Engine Swap: Is it smog legal
a fmaily member of mine has a condo in ny, could i register it there and then just keep it here, or will i get the nevada story. didn't the switch from obd1 to 2 happen in 96, so 95's are still cool So about this year difference and no going backwards thing, and if i get a certain year sc300, say 95 for example, and then got a usdm 2jzgte from a, let's say, 97 supra tt, then would i have a better shot.
ok this is how u can have a legal gte swap in ca, u can have a jdm motor but here are the conditions.
must be same year or newer then vehicle
must retain all smog equip that is required in cali and that came from the engine u are trying to swap in(udsm manifolds, injectors, turbos, cams, ecu etc)
manifolds must be un modified and piping till after the cat
basicially the easiet way to do it is get a usdm doner car and do a 100% stock swap and u can get it bar'd
or get a jdm engine for 1800 and buy all the usdm stuff from supra forums on a good day for like 1000 bucks. i have spoke with state ref out here in norcal and they like seeing ppl that do swaps and willing to get it bar'd but to answer the question u can have a gte swapped sc get it legal and not have to worry. its also gonna depend on the ref, the ref out here is hella chill and will let minor things slide.
to anyone interested that has a 240 the state ref here in the bay area also was willing to let us bar a sr20 in my friends shop car 240. but the ref said he had to use ka manifold and all the smog equip and make it work like if it the sr came stock in a 240 from ca. we jsut havnt finished it yet. so yea it really depends on ref i think cuz this guy is pretty chill
must be same year or newer then vehicle
must retain all smog equip that is required in cali and that came from the engine u are trying to swap in(udsm manifolds, injectors, turbos, cams, ecu etc)
manifolds must be un modified and piping till after the cat
basicially the easiet way to do it is get a usdm doner car and do a 100% stock swap and u can get it bar'd
or get a jdm engine for 1800 and buy all the usdm stuff from supra forums on a good day for like 1000 bucks. i have spoke with state ref out here in norcal and they like seeing ppl that do swaps and willing to get it bar'd but to answer the question u can have a gte swapped sc get it legal and not have to worry. its also gonna depend on the ref, the ref out here is hella chill and will let minor things slide.
to anyone interested that has a 240 the state ref here in the bay area also was willing to let us bar a sr20 in my friends shop car 240. but the ref said he had to use ka manifold and all the smog equip and make it work like if it the sr came stock in a 240 from ca. we jsut havnt finished it yet. so yea it really depends on ref i think cuz this guy is pretty chill
thank you very much man, that's very refreshing to hear, when it finally comes time for smog check i may ask you for that guys name, but now i feel all excited cus i don't have to worry about a 0 chance smog pass, still gonna be tough thou
Lexus Champion
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 1,784
Likes: 1
From: California
ok this is how u can have a legal gte swap in ca, u can have a jdm motor but here are the conditions.
must be same year or newer then vehicle
must retain all smog equip that is required in cali and that came from the engine u are trying to swap in(udsm manifolds, injectors, turbos, cams, ecu etc)
manifolds must be un modified and piping till after the cat
basicially the easiet way to do it is get a usdm doner car and do a 100% stock swap and u can get it bar'd
or get a jdm engine for 1800 and buy all the usdm stuff from supra forums on a good day for like 1000 bucks. i have spoke with state ref out here in norcal and they like seeing ppl that do swaps and willing to get it bar'd but to answer the question u can have a gte swapped sc get it legal and not have to worry. its also gonna depend on the ref, the ref out here is hella chill and will let minor things slide.
to anyone interested that has a 240 the state ref here in the bay area also was willing to let us bar a sr20 in my friends shop car 240. but the ref said he had to use ka manifold and all the smog equip and make it work like if it the sr came stock in a 240 from ca. we jsut havnt finished it yet. so yea it really depends on ref i think cuz this guy is pretty chill
must be same year or newer then vehicle
must retain all smog equip that is required in cali and that came from the engine u are trying to swap in(udsm manifolds, injectors, turbos, cams, ecu etc)
manifolds must be un modified and piping till after the cat
basicially the easiet way to do it is get a usdm doner car and do a 100% stock swap and u can get it bar'd
or get a jdm engine for 1800 and buy all the usdm stuff from supra forums on a good day for like 1000 bucks. i have spoke with state ref out here in norcal and they like seeing ppl that do swaps and willing to get it bar'd but to answer the question u can have a gte swapped sc get it legal and not have to worry. its also gonna depend on the ref, the ref out here is hella chill and will let minor things slide.
to anyone interested that has a 240 the state ref here in the bay area also was willing to let us bar a sr20 in my friends shop car 240. but the ref said he had to use ka manifold and all the smog equip and make it work like if it the sr came stock in a 240 from ca. we jsut havnt finished it yet. so yea it really depends on ref i think cuz this guy is pretty chill
Wow! Very interesting.
^ Everything he said is accurate. Never heard of the sr20 thing though. Just remember to have all receipts for the engine in case you run into a Cali cop who suspects the motor is stolen. I think there was a NorCal guy who had done this swap a few years ago. Ref sticker and everything.
Lexus Test Driver
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 887
Likes: 0
From: California
Proper recognition for phrozen's accurate summary of a CA swap. I've been down this path and everything in the post seems right on to what I learned in the process.
Having said that, I went single and everything went out the window. The Nevada story "friend's friend" is an exception and in two years and a few stops I've never had any cop go after my engine bay or ask any questions. See my sig for what they'd see.
Your car's exterior look should be total sleeper and no bling. Be very careful about your exhaust, wheels, tint and drop. I installed a (visual) low key high performance exhaust. Looks oem to casual inspection. Keep the Supra side mount or conceal a FMIC.
Having said that, I went single and everything went out the window. The Nevada story "friend's friend" is an exception and in two years and a few stops I've never had any cop go after my engine bay or ask any questions. See my sig for what they'd see.
Your car's exterior look should be total sleeper and no bling. Be very careful about your exhaust, wheels, tint and drop. I installed a (visual) low key high performance exhaust. Looks oem to casual inspection. Keep the Supra side mount or conceal a FMIC.
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