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Hi all,
Wondering what options I have to register my conversion in CA?

I recall that the ej22 has been certified, any way to be legal with an ej25?

Thanks,
Mark
89 westy syncro ej25

Mark



There are ways but it depends on how aggressive you are willing to be. These
are some of the ones I know of.



There is a shop in Sacramento that has been able to get approval for VW 1.8
turbo/vanagon installations without a formal exemption on a case-by-case
basis. His experience is that if you show up with an installation that is
identical to the stock donor installation in every smog related detail, you
might be able to get it approved. Individual referee techs do have a small
amount of discretion. This is a real risky way to go though. It would be
best to go and talk to the tech at the referee station and find out if they
are open to this approach.



Some rural CA counties are exempt from smog check requirements. Get the car
registered in one of those counties. The exempt counties are listed on the
DMV website. This is a good way to go since you still have a Ca license
plate. I know of at least two owners who do it this way.



Set up your own corporation in Montana to own your vehicles. Though
technically, if the car is registered outside of Ca, it is supposed to be
registered in CA within 90 days, this rule doesn't apply because the vehicle
is owned, not by you, but by your Montana LLC, so the residency rule doesn't
apply. Drawbacks are that it's a little expensive and you will have a
Montana license plate. There are companies in Montana that specialize in
this. It can all be done by mail.



Your mileage may vary



Dennis





From: subaruvanagon@... [mailto:subaruvanagon@...]
On Behalf Of mshilge
Sent: Wednesday, April 25, 2012 3:30 PM
To: subaruvanagon@...
Subject: [subaruvanagon] registering ej25 conversion in CA





Hi all,
Wondering what options I have to register my conversion in CA?

I recall that the ej22 has been certified, any way to be legal with an ej25?

Thanks,
Mark
89 westy syncro ej25

It looks like you already have a running 2.5 so the short answer is "no", unless you are close friends with a SMOG station which means you'll be going down that road every two years. BAR won't go near anything OBDII. Best to have the BAR sticker and swap the bottom of a 2.2, IMHO.

A SMOG legal 2.5 can be done and its done more frequently these days but you need to start with a 2.2, get your BAR sticker from a ref and then whack a 2.5 bottom end on the 2.2. You keep all your wiring and upper engine stuff, heads and exhaust. You can shorten the rods for a bit more torque or use different pistons and get different compression ratios to suit your needs. You'll pass SMOG with 2.2 specs and pick up almost 30 HP over the 2.2.

Welcome to California!

Jeff in Marin

Hi Jeff,
I have a BAR sticker from a ref for my 2.2L conversion. If I plan to upgrade to a 2.5L engine, I was under the impression that some folks in CA were installing the 2.5L without modifications that you indicated below. When the SMOG tech scans the BAR sticker, how will he know the engine is a 2.5L and not a 2.2L? Since the 2.5L is a cleaner engine, I would think the 2.5L will pass the smog test with no problems. Does the smog tech test for a ODBII?
Best regards,
Craig, SF

Craig,

The whole idea is that the SMOG tech has no idea that you have a 2.5 bottom end. As far as they are concerned, you have a 2.2. Yes, I know that this is not strictly legal and I'm not advising anyone to break the law. On the other hand, the engine will maintain or improve its SMOG specs, so the environment will not suffer as a result of the switcheroo. The conversion laws in CA are ridiculous - this is an "end run" on that nonsense.

Jeff

...and you hope that the tech doesn't notice the "EJ25" cast into the top of the block.

Larry H.

Due to the smog rules regulations and general price gouging associated with smog testing and repairs related to complying with these regulations,not to mention the increasing license renewal fees, I registered/transferred my '84 Westy to South Dakota registration and licensing, three years ago. Needless to say, this saves me alot a grief and license renewal is online and under $50/yr., and SD is totally cool with out of state vehicles and registration stating CA address. If interested see South Dakota DMV.