Registering a van with a Subaru 2.5L in California

[skalathamus]

Hi all,

[I have looked through literally every single relevant thread on here and on the Subaru Yahoo page and haven't found much recent information on this!]


As many of you know, it is very difficult to get a Vanagon with a 2.5L Subaru conversion legally smogged & registered in the state of California. Aircooled? Go for it! Diesels? No problem, no smog test necessary! But you want to swap your old wbx for an engine far safer among modern cars and producing 1/10th the emissions, essentially "recycling" your vehicle... No way Jose. Indeed, it is as though they prefer that our old vehicles produce more smog via their stock motors. Very frustrating.

Anyways, I've been on the hunt for months for a van that checks all the right boxes for me, and it seems I've finally found one, up in Washington state. However, it has a Subaru 2.5L engine ('07 from an Impreza, OBDII), and I live in the Bay Area. Frankly, I'll be damned if I let this silly rule, the result of years of bureaucratic nonsense, get in the way of my getting the rig of my dreams.

I am looking for insight from others in CA who have managed to get their Subi 2.5 registered, know someone who has, or otherwise have heard of methods of achieving this. What are my options? How should I attack this? I am committed to figuring this out.

I am aware of the Frankenmotor route and am considering this, although I'm confused as to how this would actually solve this issue. It seems to me that the issue that prevents Bar referees from passing them is largely due to the OBDII system, and a lack of fuel tank evaporation sensors which causes error codes. So how does a Frankenmotor solve this issue? Would you just take your Frankenmotor'd van straight to a smog station with the 2.2 Executive order? And just hope for the best? Not sure I would want to go through the trouble there.

Is my best bet just to take it to be smogged somewhere rural with less restrictions and hope it doesn't get recognized as a Subi, rather face it head on with a BAR ref and potentially get flagged? I suppose you'd probably get flagged either way if it didn't pass. I am definitely open to options that are not entirely above board, but please PM me suggestions in this category. Are there still counties in California that do not require smog testing? Perhaps I could just "move" to another county and get it registered there... However it seems from my research on the DMV website that after a change of ownership, a vehicle has to be smogged no matter what county it's being registered in. Obviously pretty perplexed here and have more questions than answers, so any help is appreciated!!!

[Abscate]

There are a couple of engines that have been smogged successfully but you should budget for some rework bringing one in from out of state. Try the Bay forum too, a lot more over there

You cant register out of area and drive around a smog zone, for some reason CARB thinks that you should pass smog where you live. Your neighbors do, too.
_________________
.ssS!

[Wasted youth]

I do not know with a lot confidence to answer your question. But I have been reading about this off and on for awhile. It is my understanding:

1) For California, only the EJ22 series engine will meet the requirements. That also requires the EJ22 engine management package. The EVAP system seems to cause issues with anything else.

2) Smartest process seems to be to find the ideal donor car, get it well tuned and get a smog check to get your base numbers and confidence it will pass. (get the Pre-Test, it doesn’t register with DMV, but is the same test)

3) Change over the power plant, and install the Check Engine Light on the instrument cluster.

4) Go get your Vanagon Pre-Tested so you know that there will be minimal problems for Step 5

5) Schedule an appointment with the CARB Referee and hope that bastard will give you the coveted decal for your engine compartment.

Or...

Install a rebuilt wasserboxer and head over Tioga at 26 MPH. At least you’re camping again.

There is no doubt in my mind that I have oversimplified this, but that is as far as I got. I like the idea of a Subi or Z Tec when the time comes, but Kalifornya makes it a real challenge. But lots of people have done it.

Alternatively... register it out of state and start fishing for loopholes. I think Abscate is correct... pretty sure California requires the smog check whether you regiater in Death Valley or Redwood City. Smog Check will be the same, but you will need to locate one that has a treadmill. Newer cars do not need the treadmill, but ours do.

And that is starting to be a chore in itself. It was not a fun experience getting my 1988 Dodge W250 smogged. OBD-1 and needed the treadmill and someone old enough to know what the hell they were looking at. Two separate visits over three days. Yet even that was idiotic... I only recently found out my Auto Shutdown Relay was hacked causing the truck to run rich, and it passed like that!

[[email protected]]

Talk to a ref and see what is required.

See appendix E from 2018

https://bar.ca.gov/pdf/Smog_Check_Reference_Guide.pdf

[davevickery]

One legal way to do it is to have an out of state relative or friend let you borrow their van. No laws against letting a friend or relative borrow your van indefinitely. If they have emission tests in their area then you would have to bring it back to get it emissions tested. You would want to get added to their insurance as a driver and let them know where it will be garage. You could be listed on the title as the lienholder or possible co-owner to reduce the risk. Not ideal, but one option.

