got the same thing with my turbo hatch here in sacramento 2 years ago, just pay the fine ($300 or $350 i forgot) and either go stock (having cams might be a PITA tho) or keep everything on but you risk paying double the fine next time you're caught and 3rd time is triple the fine and car impounded.

i paid the fine and never went to ref, sold my hatch and bought the evo.

don't know if this was the correct (legal) way to handle it, but a local performance shop owner told me this was ok, haven't recevied a letter....yet (knocks on wood) it's been 2 years so i'm guessing it worked.

 

Question...??? What if you have out of state plates??? AZ is pretty good with mods but I go to cali often, can or will they be able to pin me for being catless or aftermarket mods???

 

j/k man

 

No vehicle inspection or emmisions testing down in Florida. You can drive pretty much anything that was at one point a new vehicle.

 

nothing wrong with paying the guilty charge. you just don't want them to bypass that step and crush your car.

 

That's an ignorant comment...same and Trinydex. Are you kidding me? All new vehicles sold in Cali adhere to the state's emissions standards. Regardless if they are an SUV or Dodge Viper. Where do you get your information? Make an intelligent comment or don't comment.

And to Triny, realize this. The OP sounded surprised that he got in trouble for a law that had been in place for years. Just because they decide to enforce it a little more now shouldn't be a big surprise. They've been talking about doing this since I moved from LA in 2004. Wake up. If you put illegal parts on your car, don't come on Evom and cry about getting caught. Write your congressman/congresswoman. Tell them why we should be able to have illegal modified parts on our cars. I did that exact thing when I lived in Cali. I wasn't happy with the response I received from them...next thing I did was moved out of the state.

Again, this does suck. I wish it wasn't like this, but it is. There are laws and we shouldn't be surprised or upset if we get caught. We all know we are taking a chance...sometimes we win, sometimes we lose.

 

yeah, i just got a damn referree ticket in my evo.... im in socal...for my arc intake and cat-back..... i already had it ref'd, now i just have to deal with the courts side of it

 

Yes Harley's, Corvette's, Muscle Cars and American Trucks are well liked by cops, so they often get a break. Not all Domestic get the free pass, F-Bodies and Mustang still get targeted.

 

You know what really iritates me about emissions test is the visual part. You can have cleaner runner engine than stock, but if doesn't pass their vuisual inspection it will fail.

 

that is under review actually but never the less the way to beat it per say is we all need to start fighting back with writing letters to congress man / woman and the governor and even our state representatives and taking our tickets to court. it will begin to create a buzz and they will have to do something.I know it sounds crazy but we the people can do something. What you can also do is have your exhaust tested at state refree and they give a certificate saying it is legal within the db and emissions rating and if you get pulled over whip it out and have a nice day officer.

 

Youre welcome to leave.Im sure youd rather fight for grain in another country
J/k but yes everything is corrupt here.Life isnt fair.

 

please check your own facts before you start callin' me ignorant. emissions standards are based on pollution percentages not MASS which is what's MORE SIGNIFICANT ISN'T IT??? why do you think you see so much EMPHASIS on MPG... it's all about conservation now, you know... limited resource... environmental impact??? this is the reason i said you go after the suvs, they create SIGNIFCANTLY MORE pollution and greenhouse gas and what's more important is that they are LARGELY UNNECESSARY (sports cars are too, let's get rid of those on the road).

why don't YOU wake up and think a bit before you open your mouth. WHAT MAKES PARTS ILLEGAL??? laws that want to regulate pollution and NOW the emphasis of green house gases. IF WE CHANGE OUR FUEL SOURCE THERE IS NO NEED FOR ILLEGALIZATION OF PARTS, does that make sense? alcohol and other smart biofuels don't cause a NET gain in green house gas and they emit significantly LESS other pollutants (remember there's two facets, pollutants specifically photochemical ones and the overall greenhouse gas emission)

NOW REALIZE, a catalytic converter OR OTHERWISE does not STOP GREEN HOUSE GAS EMISSION, the green house gases are the same no matter how many cats you have on your car. which is why mpg is now very important.

please please please.... don't try to step up and talk **** if you don't know what you're talking about

 

OK, time to pull out the facts.

There are two primary measures when it comes to emissions. Air Pollution Score which is governed by the EPA. And, fuel economy with is governed by NHTSA and the CAFE system.

Each vehicle receives an Air Pollution Score. Some are better than others. But, SUVs are not always the worst. A 2007 Ford Explorer and 2007 Honda Civic receive the same score. Should we stop buying Civics too? Go play around on their site. Might help you understand how this works.

http://www.epa.gov/greenvehicle/index.htm

And, when it comes to emissions and Air Pollution Scores, EVERY SINGLE NEW VEHICLE SOLD IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA HAS TO MEET THEIR STRINGENT SMOG INSPECTION. There is not a single new vehicle sold in Cali that won't pass the SMOG check. It's a government regulation.

Now, for fuel economy. The Corporate Average Fuel Economy rating is what you were referencing as emissions. Each manufacturer receives a total, combined average score for all vehicles they sell. If they don't hit a given number, they are fined very heavily by the government. So, they make every effort to hit their CAFE number. They do that by carefully planning their product line and very closely monitoring their sales rate for certain vehicle models and adjusting production accordingly.

http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/portal/site...7529cdba046a0/

Facts are facts. I'm not making this stuff up. And, yes, it would be great if we could have all these crazy technologies and fuel sources right now today. But, that's not reality. We won't have any of those things for years to come. Heck, the government just agreed to adjust the CAFE standards for light trucks (covering pick ups and SUVs) which had been the same for over 30 years. Guess when that will finally go into effect. 2012. Nothing happens fast my friend.

Now, again, for the third time. I'm not saying that this crackdown in Cali is cool (and eventually every other state at some point). It sucks. But, the law is the law right now. Write your congressman/woman. Hopefully it works out for you. But this forum won't really do much for real change.

 

Good thing I don't live in Cali!

Writing letters to Congressmen isn't gonna help. They have decided to target cars as a primary source of pollution which is simply not true.

 

actually this is true:
"NOW REALIZE, a catalytic converter OR OTHERWISE does not STOP GREEN HOUSE GAS EMISSION, the green house gases are the same no matter how many cats you have on your car. which is why mpg is now very important."

also most cat converter produce as much as bad effect on the enviroment .
Also the Evo coming out very reach out from factory,so it is possible, after a good tune you are more enviroment friendly. Think about it.

Also it is too bad you actually bealive that:
"Each vehicle receives an Air Pollution Score. Some are better than others. But, SUVs are not always the worst. A 2007 Ford Explorer and 2007 Honda Civic receive the same score. Should we stop buying Civics too? Go play around on their site. Might help you understand how this works."

goverment did a good job with you... little hint for you about scores.
this score goes like the crash test ... five star huh?
i want to see wich one you pick the 5 star compact car or the 2 star crash tested 18 wheeler truck when they collied
i'm sure you will pick the 5 star one because it is safer don't they?

just keep tracking goverment work, it's help .