CA to test for ECU tunes at smog checks

[Ludachris]

Another article written about this (more and more are popping up all over):

California To Check For ECU Tunes (Here’s the Workaround)

California will be looking for custom tunes in the ECU during biannual smog checks. This will be problematic for many car enthusiasts. This is a workaround.

www.streetmusclemag.com

 

[95REGF150]

Pet peeve, all DSM ECUs prior to the 98 and 99 versions were either mask programmed, one time programmable, or external EPROM (erasable programmable read-only memory) based. EEPROM refers to Flash or other electrically erasable programmable read-only memory like that used in the H8 CPU's in the flashable ECU's.

Sorry Steve hit one too many E's. I've seen you get on others for that before my bad haha.

But exactly to the point, I wouldn't think they are going to try checking cars that should have EPROM and they know are not tunable. So the ECMLink guys should be totally safe.

 

[Ludachris]

SEMA just posted this...

California Smog Inspectors to Check for Illegally Tuned Vehicles | SEMA ACTION NETWORK

www.semasan.com

 

[95REGF150]

SEMA just posted this...

California Smog Inspectors to Check for Illegally Tuned Vehicles | SEMA ACTION NETWORK

www.semasan.com

That's great to know SEMA is on top of it. I'll be really interested to listen to that meeting they're going to post on youtube. Maybe some more specifics will be revealed.

 

[gray98eclipse]

Since this just got put in place there's mostly just speculation to go off of until cars start failing due to the ECU check.

Also read that CARB has actually been silently collecting data for a couple years now so they have the lay of the land.
"It’s important to note that BAR has had the authority to implement these changes since 2013 but has been gathering the data necessary to operate the program since at least 2015."

If ECUs have been pretty standardized and produce checksums of ECU alteration/updates when queried then CARB's job isn't too difficult. After collecting years of data any checksum numbers that are outliers can pretty easily be flagged for inspection.

 

[mitsubishikid]

At the end of the day being able to modify a cars tune can aid to make the older cars cleaner, and as technology advances the older vehicles can take advantage of what the newer cars are doing, what gets me is in every meeting I have seen the state of CA do they never go over this topic long enough to realize it's validity, they simply chant crush the older cars death to the ones that make more harmful pollutants blah blah as they stuff lots of money into their pockets from special interest groups and tax payers, seems like they have learned nothing about how to make older IC cars cleaner, and then they use graphs to show how clean newer IC cars are, and then they act as if that technology is exclusive to say a 2022 IC vehicle, and then they simply makeup laws to stop people from swapping certain engines into the older cars/trucks if anything they should cut those laws and be encouraging people to swap the dirty older carburetor equipped vehicles to newer EFI engines or systems, or even E-85 conversions, to make them cleaner, the state does not see that they just want to draw a line in the sand and say either your car is zero emission to nearly clean, or its as dirty as the day it came out of the factory, and when they do make Carb legal efi kits notice how it's for large US brands like gm Chrysler ford, come on we know you can do it for the imports as well.

 

[lglracer]

I wonder if they will do this at the rolling smog check stations in CA. I know those are only voluntary but who knows what they will do.

 

[95REGF150]

This is the meeting where they explain the details of the new implementation.

You must be logged in to view this image or video.

They start talking about the software check program at the 50:30 mark. At 53:37 he says that this is being applied to the BAR-OIS inspection which is the 2000-Later inspection. So I think that pretty much sums up this will be no issue for us DSM guys.

At 58:09 he explains if you fail for modified software but can get a signed slip from the dealer that the CAL-ID and CVN are appropriate for your vehicle then that will reverse the failure. CAL-ID would be easy to fake in the ROM it's mainly the CVN checksum that would be the struggle but I'm will to bet there's a way to fix that. There's always a way. But again none of these things apply to the DSM Ecu's

 

[voodoogsx]

Ya your right now that I think about it it was my 95 that they didn't plug into the OBD2 on. But there was no OBD2 requirement until 96 so maybe they just treat all 95's as OBD1 that they can't plug into. They definitely used to plug into my 99 and check the monitors. Which I can flash on with the black box ecu. Can you set the monitors with ECMLink?

Either way all you can read from our ECU's is the readiness monitors and trouble codes as you said. There isn't any way for them to check if the tune has been changed on the 97 and earlier EEPROM stuff. And on the 98-99 flashable's you would have to read the ROM and compare the hex to a factory example of that Specific ROM which they would have to get from the manufacturer and they are just not going to do that.

Hmm...so is this going to make my 95 a hot commodity? I already keep it behind another car in my garage...just to be safe...funny thing though, two people in my building have asked me about the car....of course one drives a RHW Supra...

 

[dsrlegion]

Hate to bring a post back from the grave, but has there been any updates or anyone who were able to pass smog with a tuned ecu with either eeprom or blackbox?

 

[Justin DuBois]

I just passed SMOG in CA at a Chevron station with a 95' GSX with ECMLink v3

Being an actual '95 vehicle and AWD, they did not attempt to connect to the ECU, or put it on a Dyno. They did look for everything visual, and asked if it had an after market intake (before they opened the hood)

Take a look at the pics of the engine bay, and CAT on my build thread so you can see what the guy was looking at. If your setup "looks" like you are trying to follow the rules, and passes emissions, the other items inspected will vary depending on the amount of effort the tester really want's to put into failing your car.

https://www.dsmtuners.com/threads/itflys-1gina2g.532766/post-153898785

 

[habitatguy187]

Ugh. More rules. More restrictions. More laws. More fines. More struggle.

Thankful to be born where I was, but I fear my children won’t enjoy the same fate.

 

[dsrlegion]

Thanks for the information @Justin DuBois. Sadly mine is a 98' GSX, so for sure they will be plugging into the obd2 for testing. Hopefully others who live in CA can chime in as well.

 

[Mahreeoh17]

This is one of those times where it really saves you to know a guy, or make friends with a smog tech *wink wink*