I have K&N RU-2820 air filter which is branded as a "universal air filter" that may be used for racing/off-road, etc. It does not come with a C.A.R.B. sticker (meaning it's not legal here in CA). However, when I moved here to CA I didn't know it was illegal and when I went to get my emissions done, they let it slide. I passed the emission EASILY (and this is saying something here in CA). So my question is, why are racing air filters like mine illegal here in CA if it has nothing to do with emissions?

 

cuz california is a liberal state......... thus anything that has to do with "performance" or "speed" or "horsepower" automatically causes all sort of alarms to sound, regardless if the part you install actually increases emissions or not.

 

Nah, it's gotta be something more than this. I'm SURE they have some sort of pollution reason for it (california is obsessed with pollution control, and for good reason).

 

it's nothing major enough to matter in any other state or country in the world. seriously, California just goes WAY overboard with this stuff. Probably, somewhere along the line, SOMEONE had bad emissions, and had one of these filters, and the inspection shop insisted that the filter was the causes, so they fixed some other stuff and removed the filter, and the emissions got better. Not that they wouldn't have gotten better just by 'fixing some stuff', but then they went and submitted it as 'proof' that the conical filters cause higher emissions. Same as any other stupid law... like how you can't cross such-and-such state line with an ice cream cone in your pocket, or can't keep a pet camel in a bathtub. Someone did it ONE time, it somehow caused a problem, now it's illegal.

Also keep in mind that many laws are created b/c they appease lobbyists, and somehow someway somebody gets a nice big profit off it. Like this "carbon credits" bs that they are trying to come up with... just another way for politicians to make money.

 

Yeah. See those videos of Downtown L.A. in the late 70's. See if you can find a little blue in the sky.

C.A.R.B stands for the California Air Resource Board, the same board who sided with the car companies and gotten rid of the EV1 (The first GM production of Electric Vehicles). Knowing CARB's history, that means your air filter increases gas mileage and you filters manufactures didn't bribe.. err.. pay for CARB's approval.

"Don't laugh America, don't laugh."

 

well if you think about it, thats really all it is. with the population concentration in california, especially in the so-cal/LA areas they get a whole s*-ton of smog build up. therefore, opinionated ingorant pompous a$$holes are the ones "sounding the alarms" when horsepower or something of the like is even muttered under somebodys breath. and even those of us on the other side of the country know how many of those there are in cali. theyre reputation very much precedes them.

 

as a side note, have you watched "who killed the electric car"? a very interesting documentary.

 

food for thought: Bigleman got 27mpg in his LS1 C5 Corvette doing (too-fast)mph with the a/c on when he came up to visit last weekend, and his car can go faster than most people are brave enough to find out. Toyota Pruis gets maybe 40-45mpg when driven by the average Prius owner... with a supercomplicated superexpensive 1.3L hybrid drive system. 5.7L pushrod V8 vs 1.3L hybrid and the best it can do is a 40% gain in MPG? Heck, Jime got 36mpg in his 10.86 second VQ35 automatic 4th gen from Ontario to DC when he came to Maxus. That's not even 10mpg less than the Prius. Yet you will get high praises on your vehicle tax for owning a Prius vs a Corvette. Thank you Al Gore. Thank you.

 

Nah man. In So Cali. There are a lot of Ferrari's, Lamborghinis, Vipers, Vettes, and Bentleys. You think horsepower is an issue?
Remember a lot of street races happens here too. This is a form of control so the police can ticket you/impound your car before you race.

Also in Cali, you idle a lot on the freeways!!!

 

I worked for the company who helped designed the EV1. (AeroVironment).
Yeah, I was PO'ed that althought the technology wasn't the best, GM let go the car that could have competed against the Prius, if GM added a small ICE motor.

 

Yeah, I'm in West LA and there are a LOT of $100k+ cars around. That's interesting, I wonder if that's it, I wonder if they were made illegal in an effort to crack down on street racing, hm.

 

you car = Maxima or the exotics you listed? ie they think that if you have a cone filter they assume you are a street racer?

 

interesting, so what are your thoughts on the volt? (sorry to be off topic)

 

well the power still comes from somewhere... and the power plants still make pollution. so the only important questions are: how much does it cost per mile to operate? how much measurable pollution-per-joule/megajoule/whatever?

 

No. I was just listing how cars with horsepower are abundant in L.A.
I say Ferrari's and Lambo's on 405 NB traffic moving 5 mph.

My ex roommate, who had a RSX Type S, was carded (or in this case, stickered) one time he was pulled over. He was pulled over for DWM (Driving while Modded) . Some cops do this when you have a loud performance muffler or just look like a race car.

 

I don't have any formed opinions on the volt yet, but I'm very excited about plug-in hybrids coming onto the market because what it does is centralize the problem - if automobile power comes from one source (electricity), then we can focus all of our efforts on this area and focus on expanding solar, wind, etc.

