Why buy an x pipe with cats in California?

[Cobra'03]

Originally posted by newcastle
I am going to go with the x - pipe with cats. Don't want the check engine light issue. Don't want the pipes to be THAT loud. And don't want the 1000 dollar ticket. Thanks for the replies.

Cough - Thanks! - cough.

I may be an old geezer, but today's cats are so highly efficient that I think it is socially irresponsible to run without them - this blue marble is the only one we have, and we just borrow it from our kids and their kids.

No lectures please, just MHO.

How to check for "empty cans", Mr. Policeman? Tap on them - if it sounds hollow, it is.

 

[Masked Bandito]

Originally posted by SoCalBlk03
M. Bandito

:dw: The only time I ever had something hanging out in the tailpipe that wasn't supposed to be there was when I grenaded my cat's on my '94 during a 1/4 run. Sounds to me though that the muffler for that side has thrown in the towell. Cat guts are a ceramic honeycomb material. What you've found is fiberglass sound deadening material from the muffler.

It has gotten considerably louder.... as far as the Police checking for cat's,,,, thats the inspectors job, Ill be damned if Im gona get on my knees and check a damn exhaust on the side of the road, just plain ole' unsafe :nonono: not to mention thats what they made inspection stickers for. If im worried about exhaust I am WAY TOO BORED and need to go sit in a corner for an hour and relax :beer:

 

[Jon]

The reason why the EPA and CARB are slow to recognize aftermarket cats is that it is very difficult ($$$) to certify these products to the same standards the OEM systems were designed to.

Cats reduce the emissions of three gas species: CO (carbon monoxide), HC (hydocarbons), and NOx (oxides of nitrogen). The smog tests used as a prerequisite with registering our cars is a joke compared to the testing the manufacturer, assembly plant, and air quality authority subject our cars to during the design and production lifecycle. I can only assume the smog stations are capable of a "rough pass" test designed to see if any of the OEM equipment is really screwed up.

The tests performed by the independent smog stations is not very scientific. The original tests used to certify our cars includes running the engine in a dyno cell with a load. All gases are collected in bags and analyzed by research-quality equipment. In addition to this I've never heard of a smog station that can check N0x as this requires very sensitive and expensive equipment.

At best we can say our afermarked catted systems are a close approximation to the OEM setup but without subjecting them to the same testing standards as the OEM we cannot really call them "clean".

 

[SoCalBlk03]

Originally posted by Jon
In addition to this I've never heard of a smog station that can check N0x as this requires very sensitive and expensive equipment.

Phoenix/ Glendale smog station does and did fail me before while I lived there. At the time I had a MAC catted Hpipe on my '94 (long before I blew it up with some 111 gas). I replaced vaccum lines, the EGR valve and finally put the OEM H-pipe back on to pass. State run facilities like this have the money and equip to test for thing independant testers can't.

 

[Jon]

Originally posted by SoCalBlk03
Phoenix/ Glendale smog station does and did fail me before while I lived there. At the time I had a MAC catted Hpipe on my '94 (long before I blew it up with some 111 gas). I replaced vaccum lines, the EGR valve and finally put the OEM H-pipe back on to pass. State run facilities like this have the money and equip to test for thing independant testers can't.

Geez, I thought things were getting bad in California. Sorry to hear they popped you. Did they put your car on a dyno to load it? That's been talked about for some time now but few legislators want to address the $$$ impact of such a policy.

 

[SoCalBlk03]

Originally posted by Jon
Geez, I thought things were getting bad in California. Sorry to hear they popped you. Did they put your car on a dyno to load it? That's been talked about for some time now but few legislators want to address the $$$ impact of such a policy.

I don't know if it's a dyno but your car goes on the rollers and the techs drive a preprogrammed course. The rollers load and unload simulating hills etc. while you hang out in a "protective booth" next to your car. Afterward they do the visual inspection. You only pay for one inspection, retests are free. And no waiver for me I had to fix it because they classified me as a gross polluter. Heck I didn't even know anything was wrong. But it's no big deal, after the initial new car exemption you only test every 2 years, unless the smog Nazis catch you on the onramps to the 101 or the 17. Then it's a ticket in the mail. Cali's ametuers compared to AZ

 

[94SVT Coupe]

Originally posted by Masked Bandito
It has gotten considerably louder.... as far as the Police checking for cat's,,,, thats the inspectors job, Ill be damned if Im gona get on my knees and check a damn exhaust on the side of the road, just plain ole' unsafe :nonono: not to mention thats what they made inspection stickers for. If im worried about exhaust I am WAY TOO BORED and need to go sit in a corner for an hour and relax :beer:

I've read at least a couple of posts where CA cops wrote tickets for no cats. BIG fine out there. It may not happen often, but it does happen.

I'm getting collector plates once the build certificate shows up. No emissions testing that way

 

[Masked Bandito]

Originally posted by 94SVT Coupe
I've read at least a couple of posts where CA cops wrote tickets for no cats.

 

[Snakebitten]

I've been a cop for over 20 years and have written only three. All were VERY loud. Two were lifted trucks, easy to check, and the other was a late model GT. I could smell that one. All of them admitted that they removed them. I'm no tree hugger, but I like the ozone.

 

[randy]

This is a refreshing change from the last thread where I was pro-cats and got the crap flamed out of me!!!!!!!!......LMAO