how illegal?

the dash changed in 87

Yup... same chassis maybe, but from what I understand the rest is a whole different ball of chewing gum.

Messing with emissions (e.g. removing cats) is a federal, not state, law; and is illegal ANYWHERE in the US, even if there is no emissions or safety inspection in said area...

If you were going to do it, there are a few more VIN's to swap than just the plate.

Please remain where you are. The Thought Police will arrive shortly to detain you.

It is a felony.

If I was ever going to consider it, I might stop short of discussing it openly on the world wide web with a picture of myself in my profile, along with my birth date and a map to my house in Marietta GA.

Just a thought!

Hmmm. This sounds like an 'engine swap'. In some states it's perfectly legal BUT: the car must meet the emissions laws for whichever is the later production, the body or the engine. So swapping a '93 motor into a '79 car means it still has to meet whatever the '93 emissions standards are. Or, if a '79 motor found its way into a '93 car, same deal.

Back when I had a BMW E3, our local BMW guru had a little insurance trouble after an accident. He'd bought the steering column out of my parts car to put in a 3.0S, and neither one of us noticed that there's a VIN tag on there.

All came out well, we lived in the sticks & had a good claims adjuster. The cops were never involved.

SVreX said: f I was ever going to consider it, I might stop short of discussing it openly on the world wide web with a picture of myself in my profile, along with my birth date and a map to my house in Marietta GA.

1st, I never said I WAS going to do it, weighing options...Felony sounds like a bad option.

2nd, It is a solo car, and I was only asking how illegal it was to avoid having to purchase tow vehicle and trailer...I guess that might be the smarter route.

3rd...profit?

maroon92 wrote: 3rd...profit?

its a CP car and you can rent it out as a steamroller?

(helped a friend move his CP project 81 camaro this weekend)

So it's a felony. Pfft. So is much of the fun in life.

If you're carefull, you won't get caught. It's not hard to do. Many on this board have done it. If you're stupid and slopy, you'll get caught.

A late fox body is different than an early fox body. Enough so that it could well be spotted in an accident for example. This means it could be considered heading into the stupid level.

maroon92 wrote:

SVreX said: f I was ever going to consider it, I might stop short of discussing it openly on the world wide web with a picture of myself in my profile, along with my birth date and a map to my house in Marietta GA.

1st, I never said I WAS going to do it, weighing options...Felony sounds like a bad option. 2nd, It is a solo car, and I was only asking how illegal it was to avoid having to purchase tow vehicle and trailer...I guess that might be the smarter route. 3rd...profit?

I certainly didn't get the message that you were going to do it. I was just considering how I might (or might not) approach it IF I was ever going to consider it!

So you ripped out the obd1 ecm, presumably for a stand alone ecm, right? who says that you can't drive on the street with a stand alone ecm, especially with a pre obd2 car? why don't you ask on one of the megasquirt forums about this issue, surely some one there would know the ins and outs of this problem. I have seen quite a few SAAB c900s driven on the street with the stock bosch ecm's swapped for M/S.

I have stupid question. The dash pad in my 86 Nissan truck has split all to crap. The VIN tag is attached to the dash pad. If I replace the dash pad, I have to remove the VIN tag and replace it on the new pad. Is this illegal? \

Seems I recall the rivits for VIN tags aren't the common rivits found in stores and is one way to spot a replaced VIN.

Georgia emmisions are as follow (or near as I remember)

Anything older than 25 years is exempt from emissions exams, Doesnt mean it is exempt from the law (anything emissions related must be in place and functional but no one checks unless you are a REALLY big ASSHOLE).

Up to 85 gets run on the dyno with a sniffer, cats are visually checked, gas cap is tested function of check engine light is checked. Doesnt matter if it is OBD II or not.

86 and newer get the ECU checked for codes and the gas cap is tested.

There is NO safety inspection, other than the occasional cop looking to fill a quota.

JFX001 wrote:

maroon92 wrote: I thought that might be the case. Its only illegal if you get caught?

Considering that you are asking/questioning about the legality leads me to believe that you are a fan of karma. And it will bite you in the ass. On the other hand, if you didn't ask, and went ahead and did it...then you would've been fine.

That's not karma, karma is definitely not real. That's irony. And it will bite you in the ass.

If the older car has a title (or you can get it legally titled) swapping in the newer drivetrain should be legal. The whole thing about swapping the VIN tags is the illegal part.

