California Carb CAI question

jasonchavez214

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I'm new to California, and want to know what's up with this CARB compliant stuff with cold air intakes. I'll settle for a cheap SR intake VS MAC, but is it illegal for me to do this in California? How would anyone know, if I swapped back during a smog check? Will they check during a smog check?
 

Werecow

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From what lol I unnerstand about the smog laws out west in Cali, if you got the wrong danm windshield wipers you won't pass... But srsly, we've got several on here from Cali, maybe one will chime in and help out with a lil info on it??
 

Jakespeeds

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If you go strictly by the way the regulation is written then any CAI is legal on any vehicle as long as it is not equipped with a thermostatically controlled air box. As far as I know there has never been a Mustang built with a thermostatically controlled air cleaner. That said I can't tell you how many times I have been to state ref to get an engine swap approved and been dealing with a technician that had never read or understood the regulations. Most because they are written by people that don't understand what an engine is.

Save up a couple of weeks more and buy something quality. Especially if it is built in the US. Support a US based business. Not like putting a CAI on a stock vehicle is going to unlock and secret horsepower.

Jake
 

Werecow

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I live in Virginia, where thank the Gods about as strict as they get is making sure all the lights work, horn blows, and some shops actually check your ball joints to make sure you've not got a lot of slack in em... Now if your exaust is rowdy they'll check if you have a converter, and the exaust has to come out past the back axle.. no side pipes or axle dumps, they have been cracking down on that... But that's about it for us... So far... I just hope and pray frakkin AOC and her gang don't stick her nose in it or all our cars will be made illegal cause they use gasoline....
 

ttocs

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I live in Virginia, where thank the Gods about as strict as they get is making sure all the lights work, horn blows, and some shops actually check your ball joints to make sure you've not got a lot of slack in em... Now if your exaust is rowdy they'll check if you have a converter, and the exaust has to come out past the back axle.. no side pipes or axle dumps, they have been cracking down on that... But that's about it for us... So far... I just hope and pray frakkin AOC and her gang don't stick her nose in it or all our cars will be made illegal cause they use gasoline....
no side exhaust?! Screw that...
 

Werecow

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Yeahhhhhhhhh that's something they've just started cracking on in the last few years... I was just gnna do a side dump on my truck in front of the back tire so we wouldn't have to go through making a tail pipe... No go.. you have to have a tail pipe in Va now or you fail annual inspection...
 

evilcw311

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Yeahhhhhhhhh that's something they've just started cracking on in the last few years... I was just gnna do a side dump on my truck in front of the back tire so we wouldn't have to go through making a tail pipe... No go.. you have to have a tail pipe in Va now or you fail annual inspection...

What about factory side exhaust???


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Werecow

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If it's factory then it passes as factory installed hardware or dealer installed with factory hardware.. That's the only loophole... Buuuuuttt.... If the cops think that your exaust it too loud.. you can get a ticket for it... Factory or not.. no set decibel level... It's left completely up to the discretion of the cop writing the ticket if it's too loud...
 

ttocs

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was the 94/95 side exhaust a factory option? I mean it says SVO on it so at the very least it was licensed but was it a dealer option?
 

evilcw311

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was the 94/95 side exhaust a factory option? I mean it says SVO on it so at the very least it was licensed but was it a dealer option?

That’s why I asked. The SVO side skirts were from a 94-95 special edition so technically unless the cop can prove your car isn’t an svo they can’t say anything. It’s a factory exhaust.

Now as loud as mine is I’d have a hard time getting away with it.


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Werecow

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Usually unless you blast past them making all kinds of racket they don't say much, it there for kids that like to run around in 1st and 2nd gear all the time around the cops or in a residential zone at 2 or 3 am...
 

evilcw311

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Usually unless you blast past them making all kinds of racket they don't say much, it there for kids that like to run around in 1st and 2nd gear all the time around the cops or in a residential zone at 2 or 3 am...

