Long tube headers in CA
Long tube headers in CA are long tube headers here in ca illegal? i dont understand why it would cause it to fail the snif test but will an inspector fail it just for being on the car? i just bought some long tube headers and they arent installed yet but right after i bought them i heard soemone say long tubes might be illegal in ca and it doesnt make sense to me. If they re illegal then why? can i just take them somewhere cool that will pass it for me or will it fail the comuter diagnostics part? they have all sensors an everything else so i dont see the problem
Its illegal becuz it moves the position of the cats... Cali state law says cats must be in stock location.. LT's move them thus it being illegal.... get a catted Y go to a ghetto area pay someone not to look at it ur good...
your right i will love it but i wont love it if i cant drive my car becuase of no registration. do you guys recomend taking them somewhere to have them installed or trying it myself? my buddies were easy on his tahoe but i think itd probably be 10x harder in my trans am. i asked my uncle today about it and he knows a guy that will pass it because hes old and cranky and doesnt take the time to look under the car. so as long as it will pass the sniff i think im good.
Trending Topics
Moving the location of the cats is illegal. Most places do the sniffer but don't do a serious visual. You could act ignorant and if they do a visual say you didn't know, and are going to switch back. Then just go to another place and try again. There are a lot of places that don't do a serious visual as long as your car isn't loud and obnoxious. That is unless you are going to a test-only station, then you are f*cked.
LS1 Tech Stories
The Best V8 Stories One Small Block at Time
6 Common C5 Corvette Failures and What's Involved In Repairing Them
Pouria Savadkouei
Retro Modern Bandit Pontiac Trans AM Comes With Burt Reynolds' Autograph
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Greatest Cadillac V Series Performance Models Ever, Ranked
Pouria Savadkouei
Top 10 Most Powerful Chevy Trucks Ever Made!
Hennessey's New Supercharged Silverado ZR2 Has 700 HP
Verdad Gallardo
Coachbuilt N2A Anteros Is an LS2-Powered C6 Corvette In Italian Clothes
Verdad Gallardo
Awesome K5 Blazer Restomod Comes With C7 Corvette Power
Verdad Gallardo
10 Camaros You Should Never Buy
10 LS Engine Myths That Refuse to Die
Verdad Gallardo
they are NOT AT ALL LEGAL you will fail smog
dont get a crooked guy to pass you, because that only gets you in trouble,
if you really want to go lt's they are the best hp gain when were talking about headers
if you care about the environment go shorties with high flow cats
dont get a crooked guy to pass you, because that only gets you in trouble,
if you really want to go lt's they are the best hp gain when were talking about headers
if you care about the environment go shorties with high flow cats
[QUOTE=lsx24 There are a lot of places that don't do a serious visual as long as your car isn't loud and obnoxious. [/QUOTE]
How do you know if you live in NC? From what I understand every test station in Cali does a strict visual inspection and you can't pass with long tubes. Good luck.
How do you know if you live in NC? From what I understand every test station in Cali does a strict visual inspection and you can't pass with long tubes. Good luck.
Originally Posted by INMY01TA
How do you know if you live in NC? From what I understand every test station in Cali does a strict visual inspection and you can't pass with long tubes. Good luck.
I lived in Southern CA for over 12 years, and smogged my vehicle(s) every other year, so I know what I'm talking about man.It's not hard to find a place that doesn't give a rats *** or doesn't know enough to give a rats *** if you know where to look.
Originally Posted by lsx24
I lived in Southern CA for over 12 years, and smogged my vehicle(s) every other year, so I know what I'm talking about man.It's not hard to find a place that doesn't give a rats *** or doesn't know enough to give a rats *** if you know where to look.
You take a chance either way. There are two kinds of smog shops 1). those with a car repair business that are also licenced to smog (some of these guys are clueless) and 2). Smog only places which just do smog testing for a living (NOT test-only stations--that's a different place). The thing is who knows if any of these places take your $39 and just sees if you pass (most common), or are supposed to report a failure (I've failed more than once), in which case you're still f*cked.
Originally Posted by camarokid02
if you care about the environment go shorties with high flow cats
Dont listen to hippies. The United States have the strictest laws when it comes to emissions, just go to 3rd world counties and you see black smoke puffing out of most cars!!! If you REALLY care about smog and enviroment, go protest in other countries.....besides that... Go with longtubes... as long as you have cats, shops will pass you. Most shops dont even know where our stock cats are located, so they wont know the difference. I pass all the time, just get them and enjoy them!!!! 
Originally Posted by 1fastz
Dont listen to hippies. The United States have the strictest laws when it comes to emissions, just go to 3rd world counties and you see black smoke puffing out of most cars!!! If you REALLY care about smog and enviroment, go protest in other countries.....besides that... Go with longtubes... as long as you have cats, shops will pass you. Most shops dont even know where our stock cats are located, so they wont know the difference. I pass all the time, just get them and enjoy them!!!!
Great way to put it, ill drink to that 
Teching In
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 8
Likes: 0
From: Marin County CA
Just remember - fines are huge for shops that pass non-compliant cars. Anybody who knows what longtubes are is more than likely to fail you once he sees them. They are flat out illegal. You will absolutely fail if you have race headers without hookups for AIR (and EGR, if 00 and earlier).
or... you could go pass emissions with your stock exhaust.. put on ur LTs aftermarket Y. then whenever u have to go get it tested again put on your old exhaust.. pretty easy if u ask me
well the problem is i need a new cat becuase its causing my car to fail. So i went out and got rondom tech high floe cats which are supposedly legal right?then i found a good deal on long tubes and a good larger diameter legal y-pipe so i got it all. I have stock ws6 cat back so now i need a cat back and ill pretty much be set. but i didnt want tp have my new cats installed and then taken off and then have everything else installed. is it a big as a hassel as it seems? dont cats have to be welded on? god im confused modding cars is alot of bullshit you know it? and not worth it almost in ca. how does chip foose get away with it on overhaulin so much hes in ca you knw. Cause of all those old cars that are pre-smog years