 

Volt claims 100 mpg, but that was measured under conditions one can't possibly find in L.A. But I won't believe it until I see it. One of my coworkers want one.

Two coworkers here have a Tesla Roadster. I believe the former coworker Wally, who was in the documentary and left here to work for Tesla, also have one. Those cars are too quiet, I never hear them coming compared to the Prius.

 

Hm, so maybe C.A.R.B. sticker requirements (making racing filters illegal) having nothing to do with emissions and are meant to increase safety (by attempting to discourage mods which may discourage street racing). Interesting.

 

There's a Tesla dealership near my apartment. I've heard they are quick (as in supercar quick acceleration) but have very bad handling because they're weighed down with hundreds of computer batteries. I think Tesla is moving in the right direction, but hasn't nailed it yet.

 

is DWM a legitimate offense??? that's preposterous if it is....... i guess that's why most of us try and keep a sleeper/stockish appearance, so crap like that doesn't happen.

 

CARB isn't doing it to keep people from modifying cars. CARB is supposed to control/reduce emissions to reduce pollution. Anything involving the engine, intake, exhaust, and controls are all capable of increasing/decreasing emissions. Thus, CARB has authority to regulate it. The problem is that they go WAAAAY overboard in their reign of scope, and basically squash most of what's "fun" for us.

http://www.arb.ca.gov/msprog/aftermkt/aftermkt.htm

 

Hm, so maybe it does slightly decrease emissions and they're just overly **** about regulating emissions.

 

now you're getting the point.......

 

Even without bribing anyone, the cost of getting a product CARB tested is outrageous. Then, of course, there's still no promise they'll approve it. I can't find it now, but I think it was around $10-20k to get them to test it. So you can see why an air filter company might not bother.

 

fortunately, it's just California........ for now. I've never had to have a sniffer test... due to my car's age, but the cat still does have to be present. Whether or not it works or has anything in it, they/i could care less, but it has to be present for my car to pass inspection. Which is good..... because my z's cat 'coughed up a hairball' if you know what i mean.....

 

That's probably true, but in my situation I have a K&N air filter, and they obviously have enough money to pay for testing. It's just interesting that I passed so easily and yet it's illegal. Maybe racing filters are illegal because they might slightly increase emissions and possibly somehow encourage street racing (and thus put other people/property at risk).

 

Truth. I can't remember which magazine (I think Popular Science or something), but just a few weeks ago I read an article in there that those guys got 30+ MPG hwy in a new Corvette in a real-world test (granted, mostly hwy, but STILL).

I find it irritating all the trendy liberals (especially the Hollywood type) going out of their way to explain to us the HUGE () personal sacrifice for the environment they made by selling their luxury cars and buying a Prius because they think they're making some fashionable societal statement, when in actuality, you can get darn near Prius MPG in virtually any Civic, Carolla, etc. from the last 25 years or so. Plus, of course, they then fly all over the world routinely, live in 10,000 sq. foot mansions, have pools and fountains, etc.

The vast majority of people even remotely involved in the current "green" movement are merely in it for fashionable/trendy reasons. Plus, then all the companies taking advantage of it. A company refusing to mail you a paper statement hides behind "saving trees" as their excuse and people largely embrace it even though the real motivation behind it is purely the cost-savings. It's just ridiculous

 

Horsepower, torque and speed are all known by The State of California to cause cancer, birth defects, and reproductive disorders. Happy people are also known to The State of California to cause cancer and cause reproductive harm.

 

Good one, n00b!

 

you are partially correct.
in order to get an item CARB certified it does cost money.

 

SIG!

 

Isn't it just the truth? LOL

 

Sometimes the truth hurts. In the case of Kalifornia, even the truth will give you cancer!

 

In Soviet California, Cancer treats YOU!

 

damn! you beat me to it!

and on topic with the off topic...
http://videos.streetfire.net/video/1...ius_180378.htm

 

Hey Hey hey.
California can't help it if we got the right type of streets for sports cars for naughty driving. But you guys ever walk down the Vegas strip on a busy night. Breathe that in for a good 5 minutes and you see why emissions tests are need. Heck that was bad for me. I guess unlike Nevada, our pollution stays in Cali.

 

Not to mention the daily stop and go traffic on the highways on the mornings and afternoons. Nearly every freeway get very slow but not as bad as the 60 and the 10 Luckily I don't need to take any freeways during those times.

 

just find yer self a carb approved sticker and slap it on there

 

i jus put a cold air intake in my car. it didnt come with sumthin to keep it in place i need to make sumthin cuz it moves around.

 

grab a strip of approx 18g steel, (1"x6", or so should be goodbut you may need a longer strip), use the hose clamp as one mount point (slip it between the air filter and the clamp), find a spot to bolt the other end to (probably will need to measure and drill a hole).