California emissions Exhaust question
 

Does anybody know if longtubes with a catted mid pipe will pass emissions in California? or even how often emissions tests are in California? I just bought my car in Feb. so i assume i won't have to have it smogged for awhile. I want to go F/I when the warranty runs out and want to know if i can legally free the exhaust up as much as i would like.

Smog tests are every two years.



Depends really on how strict the place is. Technically removing any working cats is illegal under any circumstances in california. But then again your car might pass with long tubes and a catted mid pipe. Just depends on if you'll pass the inspection, which goes back to how strict is the place you are going to.

Although I will tell you that 90% of the time a catted mid pipe will be just fine. Most of those guys running smog shops don't notice how many cats our cars have stock anyways they just check to see if you have some.

I'll never forget the day the smog tech made me to take the bbk cai off my car. LOL It's just a damn fancy filter honestly he threw some bs about it throwing off the cars emissions and blah blah blah. Didn't even tell him about the custom chip, which is also technically illegal. Needless to say I just put back on the oem stuff and passed with the chip in the car...I mean really if they're going to try and inforce the law atleast hire people who have a decent I.Q.

cool thanks. i'm not sure if anyone makes a catted mid pipe that will fit on a 2006 V6. i know on the older ones you could get the h pipe conversion and fit gt exhausts on it but i'm not sure how longtubes changes this as mac is the only company i know of that makes long tubes for a V6, but as far as i know they don't make a catted mid pipe for a 05+ V6 and most companies Slp in particular, say their mid pipes only work with THEIR long tubes. i just really want to do the exhaust but if i do it i want to do the whole thing right with longtubes and everything.

You know one cool thing about exhaust systems. Any capable shop can make any set-up work. It's just bending tubing and welding. Get the long tubes you want. Get the mid pipe you want and let them do some fabbing might cost a bit more but you'll be happy in the end.

No, long tube headers and catted mid pipe WILL NOT pass emissions in Cali....I think there are some short tube headers that are CARB certified, but no mid lenght or long tube headers. Aftermarket mid-pipes have only 2 cats, while stock mid-pipes have 4. (my mach had 4 cats) It also depends on what county you live in. In the SF Bay Area most counties have a visual inspection as well.....so even if you did pass the sniffer test you'd fail the visual....again, each county is different. I haven't done headers because it's not exactly easy to take off and on for smog checks. Catback and mid-pipe are easy. Just keep your stock parts.

Smog checks for new cars are not every two years.....I actually think your good for like 6 or 8 years...

This website will tell you what kind of smog test you need based on your zip code.

http://www.smogcheck.ca.gov/ZIPAREA/ziplookup.aspx

This is a chart that I got from off the CA consumer affairs website. This will tell you when your up for a smog check....they just recently changed the laws.
http://www.smogcheck.ca.gov/ftp/pdff...smog_check.pdf

Change your address to somewhere in a remote county like Trinity county or Imperial county and you'll only have to do it at change of ownership.

Long tubes are not legal in california and the citation is expensive as all hell.

I just noticed that I don't have to pass smog until 2009.. wooooooohoooooooo mudda fuggas. The stupidest part in CA is that even if you pass the sniffer, if you fail the visual, you still fail. That's total BS. Sniffer test or no test at all is my thought on the matter. Who cares what it looks like, if it passes smog, it passes smog. Unfortunately all the tree huggers around here prevent logic from overcoming stupidity on a daily basis. heavy sigh.

My parents live up in Shasta County so maybe I should switch my address to their house.....hmmmm...insurance would probably be cheaper also!

absolutely will. Depends on what part of shasta county though. Most of it is basic level which is the old style 800&2500rpm tests + visual.

thanks everyone you were all very helpful. since my car is new, I don't think i will need to smog it for like seven years. i am in San bernardino county and according to my zip i only need a basic test. I will probably get some longtubes and say to hell with it. the local fuzz is pretty cool so i don't think getting a ticket from them would be an issue.

