin (for many reasons im sure), but I also assume one of the reasons to enter the vin is knowing which monitors your ECU should have running. So if you turn one off with some sort of software, they will know. 

I heard (rumor from a tech) that they want to go to no test and have cars self report over the air (cell, WiFi etc).  I suspect lack of checking in would be a fail also (like how subscription software works)  My guess is requirements for electric cars will make this unnecessary (at least in CA).

I suspect it will also get harder and harder to find dyno test sites as the number of cars that fall into that get smaller and smaller (it will become classic / collector car testing).

aircooled said:

I suspect it will also get harder and harder to find dyno test sites as the number of cars that fall into that get smaller and smaller (it will become classic / collector car testing).

It's already getting hard.  Much of the dyno smog equipment out there is in poor condition and with so few cars that need dyno tests the shops have little reason to invest in repairing it.  Last time I had to smog my Miata I had to go to 4 or 5 different shops to find one that could actually test the car.

Yeah, well hopefully (yeah right!) they will eventually stop the dyno requirement.   The number of regularly driven cars that need to be dyno tested has to be approaching the single percentage points now!

aircooled said:

I heard (rumor from a tech) that they want to go to no test and have cars self report over the air (cell, WiFi etc).  I suspect lack of checking in would be a fail also (like how subscription software works) 

That is what people have been talking about for OBD-III since 1996.

also there are some  California counties that do not have smog checks after the first one when you registered it in your name , 

these counties are  out  of  the Metro areas .

aircooled said:

I suspect it will also get harder and harder to find dyno test sites as the number of cars that fall into that get smaller and smaller (it will become classic / collector car testing).

The vast majority of those cars are gone already, so there won't be much market for the testing.  I have pretty much decided to stick with either smog exempt or 2000+ cars for that exact reason.  E30s, E28s, Saab 900s, Peogeot 505s, 3rd gen Camaros, RX7s, MK2 GTIs, 240zs, etc all got scrapped by the thousands about 10-15 years ago.

In reply to codrus (Forum Supporter) :

This was the deal in texas the last few years. Dyno was required for pre obd2 up to  years old then they were emissions exempt. ASM inspections (as we called them) took longer and really didnt pay much better. So SOP became once the machine went down, could be a tiny problem, the inspection places just never had them repaired and told people the dyno was down.

Bumberkeley County Pennsylvania said:

You guys have emissions??

Tk8398 said:

aircooled said:

I suspect it will also get harder and harder to find dyno test sites as the number of cars that fall into that get smaller and smaller (it will become classic / collector car testing).

The vast majority of those cars are gone already, so there won't be much market for the testing.  I have pretty much decided to stick with either smog exempt or 2000+ cars for that exact reason.  E30s, E28s, Saab 900s, Peogeot 505s, 3rd gen Camaros, RX7s, MK2 GTIs, 240zs, etc all got scrapped by the thousands about 10-15 years ago.

Ironically my FD is actually easier to smog than my Miata.  One of the things that's failing on those dyno machines is the OBD2 connector, they just weren't designed for hundreds of thousands of plug/unplug cycles and so many of them are just worn out.  The test requires that the smog computer maintain a constant connection with the ECU over OBD2 for the entire dyno test, and with a worn-out connector it can't do that.

Since the FD is pre-OBD2 that problem is bypassed and it smogs fine.

It kills me that in Massachusetts, which is a real nanny state, after 15 years the car no longer needs an emissions test.  Meanwhile here in Colorado the car has to be 32+ years old to get classic plates, to get them you need an emissions test and then that exempts you for only 5 years.  0-7 years old, no testing 7-12 years old OBD2 testing 12-32 years old, they run it on the dyno rollers.  What a PITA!

Robbie (Forum Supporter) said:

IL has been a simple "plug in and check" for as long as I've been here, which is 8 years or so. Pre-OBD2 don't need to test. 

They do track your vin (for many reasons im sure), but I also assume one of the reasons to enter the vin is knowing which monitors your ECU should have running. So if you turn one off with some sort of software, they will know. 

there  is a State website that shows your Vin , when you had a smog test and mileage , 

its public record  , but also good if you want to see if the car you are looking at buying  has a tampered speedo !