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California Smog Law


RacerX

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I was at a smog test station today and was speaking with the technician. We got on the subject of the smog exemption year. He mentioned that Bay Area Air Quality Board - two years ago - stopped rolling over the smog exemption year - which I thought to be 1975. He said that BAAQD now requires that it be 1965 or older - that it is no longer 1975 or older vehicles that are smog exempt.

 

I just logged onto the DMV - Smog FAQs and this is what it states:

 

Does my vehicle qualify for a smog exemption?

 

Smog inspections are required unless your vehicle is:

 

Hybrid

1975 year model or older

Diesel powered

Electric

Natural gas powered and has a Gross Vehicle Weight rating of 14,001 lbs. or more.

Motorcycle

Trailer

 

 

Has anyone heard or confirmed that it is now back dated to 1965 or older vehicles that don't require smog?

 

Thanks!

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print that out and keep that in your car just in case. i am lucky, i live in South Carolina, we don't have sniffers and all that stuff. the only problems we really have are noise ordinance stuff, which even that can be avoided if you don't hammer the gas.

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Maybe the tech was thinking of AZ smog laws. In Tucson and Phoenix it is required for 65 and newer. Found this out after the fact when I tried to register "The Turd" in Tucson. Maybe CA isn't that bad after all..... Nah.

 

Mike

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Ernie, he's in the dark ages. They stopped the roll over--yes--and that's a formerly CONTINUING exemption that grew year after year, but it stopped at 1975 a number of years ago thanks to our Kali legislators, etc. 1965 was the old pre-existing date. He doesn't know what he's talking about IMO.

 

Davy

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Hey maybe that Prius is looking good after all.

 

If Hybrids like the Prius don't need smog checking, and CA has no inspectons, I'm thinking someone could pull off a smog exempt V8 Prius? :twisted:

 

Of course that'd be illegal and immoral, so I'm too chicken to do it. My car actually has MORE smog related components than the stock Z did. The exhaust coming out of my car actually smells like nothing compared with the exhaust coming out of my Volvo which smells like burnt oil and unburnt gas.

 

When CA passes whatever crappy law and I can't pass smog from my Z or truck, I'm going to take a 1950's truck, put the drivetrain from my Z and the 4x4 guts of my 1973 F250 truck to create a bad ass 4x4 styleside.

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Washington has a rolling 25 year limit. This year is 1982, so in 8 years or so even 1990 cars will be exempt.

Plus I think the total is 6 counties in the whole of WA have inspection stations. Of course I live in one of them - Clark County!!

 

I think the same goes for Oregon - but I might be wrong. I do know that most of Oregon doesn't have DEQ, just the urban areas. So pretty much the Portland / Salem area.

 

Always hated smog laws in CA. I had a '66 Mustang I used to have to get smogged. Ran like complete garbage when I put that stuff on there, barely passed. I took the car back a couple days later with the way I usually had it tuned - and it was like 1/5 the emissions with the 4v and without the other smog crap. We had a good laugh.

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California Law regarding Smog exemptions: 1976 and newer cars smog for the life of the vehicle as per the Govs decision of 2 years ago. The old 30 year rolling exemption is no longer in effect. Basically, when this decision was made there was a heated debate regarding the "Hot Rod" enthusists. Arnold was pressured to eliminate the rolling exemption. His compromise was, last year of the muscle car was '72; ergo extend 2 years til '75 vintage vehicle(s) and reintroduce a constant renewal. He gives a little to the hot rod lobbists to keep in their good graces, and yet gets the revenue back on the other end, by ending the rolling exemptions. There is however a small regulation that states any car is subject to inspection and citable when deemed necessary by law enforcement.

 

Hope that helps, VAN

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