Strict rule with my car as loud as it was, no starting it before 10am and no driving it home after 8pm. Even idling it could shake my neighbors windows a little.


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Werecow

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Yeahhhhhhh that may wind up being an issue as mine grows up with the state trooper that lives across the street from me... Of course he never said shit about that black 94 I had that was louder than if it was uncorked... Course he never saw it off my driveway too...:D
 

ttocs

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screw that we have lived here longer than anyone else in the neighborhood and we get to make more noise because of it. In reality I know all my neighbors and it was just two days ago I had it idling in the driveway with me laying on the driveway looking under it when the neighbor 2 doors down came over to hear it up close and talk about it. The neighbor 2 doors up from me has a nice sounding ctsv that we also enjoy hearing fire up.
 

Daryl

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The California Air Resources Board (C.A.R.B.)

If a item is stamped “CARB Approved”, then it’s legal in CA to have it on your car/engine. Many after-market parts suppliers have CARB approved items.

Your task is to then decipher and decide if the differences in specs between the stock part and the part you want to replace it with is worth the money.

For example: AFR ( located in CA, btw) makes cylinder heads. They make sets that are CARB approved. But, how much are you gaining in performance? Are the AFR heads’ specs that much different than the stock heads’ specs? They might be; I don’t know. But it would be wise to either research and compare the differences or just call them directly. I’ve spoken to them in the past and I have very little understanding of intake and exhaust port sizes, flows, etc but they were very patient and understanding and helped me understand the differences and thereby come to a decision to buy or not to buy!
The final decision is then up to you: is the bang for buck worth it to me? Only you can answer that!

Hope this helps and hope this gets your thread back on its rails before becoming completely off tract!

footnote: to pass smog at any legitimate smog inspection station, you MUST have catalytic converters (cats). You won’t even pass the visual inspection and you’ll fail in 20 seconds flat!
 

Daryl

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And, regarding your last couple of questions...

No, you won’t get inspected between smog tests. So you can run “illegal” aftermarket parts in between inspections, but when the DMV sends you your registration renewal and requests, no DEMANDS you get a smog inspection certificate to accompany your registration renewal, you better put all the stock and/or smog legal goodies back on and do so neatly because that’s part of the visual inspection too! Can’t look tampered with. Granted, the CA DMV doesn’t require a smog certificate every year, but when they do, be prepared to reinstall the legal stuff for the test. Then, you can get the certificate, mail it in, go home and reinstall all the not so legal stuff!!
P.S.- where in Cali are you? I’m in SoCal/Ventura County
 

evilcw311

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The California Air Resources Board (C.A.R.B.)

If a item is stamped “CARB Approved”, then it’s legal in CA to have it on your car/engine. Many after-market parts suppliers have CARB approved items.

Your task is to then decipher and decide if the differences in specs between the stock part and the part you want to replace it with is worth the money.

For example: AFR ( located in CA, btw) makes cylinder heads. They make sets that are CARB approved. But, how much are you gaining in performance? Are the AFR heads’ specs that much different than the stock heads’ specs? They might be; I don’t know. But it would be wise to either research and compare the differences or just call them directly. I’ve spoken to them in the past and I have very little understanding of intake and exhaust port sizes, flows, etc but they were very patient and understanding and helped me understand the differences and thereby come to a decision to buy or not to buy!
The final decision is then up to you: is the bang for buck worth it to me? Only you can answer that!

Hope this helps and hope this gets your thread back on its rails before becoming completely off tract!

footnote: to pass smog at any legitimate smog inspection station, you MUST have catalytic converters (cats). You won’t even pass the visual inspection and you’ll fail in 20 seconds flat!

Afr heads make a huge difference over stock. Even their smallest heads are a major improvement over the factory heads on the 302’s. I’d be curious to see if all of their heads are carb approved. If so then you could still build a big beefy motor and pass inspection.

Hell, we have a member here who did a 2jz swap from a Toyota Supra into his sn95 in California and got it approved.


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Daryl

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165 or 185cc heads?? Which one?
 
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