California Smog Legal Swap Help (1 Viewer)

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Joined
Nov 19, 2005
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550
Location
Pasadena, CA
1983894
1983930


Hey all, haven't posted here in awhile as my 60 has been undergoing a vortec swap at a shop. The swap has taken way too long, but at this point it's for the most part finished, other than trying to fix one last evap code.

I've heard that there have been some recent engine swap rule changes and I believe starting January 2019, that you can no longer flash the ECU , and that the ref checks that when you take it in for the sticker. pulled from Spannerspinner's thread below ,

(I called the BAR. What they want to see is the entire componentry sourced from a single automobile with zero alterations - engine, intake, emissions, EVAP, ecu/pcm, harness. Literally any modifications to the computer are considered illegal. Even if it cleans it up.)

I have gone thru Spannerspinner's thread https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/pendragon.914649/page-7#post-12218119 and seems like he's not having much luck,


but I'm turning to the collective knowledge of the mud community to ask if there is any way possible to have a vortec swap pass the Ref and made California Smog Legal at this point? I've heard through the grapevine Georg from valley hybrids has said it's pretty much impossible, but I didn't hear from him directly.

I've done some googling but seems hard to come across the new regulations.

Is it even possible to run a swapped fj60 on an unflashed ECU?

I'm really bummed out at this point because this swap should have been finished long before the January 2019 regulation change. A lot of my funds, and too much time has gone into this swap... Any advice would be appreciated on how we can make this happen.

thanks
Kevin
 
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Move!














Jk
I dont think its possible if it is more than likely will be more money and time also not the shops fault for the change its California's
 
I thought Gary at Mudrak has done this swap and passed SMOG. Also depends on your REF... The REF here in Redding is more laid back compared to others I've read about.

J Ward at TLC has several CA smogged 5.3s and 6.2s as well.

This is why I went with a crate Erod on my build... Already has a California SMOG sticker and part number. Instant pass here.

J
 
If the date of the swap is important for smog considerations, ask the shop to give you a bill of sale dated before the change.

If DMB asks why you didn't try and reg then, tell them Transmission issues - Waiting for parts from Japan.

Other than that, realize there are consequences to the people you vote for, or don't.
 
[QUOTE="TRAIL TAILOR, post: 12384248, member: 66052"
J Ward at TLC has several CA smogged 5.3s and 6.2s as well.

This is why I went with a crate Erod on my build... Already has a California SMOG sticker and part number. Instant pass here.

J
[/QUOTE]

The recent change was this past january so pretty recent, if we had been given a heads up, i would have gone Erod as well, but this swap has been a 2 year journey
 
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If the date of the swap is important for smog considerations, ask the shop to give you a bill of sale dated before the change.

If DMB asks why you didn't try and reg then, tell them Transmission issues - Waiting for parts from Japan.

Other than that, realize there are consequences to the people you vote for, or don't.
Don't think the Smog Ref, cares about when the swap was done.. but "when we take it in" to try and get it past the smog ref.... this really does make me mad.. it's not like the state gave any warning, i know i can't be the only one stuck in this limbo, gotta be a ton of other ls swaps out there that are now dealing with the new rules out of nowhere.. i know of 2 other fj60 vortec swaps personally that are in my situation
 
That will not pass visual test.
If that cold air intake has a CARB EO# the REF might just let it slide, or not... (cause is a swap)
Also, what's with that air intake manifold bolt on top of the valve cover, and the exposed wires?

Best thing you could do is make the time, and go talk to your local smog REF.... (no rig, but be nosy ask questions) when it comes to California Air Resource Board they all seem to have their own interpretation of what is acceptable and what isn't....

Best to hear it from the Lion's mouth.....
 
Georg from valley hybrids has said it's pretty much impossible, but I didn't hear from him directly.

I have heard it directly from him and this is an accurate statement. @TRAIL TAILOR might be right though if there is another vendor with a more rural and laid back inspector there may be some hope. They are definitely trying to make it impossible by design
 
If Georg says it's not possible - that's not good. I'm curious to see how this sorts out. I had heard from a guy that heard it from a guy that they were going to move the smog exempt production year up to the mid 80's. Anyone else hear anything like that?
 