[ThankYouJerry]

I faced a similar issue when I bought my Westy. However, I bought it in CA with a wbx engine with the intention of doing a Subie or Zetec conversion. That solved one issue for me. It was sold to me with a smog certificate and my County doesn’t require any more smog testing until the next sale. So, I could have gone ahead with the Subie or Zetec conversion and not had any worries until I decided to sell. But that idea alone was daunting. When I ultimately decide to sell that would have basically limited my pool of buyers to out of state buyers. Not ideal.

Then a good friend of mine told me about the 1.8T conversion that Stephan at Stephan’s Auto Haus in Sacramento had achieved a Bar sticker for. This is what I decided to do. The 1.8T is the highest hp legal Vanagon engine conversion in CA and best of all it is a turbo engine so it does not drop hp when climbing high above sea level where I often like to camp.
_________________
1990 Multivan - "Ohana"
1.8T, Auto w/3.27 R&P + Peloquin TBD

[dgbeatty]

The rules and referee are not the problem, nor is the law. The problem is that it is time consuming and technically demanding. Expect it to cost $2000 additional if you do the work yourself. Perhaps $5000 or more if you can find someone qualified and dedicated to do it professionally. It is a lot of work, even the gas tank must be modified.
Here are the simple steps.

1. carefully choose what year you want to swap. Study the emission requirements for each each year or group of years. Choose carefully.
2. duplicate every component or legal equivalent from the chosen year.
3. ensure that the conversion resembles a factory installation.

Enjoy your new engine.
There are no tricks or shortcuts. Attempting to sneak something through only makes it harder for everyone else.

[Abscate]

[davevickery]

[dgbeatty]

It is where the vehicle is domiciled. Everybody involved then pays, a lot.

[davevickery]

OK, I see. That's interesting. I haven't read the whole thing but this is interesting and looks like it closes that loophole.

"Do I Need to Register My Vehicle?
A vehicle must be registered in California if it is based in California or is primarily used on California highways (located or operated in this state for a greater amount of time than any other individual state during the registration period), even if registered to a nonresident owner (CVC §4000.4)."

[syncrodoka]

You have 20 days to register a vehicle in CA. Police do look for this for vehicles that are regularly seen in town.

[owokie]

How do you register a vehicle that you do not own? What do college kids do if they're driving their parents' vehicle? The title you quoted says "Do I need to register MY vehicle".

I thought the law and snitch line was to prevent people who moved from out of state with a vehicle they owned from keeping it registered in the state they came from to avoid the heavier fees.

[syncrodoka]

If you are working or living in CA you need to register it here.
Every new school year there are piles of out of state cars that arrive here, they get CA plates shortly after.

[termuehlen]

I would suggest talking to Marco at the Buslab in Berkeley. They may be able to offer some advice about trying to legalize a 2.5L in California. They were interested in pursing that option in the past and they will be able to give you their most recent thinking about this topic.
_________________
1988 Westfalia automatic Subaru OBD1
1986 syncro tintop wbx

[Abscate]

The reason the air is finally clean in CA is because CARB has figured out most every way people try to avoid getting smogged, be they engineering or administrative methods.
_________________
.ssS!

[izzydog]

The days of slipping it past a referee are long gone. When I did my 2.2L 13 years ago, it was already the beginning of the end.

You may get really lucky if you can find some old geezer with a garage somewhere in some back water here in CA, but I really doubt it. And even if you did, you'll have to go back to the guy every two years and roll the dice again. It's just not worth the stress.

Garages here in CA are under huge pressure to comply with the SMOG laws. The average owner of a smog shop is not going to risk their license to help out some guy with a 30 year old VW.

There are 7 or 8 non-smog counties in CA. They don't require vehicles registered in those counties to pass smog. If you could somehow obtain an address without living there, you could register the 2.5. This might be worth a shot but I would find out if my insurance would be OK with the car being registered in one place and mostly driven in another. I would hate to find out that I'd be denied a claim by my insurance after an accident because they found out that I don't live where the car is registered.

I know you want this van but (IMHO) it would be a pretty significant gamble to try and smog a 2.5 here these days.

I put a 1.8T in my Syncro. Couldn't be happier - and no more smog stress.

[Wasted youth]

[MarkWard]

If the goal is to enjoy living and traveling in CA, it does not sound like this is the van for you. The demand is such, that the seller would be unlikely to discount the price just because it is going to CA and not CARB certified.
_________________
☮️

[[email protected]]

Someone trying to sell 2.2 in Livermore, just posted. 82 diesel to 92 subaru. You could buy it and drive it till it blows up then put in whatever engine you want as diesel does not get smoged.

https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=709118