Also jjtgiants is it that only 2 cats can't pass the sniffer or won't pass the viisual, because I live in a small town and passing the visual would be a matter of, "hey Karl, just say it passes the visual" but if they can't pass the sniffer, well they can't pass the sniffer

2 cats won't pass visual. They'll probably pass the sniffer if your car is otherwise running properly. I didn't think there were so many CA guys in here. Nice to see my state-mates are making the rounds. I don't think you'll have much trouble getting Karl to hook you up but be aware that if a cop stops you and notices you have LT's you will get an emissions citation in all probability. There is no LT header that's SMOG legal in California.

Good luck.

BTW... what town are you in? I grew up in Riverside and SB counties. Sometimes I even miss it a little tiny bit.

I'm in good old Twentynine Palms, Ca. just north of palm springs. Anybody in the marines would know it in a heartbeat, we have a big base here (MCAGCC or MAGTF depends on who you ask) where they do all sorts of live fire exercises. it's a pretty small town and like i said most cops around here are pretty cool (the sheriffs that is, CHP's are just dicks) so i'm willing to take my chances. and it is nice to see some more Cali people posting up. Doesn't it suck we can only get 91 octane?



Edit: by the way whats a ballpark number on a citation for longtubes. Obviously a cop can't make you take them off right there, so could i just pay the fine and then hope i don't get caught again?

I don't know the answer, but I wonder if it's like a fine + you have to take it to the police station to show them you actually took them off?? I don't know, but that would suck. I'm assuming your going to do a catback along with your catted mid pipe? Well, if your worried about noise pick a mild sounding catback. You'll still get good sound, but it won't be as loud.

Yes, it does suck we only get 91 octane....I probably could squeeze a little more out of my car if we had higher octane :confused:

I'm very familiar with TNP. Used to spend a lot of time out that way doing my own live fire exercises... Ahh the little bombs I used to make. Though at the time I called them fire-crackers... usually fire crackers don't come in 40lb sizes.

91 octane and CARB gas at that. It's got to be the worst gas in the country. Fortunately there's still a few stations that carry non-MTBE gas which is marginally better. 76 stations usually have non-MTBE. Check out www.wildhorsesclub.com. I'm a member.. mostly friends that do a lot of mustang and Lightning get togethers. Real fun bunch.

I don't really need to much sound, i just want the exhaust to be really free flowing because i plan on adding a blower in the future and i hear blower + free flowing exhaust = more horses.

heh heh, yeah we have alot of space out here to blow things up. Ever seen someone drop a block of magnesium into a fire? (actually thats kind of a trick question because if you actually looked right at it you'd go blind) And i never realized our gas was so bad, but it makes sense. I did notice though that whenever i am in nevada and fill up there the stang seems to run a little better.

i live in tuolmne county by yosemite and we only have to smog our cars when its being sold.:beerchug:

yep... just like Trinity county.. grrr.. I'm in Alameda county so it's enhanced testing for me.

I've played a lot with magnesium and fire (have the scars to prove it)...it's wildly bright but didn't "blind" me either short term or forever. I used 6lbs of magnesium ribbon uncoiled but that was really a second stage initiator for the main charge of anfo & aluminum powder. we used to use it at field keggers to keep the place lit up.

In any case, I've had the out-of-state gas thing too. Oregon gas, nevada gas, arizona gas are all gobs better running in my cars than CARB gas.

If you just want free flowing exhaust for a blower, grab some JBA or FRPP shorties. You'll be smog legal and get benefits from it with a blower on. Plus it won't cost so much or require a mid-pipe change.

That seems like it might be the best option to avoid being hassled in the future. Although at this point i'm starting to think i should just garage my V6 while it still has only 5500 miles on it, save up and buy a used 05 GT. I hate the one tire fire, the 3.31's and the 7.5 inch rearend Everything i want to do to my V6 just makes it more like a GT, so if i get the GT my options will be greatly expanded. I wish i had known all this in February, i should have just bit the bullitt (heh heh) and gone with the higher payments on a GT. Thanks for all the info though, R3dn3ck you are a mustang god.


P.S anybody wanna buy a brand new 2006 V6 with only 5500 miles? ha ha

low grade deity maybe but god... nah. I owe everything to spenging infinite time paying attention and volunteering my time to my local tuner and doing my own work. You do more, you learn more.