For Spitfirebill with the cracked Nissan dash, I think that reinstalling the VIN tag in the same car will be legal as long as you run it by your local police department DMV before you do the work - most states have a procedure in place for repair work.

maroon92 wrote: Oh, and 79 and 93 are the same chassis... The dashboards are practically identical

FOUL! Ten demerits from your Ford sponsored man card.

porksboy wrote: Georgia emmisions are as follow (or near as I remember) Anything older than 25 years is exempt from emissions exams, Doesnt mean it is exempt from the law (anything emissions related must be in place and functional but no one checks unless you are a REALLY big ASSHOLE). Up to 85 gets run on the dyno with a sniffer, cats are visually checked, gas cap is tested function of check engine light is checked. Doesnt matter if it is OBD II or not. 86 and newer get the ECU checked for codes and the gas cap is tested. There is NO safety inspection, other than the occasional cop looking to fill a quota.

You may be right.

However, much of the state has no inspection stations, and does not enforce any inspection or emission regulations. Mostly enforced in the big cities.

Funny, I was at the Battle of the Brit's car show in Orchard lake Mi yesterday. Walking towards the classis Mini's I was saying to my friend 'If I wanted a Mini, I'd buy a late 90's Cooper in the UK then find an old V5 (log book n the UK) and Vin, swap them and bringing it in as an old car to avoid EPA/COT issues. We get to the line of cars, 1st one is a nice Mini Pickup. Second is a woody traveler, third is a '1970 Mini' that looks awfully like a late 90's mini to me :). Rover FI, wood dash, brakes, 13" wheels. Yup, if that things more than 15 years old I'm a Martian :)

apexcarver said: its a CP car and you can rent it out as a steamroller? (helped a friend move his CP project 81 camaro this weekend)

actually, its an EP car...4 cylinder mustang...

HappyAndy said: So you ripped out the obd1 ecm, presumably for a stand alone ecm, right? who says that you can't drive on the street with a stand alone ecm, especially with a pre obd2 car?

Carburetor...

John Brown said: FOUL! Ten demerits from your Ford sponsored man card.

sorry John, I am not as practiced in the art of the Fox...

Adrian_Thompson wrote: Funny, I was at the Battle of the Brit's car show in Orchard lake Mi yesterday. Walking towards the classis Mini's I was saying to my friend 'If I wanted a Mini, I'd buy a late 90's Cooper in the UK then find an old V5 (log book n the UK) and Vin, swap them and bringing it in as an old car to avoid EPA/COT issues. We get to the line of cars, 1st one is a nice Mini Pickup. Second is a woody traveler, third is a '1970 Mini' that looks awfully like a late 90's mini to me :). Rover FI, wood dash, brakes, 13" wheels. Yup, if that things more than 15 years old I'm a Martian :)

There was a company that did that with beetles for a while. To keep it legal, they bought brand new beetles in mexico, then swapped in a restored floor pan (where the beetle's VIN is stamped). So the title matched the floor pan, they just swapped the rest of the car for a brand new one.

paul wrote: Messing with emissions (e.g. removing cats) is a federal, not state, law; and is illegal ANYWHERE in the US, even if there is no emissions or safety inspection in said area...

That pesky commerce clause is ruining all of everyone's fun again. :p

SVreX wrote:

porksboy wrote: Georgia emmisions are as follow (or near as I remember) Anything older than 25 years is exempt from emissions exams, Doesnt mean it is exempt from the law (anything emissions related must be in place and functional but no one checks unless you are a REALLY big ASSHOLE). Up to 85 gets run on the dyno with a sniffer, cats are visually checked, gas cap is tested function of check engine light is checked. Doesnt matter if it is OBD II or not. 86 and newer get the ECU checked for codes and the gas cap is tested. There is NO safety inspection, other than the occasional cop looking to fill a quota.

You may be right. However, much of the state has no inspection stations, and does not enforce any inspection or emission regulations. Mostly enforced in the big cities.

True that. I had a Conturd that wouldnt pass emissions, I had it registered at my wifes best friends house for years. All of the metro area is smog checked. That is a VERY big area now days. The rural areas in the extreme nortern parts and down south are not tested. I expect it is only a matter of time before they close that loop hole.

John Brown wrote:

maroon92 wrote: Oh, and 79 and 93 are the same chassis... The dashboards are practically identical

FOUL! Ten demerits from your Ford sponsored man card.

I love those 79 doors with the handles on the bottom.