California Smog check

[VeceI]

So

If he goes to a COBB carb legal stage tune and keeps his boost low he will not drop a check engine light or risk anything. The only reason you would get a check engine light with a s280 is if you go aftermarket downpipe which either does not come with a cat or has a 200 cell high flow cat that does not get warm enough to due to flow to trigger the o2 sensor which is the exact engine light and code one would get. Ask me how I know? Plus my Turbo does not get to maximum. boost till around 3200-3400 rpm . So if he drives like a granny and shifts at 3k he will be just fine for the 50 or so miles to get his ready codes and go to smog. The only thing he could have a problem with is nosy smog guys which you seemed to have managed to stumble across Ya don’t take your car to a chain shop . Seek out the individual shops Who look at your car like ordinary other newer cars and just plugs it in reads and glances over your under hood. They are out there.

So ya can it work sure, is there a slight smog guy could get nosy sure. Worst that comes of that is he tells you he can’t smog it till parts are changed oh and hopefully he is not a dick who fails you and send it’s to Sac.

P.S. Turbo swap rates are not that bad it’s a relatively easy job . In fact it’s cheaper than a clutch job on our cars by around 50% less

Again ask me how I know. In fact it’s such an easy job when I adjusted my wastegate I was like damn I could done the Turbo myself. Oh ya the swap was that cheap that I elected to have someone do it along with a dyno tune. ( we don’t talk about the dyno tune lol )

so if I end up going for the s280, a couple weeks before I need to get it smogged all I have to do is revert to a stock(ish) tune, and drive under the turbos initial boost start, also the carb who’s it what’s it tune is already preloaded on there right, or at least is ready to be downloaded?

 

[Dpro]

Ive always understood the mechanism and nature of how the actual turbo would or would or would not pass (visual). And I’ve also always understood you can run a stock tune with many turbos at low rpm and low load. My question was always the pass / fail nature of the tune it’s self. Reverting back to stock tune is easy, but for me the worry was putting those miles on the car to get to readiness state without putting my foot on it. I’d be borderline paranoid of getting in some situation where I needed a quick speed burst and boom, because the stock tune cant properly control boost on a larger (or different than stock) turbo under boost and can’t properly deliver fuel when the fuel and boost maps don’t match what the turbo is putting out.

To get further in the weeds, it seems like what you’re saying is that the only thing even the most new smog computers check for is simple emissions readiness and just having an aftermarket tune won’t necessarily put it into a state of non readiness?

To answer the last part it’s now been proven twice once with koozy, and up above with the guy with the Dizzy stage 2 which in no way is a carb approved tune. Thing is most tunes do not bypass or trigger any of our stock sensors, except when one runs an aftermarket downpipe be it high flow catted or non catted . Then it will set off the upper o2 sensor cylinder bank 1 code. It used to be people would put aftermarket downpipes on it would set it off and the tuner would just go into the Tune and turn the check engine light off for that. In order for COBB to bring their tunes into compliance they had to eliminate the ability to do that on the Tuner side.
So you essentially say if I took off my Mountune Sportcat downpipe and had Adam send me a tune for the stock downpipe all my sensors would read ready even with my S280 as that was the only thing on my car that was throwing a code . Oh and ya I am even in fact looking to take a stock downpipe and open it up to 3 inch piping after the cat so all my sensors will read ready and the car will look nearly stock from up top.
Mickey should chew on that for minute I might even be able to pass with my tune!

 

[New_Daily]

So


so if I end up going for the s280, a couple weeks before I need to get it smogged all I have to do is revert to a stock(ish) tune, and drive under the turbos initial boost start, also the carb who’s it what’s it tune is already preloaded on there right, or at least is ready to be downloaded?

Well sort of. As noted a car will run on the stock tune with an S280 as long as you keep it out of boost.

There isn’t a “carb” tune. CARB is the California air resource board which is the entity that sets emissions standards for California.

When you uninstall or unmarry your Cobb AP it will pull the aftermarket tune off and put the stock Ford tune back on. Then you’d have to drive your car some amount of miles to get into emissions readiness state.

But as this thread is discussing, it seems like we don’t have to take the aftermarket tunes off our cars as that will not automatically fail the car. But with ANY aftermarket turbo on your car you are at the mercy of the watchful eye of the smog inspector you go to. Some will notice it’s not stock, maybe some won’t.