If Georg says it's not possible - that's not good. I'm curious to see how this sorts out. I had heard from a guy that heard it from a guy that they were going to move the smog exempt production year up to the mid 80's. Anyone else hear anything like that?

There is a pending bill that would move the smog cutoff date up to 1983. But it’s a long way from passing, and since mine is an ‘85 I am trying not to pay attention!
 
When I lived in Phoenix, I had all kinds of trouble passing smog. The rules for Phoenix and Tucson state that your vehicle has to have the OEM emissions setup for vehicles 1967 or newer. Yeah, no 20-25 years old or older exemptions. So, I spent a bunch of time and $$$ chasing down all the unobtainium bits to get the stock emissions spaghetti monster setup working. Each time I took it in for testing, it failed, so I had to swap out air pumps, etc. What a PITA.

Sooooooo, I eventually bit the bullet and registered the truck in Montana. There are pros and cons to this arrangement. Pros are that Montana doesn't have smog laws, so never need to test your vehicle, meaning your vehicle never has to go to Montana. In fact, I had never been to Montana myself when I did this, and did it all over the internet. Also, if the vehicle is 11 years old or older, you get a little sticker for the license plate that reads "PERM" aka - never need to renew :) Every few years, you get a new physical license plate to replace your old one. The cons are that most states have residency requirements for vehicle registration. Namely if you live in the state more than 6 months out of the year, you need to register in that state. I live in WA state now, but the truck is still registered in Montana. You'll have to create a "legal resident" in Montana, which is as simple as opening up an LLC there, and registering your vehicle as a "company car" for that legal entity. I've not been pulled over by Officer Friendly yet, and tried to explain a WA drivers license and WA home address with an out of state vehicle registration, so have no idea how that will go when it happens. I plan to tell the nice officer that I have a business in MT (which is true) and that the truck belongs to the business (also true) and I just happen to have it with me in WA for a few months (not exactly true, but hard to disprove). I've heard/read in the forum here that CA cracks down pretty hard on out of state registrations, so this might be a non-starter for you, but figured I'd share one potential alternative.
 
That will not pass visual test.
If that cold air intake has a CARB EO# the REF might just let it slide, or not... (cause is a swap)
Also, what's with that air intake manifold bolt on top of the valve cover, and the exposed wires?

Best thing you could do is make the time, and go talk to your local smog REF.... (no rig, but be nosy ask questions) when it comes to California Air Resource Board they all seem to have their own interpretation of what is acceptable and what isn't....

Best to hear it from the Lion's mouth.....

Hey Manu! I believe that picture was from a ways back so wiring has been cleaned up, that intake i believe is an AFE with Carb EO # for the year of the engine , does that still create issues? The shop has been talking to the ref and will be doing a test with one of their computers , thats not connected to the state to see if the ecu throws any issues. thanks for your feedback
 
I have heard it directly from him and this is an accurate statement. @TRAIL TAILOR might be right though if there is another vendor with a more rural and laid back inspector there may be some hope. They are definitely trying to make it impossible by design
The Joy of living in california, will keep you guys updated with the ref
 
There is a pending bill that would move the smog cutoff date up to 1983. But it’s a long way from passing, and since mine is an ‘85 I am trying not to pay attention!
There is a pending bill that would move the smog cutoff date up to 1983. But it’s a long way from passing, and since mine is an ‘85 I am trying not to pay attention!

Mines and 83, but i think it's prior to model year 83. : pulling hair out :
 
intake i believe is an AFE with Carb EO # for the year of the engine , does that still create issues? The shop has been talking to the ref and will be doing a test with one of their computers , thats not connected to the state to see if the ecu throws any issues.

Yeah, they might take issue with that AI, thus my comment of going to talk to the REF (ask them directly, as they all do things differently).....
That is great if the shop is doing that already !!!
I'll be curious to know what is it exactly that they are looking for IN the ECU.....(let us know if you hear from your mechanic, would help everyone doing/ taking on this type of swap)
Im sure there are a lot of guys that disable/delete evap algorithms, thus the move to check on them now days....

Good luck brah !!!
 
Mine's an 84, I might have to get out the dremel tool and fudge the VIN.
 
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the shop that did my swap wired in the body control module from the donor, air cleaner i believe isn't an issue cause it has the EO carb # on it for the donor vehicle. believe mine was taking to the ref near san jacinto
 

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