You actually have a lot more car than you think. You have the extra 200 bucks a month to make your low insurance premium car into a high performer. Save it up (literally... pay yourself first and put 200 a month aside for just play money) and every time you get enough for a major mod saved up, go get that mod done. In a couple years time you'll have one of the baddest v6 stangs out there and it won't weigh as much as a GT.

Stick with the v6 car and if you want GT power, just pump up the already pretty stout v6 with a blower or turbo, drop a 8.8 in the back and be really happy with the thing, or you can drop an 06 3v and 3650 tranny in it in a couple years with the 8.8 rear and you're set. It still cost you less than a GT and you have all the pleasure.

I would gladly take a v6 build the bottom end with forged goodies and slap a couple small turbos on it. You'll make more power than a stock or even mildly modified GT, have better overall fuel economy, lower payments, lower insurance, and a still great looking car that gets all the panties wet. Don't worry about exhaust just yet... turbos are the best power adder for a v6 and you'll have to totally redo the exhaust for that anyway. If you want to fix up the rear from the one wheel peel, you can beef it up with an aftermarket diff and axles or replace it outright with a 8.8. either way it'll cost about the same. I'd just slap the 8.8 in it or have a custom 9" fabbed up and installed (9" is much more costly but WOW strong). You could even just add a powertrax locker assembly to your stock rear end and you'll have a detroit locker which gives a great combination of straight line lock-up and limited slip for cornering. The ratcheting noise has been quieted down so that should make your life a little nicer if you go that way.

Once upon a time I had a GNX that would crease the sheet metal on the roof when I'd stomp on the go pedal. It was just a turbo v6 but it was easily one of the fastest cars I've ever owned. Don't dog the 6, use it for the lightweight starting point that it is.

Hah hah ok then R3dn3ck you are a low grade mustang deity. I'm suprised you didn't just say "Get a GT" cause thats the stock answer most GT owners give. I will have to really weigh out my options because if i stick with this six instead of upgrading, I will have alot more money to throw at it. I'm never really gonna see too much track time, i just want a car that can beat most stock or real lightly modded GT's. hmmm maybe just save for a vortech? but then don't i need to upgrade all the internals? can the stock engines take a decent amount of boost?

up to 9lbs of boost is usually fine on stock internals. Just make sure your tune is good and safe (not too much timing, 12.5:1 AF ratio) and you'll be just fine. The best part is, if you blow your block, they're a dime a dozen literally.

So then could i buy a new 05+ GT mid pipe and get a shop to fix that on there? I want to convert to true dual with no Y pipe and I think on the 05+ you don't need a conversion kit. If i could do that could i get a modular one like SLP and only put the cats on for inspection. I would still have to leave the front two cats on, but only two is less restrictive than four right? I probably sound like a Botard but i don't know alot about exhaust and california is CRAZY about emissions.

correct on all counts except you'll need to have all 4 cats in place for testing in all likelihood.

btw.. you do realize you don't have to have a smog check for like 6 years right? (so long as you bought the car NEW)

yes and yes. i figure i'll just use the front two cats all of the time and get shorties. Then when i finally need to test I will throw the other two in.

Is the SLP loudmouths legal in california? Im in orange county...formally known as the bubble of california.

I'm pretty sure they aren't because of the DB level they produce. I was seriously considering getting LM II's and I called them and the tech said the
LM II's aren't even legal in all states......but call them and they will be able to tell you for sure.

I pulled up next to a guy the other day with SLP LM and it was so freaking loud it was annoying....I pulled into my place and could hear his car driving away for like two minutes....WAY TOO LOUD!!!

You'll get pulled over constantly in OC. Hell anywhere in the greater LA area you're taking a risk with any sort of really loud exhaust. I'd stick with something like Magnaflow, Borla's, Bassani... something that idles below 90dB

FWIW... mufflers aren't smog legal or illegal. It's the sound levels that are separately regulated. Mufflers aren't a smog part.. no carb number needed.

Go with Magnaflow dude! I know magnaflow catback's for 99-04 stangs produce 92db at 3,000 rpms.....just about perfect! It will be quiet at idle and rumble a little bit when you get on it. :beerchug:

mags do sound wonderful. Almost doesn't matter what kind of mid-pipe or headers you have. They always seem to sound great.