 

[Dpro]

Well sort of. As noted a car will run on the stock tune with an S280 as long as you keep it out of boost.

There isn’t a “carb” tune. CARB is the California air resource board which is the entity that sets emissions standards for California.

When you uninstall or unmarry your Cobb AP it will pull the aftermarket tune off and put the stock Ford tune back on. Then you’d have to drive your car some amount of miles to get into emissions readiness state.

But as this thread is discussing, it seems like we don’t have to take the aftermarket tunes off our cars as that will not automatically fail the car. But with ANY aftermarket turbo on your car you are at the mercy of the watchful eye of the smog inspector you go to. Some will notice it’s not stock, maybe some won’t.

Not exactly you have to flash it back to stock it will not do it automatically . Hence why people have been buying used FiST’s with tunes on them but no AP because the original owner did not flash it back to stock he just removed and unmarried the AP.

To address his question actually yes if you by a AP it usually comes with the COBB tunes on it and if you buy it from a Tuner his base tuen may be on it after which you go datalog so he can adjust the tune.
The AP can store multiple tunes . Besides my COBB tunes I still have my Original tuners tune and my 91 octane S280 tune and E30/91 tune. So I can switch around but ya I should probably erase the original tuners tune it sucked in comparison to the Tune+ ones.

 

[slopoke]

How much HP are you shooting for? If it were me, I'd go with a Whoosh Hybrid. It will pass the visual and with a stock tune, will pass the OBD II portion Like others stated, you just have to keep out of boost when going for the smog test. Where it gets tricky is having to revert back to stock every two years for the other components like, intake, crossover, downpipe,etc. Those in most cases won't pass a visual. So the hassle of having a bolt on the turbine housing to down pipe break is something to keep in mind. If that does happen, you need to pull the turbo out and get the bolt removed. Good luck in your decision.

 

[New_Daily]

Not exactly you have to flash it back to stock it will not do it automatically . Hence why people have been buying used FiST’s with tunes on them but no AP because the original owner did not flash it back to stock he just removed and unmarried the AP.

To address his question actually yes if you by a AP it usually comes with the COBB tunes on it and if you buy it from a Tuner his base tuen may be on it after which you go datalog so he can adjust the tune.
The AP can store multiple tunes . Besides my COBB tunes I still have my Original tuners tune and my 91 octane S280 tune and E30/91 tune. So I can switch around but ya I should probably erase the original tuners tune it sucked in comparison to the Tune+ ones.

Oh I thought when you plugged in your AP and went though the uninstall process it then automatically put the stock Ford tune back on your car. But that’s just kinda semantics as it relates to this convo.

 

[New_Daily]

How much HP are you shooting for? If it were me, I'd go with a Whoosh Hybrid. It will pass the visual and with a stock tune, will pass the OBD II portion Like others stated, you just have to keep out of boost when going for the smog test. Where it gets tricky is having to revert back to stock every two years for the other components like, intake, crossover, downpipe,etc. Those in most cases won't pass a visual. So the hassle of having a bolt on the turbine housing to down pipe break is something to keep in mind. If that does happen, you need to pull the turbo out and get the bolt removed. Good luck in your decision.

Answering for myself here, actual HP number here is less important than power range and feel. Since with just an IC and dizzy tune it’s pretty traction limited in 1st and 2nd, and based on the glowing reviews of the S280 and the fact it will flows well in the upper rev ranges it will give me exactly what I want. So I’d just have to either roll the dice on the visual or maybe get a buddy referral to a shop who might cough cough overlook a visual issue as long as I pass at the computer.

For a long time I was totally sold on getting a whoosh hybrid for exactly the completely stock look, but to go through the job of putting the turbo in I’d rather get the feel I’m looking for.

 

[Dpro]

Answering for myself here, actual HP number here is less important than power range and feel. Since with just an IC and dizzy tune it’s pretty traction limited in 1st and 2nd, and based on the glowing reviews of the S280 and the fact it will flows well in the upper rev ranges it will give me exactly what I want. So I’d just have to either roll the dice on the visual or maybe get a buddy referral to a shop who might cough cough overlook a visual issue as long as I pass at the computer.

For a long time I was totally sold on getting a whoosh hybrid for exactly the completely stock look, but to go through the job of putting the turbo in I’d rather get the feel I’m looking for.

