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Yet MORE bad new from California

ruger41ruger41 Member Posts: 14,665 ✭✭✭✭
edited June 2008 in General Discussion
Ahhh I am so happy I left there--but to those of you who still reside in the Golden State you should get ready for a little sticker shock. I sell exhaust products to muffler shops so I sometimes get the early warnings of emissions laws. All cars made from 1996 on up have what is called OBDII emissions(On Board Diagnostic) and the state of CA & CARB(CA Air Resource Board) in their wisdom always felt the aftermarket catalytic convertors for those cars had to have their bricks loaded at a much higher rate than cats sold for cars that were pre '96 eventhough the EPA had not felt the same way. Well in order to do that the cat manufs. had to load their bricks with a lot more precious metals-platinum, palladium & rhodium(rhodium is now over $10,000 a troy oz). With that a person who owned a '96 and later car usually had to pay between $150 to $300 more for their cat at a muffler shop than people with an older car--car dealerships were even higher as not every aftermarket cat was legal to install on cars unless you got it from OEM. Well starting in 2009 that now changes--CA will no longer allow the old style cats to be installed on ANY vehicles which means if you own a 1980 Camaro if you need a cat the cost of putting one on just went from about $110 to probably around $300. Convertors should last the life of a vehicle but that only works if the car is maintained and of course if the state doesn't keep lowering the bar making it harder for a car to pass a smog check. If you do have an old car and you aren't sure if your cat will make it through a few more smog checks(CA is every 2 years or when you sell a vehicle) then I would get it replaced before the middle of 2009. Now a shop cannot legally change a convertor that is in working order so if yours is ok then leave it be--but if it is on the iffy side if it had say "a road damaged puncture" then a shop could change it. Once most of the shops in CA get wind that the change is a comin' I can gurantee you they will start running out of their cats or jack the prices up to pay for the more expensive cats they will have to buy. Other GB'ers from states need to be aware of this as well because quite a few other states are thinking of adopting goofy CA smog rules.
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Comments

  • FrancFFrancF Member Posts: 35,279 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Think thats bad, our new SMOG test is even tougher. New stuff added
    -Double hi/lo load idle test
    -Vacuum test on the Gas tank (think it's 90 seconds) along with the other vacuum test.

    It's ridiculous!
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  • scrumpyjackscrumpyjack Member Posts: 5,336 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Have it replaced at the dealership prior to 80,000 miles and it won't cost you chit.[:D]
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  • ruger41ruger41 Member Posts: 14,665 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Well I gurantee you they will fight you to change a cat for road damage at a dealership if it is under the 80K factory warranty-road damage can crack the brick because the bricks are ceramic and I've never known a dealership to warranty road damaged items. The 8yr/80K cat warranty when you buy a car only covers if the emissions aren't being controlled and it can be proven that it's the cat. 99% of the time it is some sensor or too much fuel getting down the system or antifreeze that ends up down the exhaust system from a blown or leaking head gasket that causes the death of a cat-there are no moving parts to the brick so other things usually are to blame. Aftermarket cats are only required by law to be warrantied for 5yrs/50,000 on the outside shell and 25,000 on the brick for pre OBDII cats. OBDII cats are warrantied for 50,000 inside and out.
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  • 204targetman204targetman Member Posts: 3,493
    edited November -1
    The catalytic converter was rattling like a bucket of bolts on my jeep. Took it to the muffler shop and the guy cuts it off and says you dont need that anymore. Been several years ago but I bet he still does it.
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  • ruger41ruger41 Member Posts: 14,665 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Well I know there are tons of people who do it--but don't get caught-it is a minimum $2500 fine to YOU and to the person who cut it off. Any muffler shop owner still doing that today with cars that are computer controlled is a complete moron and no way would I let him touch my car. I know it sucks to think ya have to have one on but on '96 and newer cars they are designed to run with a cat. There are states out there that have or are going to have smog checkpoints at highway on & offramps that can do an instant check that sniffs the tailpipe to see if your car is polluting and a camera takes a pic of your license and if you aren't compliant it sends you a notice in the mail--Denver, CO has this already-- some counties in CA have a smogcheck checkpoint where they can pull you up on a trailer and do an instant check(they also check underneath to see if you have a cat on. Big Brother at its finest[:D] For those of you with OnStar it can do an instant diagnostic too and if OBDIII gets passed they can use it to send info to the DMV and you that your car is not running right and if you don't get it fixed then you could be fined or OnStar can from a satellite turn your 8 cylinder into a 4 until you fix it[:D]
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  • MrOrangeMrOrange Member Posts: 3,012
    edited November -1
    I've been telling myself I need to get an old Dart or D100 or something that doesn't need to get smogged, has points ignition so I can keep running after WWIII, and a slant-six so it'll run on dog-dish water in the tank and canola oil in the crankcase.


    Any news on California eliminating smog-exemptions on older vehicles? Years ago it was '66 and earlier, then it changed to a rolling 25 years old, and now I believe it's '75 and older, although the rumor is they're going to eliminate the older model exemption altogether.
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  • FrancFFrancF Member Posts: 35,279 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by MrOrange
    I've been telling myself I need to get an old Dart or D100 or something that doesn't need to get smogged, has points ignition so I can keep running after WWIII, and a slant-six so it'll run on dog-dish water in the tank and canola oil in the crankcase.


    Any news on California eliminating smog-exemptions on older vehicles? Years ago it was '66 and earlier, then it changed to a rolling 25 years old, and now I believe it's '75 and older, although the rumor is they're going to eliminate the older model exemption altogether.





    Don't quote me on this, but is seems like every two years the date gets rolled back. But I do think your right.
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  • nemesisenforcernemesisenforcer Member Posts: 10,513 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    California IS bad news.[xx(]
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  • FrancFFrancF Member Posts: 35,279 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by nemesisenforcer
    California IS bad news.[xx(]




    Yep we have problems, just like all the other states[:D][;)]
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  • rmeyerrmeyer Member Posts: 566 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    In 25 years of driving and owning over a dozen cars i've never needed to replace 1 of those.
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  • ruger41ruger41 Member Posts: 14,665 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    probably because you took great care of your car rmyer. if people kept their cars tuned up and changed the oil regularly a cat normally will last the life of the car.
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