The Visual really comes down to someone really wanting to take the time to look under there from the bottom. If one is running a stock downpipe with the heat shield nothing is visible from the top side
! Plus the COBB 3 inch cross over full intake setup that’s CARB legal was not available when Slopoke owned his FiST they sold a different one. So he may not be aware of it like some of us who bought it the minute we saw it . lol.
In the end if the car looks legal and pretty stock up top most smog guys are just gonna glance it over and go ok your sensors check no check engine light your good to go. It literally takes 5-10 minutes tops.

 

[ryanvue]

I went to smog with my E30 tuned and I failed on visual with the silicone hose that came with it when I bought the car from the dealership. I just installed a new stock induction hose and passed. I guess they just checked for the readiness and do visual.

 

[Dpro]

I went to smog with my E30 tuned and I failed on visual with the silicone hose that came with it when I bought the car from the dealership. I just installed a new stock induction hose and passed. I guess they just checked for the readiness and do visual.

The Machine reads your sensors if they are functioning properly then you are smog legal output wise. It sounds like he the typical open the hood glance over looking for anything out of the ordinary and when he saw the Silicon was like nope. That’s the cool thing about my COBB 3 inch it’s a complete crossover pipe to short hose to Air Cleaner and they question you just show them the EO. No having to remove things.

 

[Joshyfresh6953]

Hello all! Please forgive me if this was answered somewhere else, I didn't see an answer hence this post..

I'm doing some research and wanted to know if anyone recently passed CA SMOG with the Whoosh Hybrid upgrade running a stock DP? I finally got a Mountune Radiator and am planning on grabbing the Whoosh Hybrid in the next 2 months or so to keep it looking stock but I want the catted 200 cell Whoosh DP. If I get it to run-ing temperature, do you guys think it will pass smog with a stock tune temporary loaded? I dont know if I want to swap it out every 2 years....

My plan for smog is to swap back to the stock tune and keeping RPM's/boost as low possible while doing late night highway driving to reset the computer when the time comes... Im not trying run it 100% max, just looking for a fun reliable upgrade that's relative maintenance and inspection trouble free, thanks in advance!

 

[Dpro]

Hello all! Please forgive me if this was answered somewhere else, I didn't see an answer hence this post..

I've got a 18 FiST, was doing some research and wanted to know if anyone recently passed CA SMOG with the Whoosh Hybrid upgrade running a stock DP? I finally got a Mountune Radiator and am planning on grabbing the Whoosh Hybrid in the next 2 months or so mainly to keep it looking as close to stock as possible... Still debating on getting the catted 200 cell Whoosh DP or keeping stock DP. Thoughts on keeping the stock DP vs Whoosh Catted? I don't need to squeeze the hybrid for everything its got tbh...

My plan for SMOG, was to swap back to the stock tune and keeping RPM's/boost as low possible while doing late night highway driving, to reset the computer when the time comes... Im not trying run it 100% max, just looking for a fun reliable upgrade that's relative maintenance and inspection trouble free haha

I know I dont need to smog till 2026 but was curious to hear about YOUR experiences, from those who have done the Hybrid upgrade and had to get smogged. I feel there's got to be some 14/15's here who are dealing with needing smog currently..

Thanks in advance for your thoughts and opinions.

A friend of mine passéd with. Revo S242 which was a hybrid Turbotechnics made previous to the s280 . Oh and that was with a Tune+ tune and Mountune DP . All they do is a sensor check and inspection. If the tech looks things over and thinks everything looks fine you’re good. It’s hard to see the Turbo to begin with if you are running a stock DP and heatshield. With a Hybrid they are not going to see anything different even if they see the Tur o.

 

[Dialcaliper]

Some more info, food for thought. I finally found a smog tech in my area that wasn’t an idiot afraid to touch aftermarket stuff with a 10-foot pole.

I now have real confirmation that at least as of 2024, the smog check systems are in fact checking for ECU tunes. A BMW 5-series in front of me failed the test because he had an “unapproved” tune, did not disclose it to the Smog Tech beforehand and the test machine (not the smog tech) rejected it.

That said, I gave the tech my EO numbers and showed the sticker for the Mountune intercooler kit, and I passed the test with Cobb Stage 2 loaded on the car, so CARB legal tunes do in fact work. I kind of preferred it to the stock tune because I can leave it in Eco mode, which while miserable to drive, prevents the car from going into boost. Handy for if you were in fact worried about things that might not play well with the stock tune. You know, mismatched parts…