Shmurzik

I need to re-SMOG my 928 in the next few days. I was told to go to a "test-only" site. So I have the following questions:

Do I need to take any precautions specific to 928 before or during the test?
Can anyone recommend a check site?

I noticed the price difference in the range of about $59 to $89 per car + the cost of a certificate (several places mentioned it, seems to be around $8). Geographically, I can go as far South as Sunnyvale and as far North as Burlingame.

Many thanks

SharkSkin

I've been hosed by those folks before.... long story. But if you have any doubts, I'd say get a pre-inspection elsewhere. If Greenslip finds any issue at all they can be a real bunch of ******* about it, and make your life miserable.

Fastest928

When we have a doubt about possible smog, we do a pretest prior to submission.

Did you get tagged a gross pol'r - failed a test?
Marc
DEVEK

Ron_H

I can tell you my experience:

I took my Rabbit to an Arco station in Sunnyvale that had done a smog check in the past. They gave me nothing but crap about how my car would not pass but if I paid them $125.00 they would do "repairs" to make it pass. One finger salute to them everytime I pass by.

I then took my Rabbit to a noted smog shop in San Jose. Bonehead guy farts around with the car while I wait in the lounge, and then he comes in and repeats almost word for word what the other jerks told me; no pass but bring it back with around $125.00 and he will make it pass. I got in the car, drove off and as I was going down Monterey Hwy, the hood flys up and smashes the windshield. The joker neglected to re-install the hood pins which were put there to prevent just this thing from happening. He refuses to pay, State Farm pays and then calls the Bureau of Auto Repair on him, and I get the front of the car painted so it doesn't match the rear now. Gee, what a lucky guy I am.
But still no smog certificate.

I take the car to Sanders Automotive in San Carlos next to the old Devek, and leave it to go pet Susan and Mark's giant dogs. About 45 minutes later I had tired of scratching the dogs' backs and I wander back to Sanders who have finished my car. It passed and cost about $85.00.

Next I take the 928 to Sanders and it passed immediately and for the same charge.

I'm a happy camper and the dogs got two back scratches, which makes them happy too. Konstantin, go to honest people and pay them what they deserve to get for their work. And save your sanity. That way you will have more time for what you like to do, which is to take photos and disappear, leaving your friends wandering around scratching their heads wondering where you are.

SharkSkin

They just decided that my Ramcharger "fit the profile" of a gross polluter. Maybe it's the 6100lb GVWR, the full-time 4x4, I don't know. So anyway, it's always passed clean before, right in the middle of the numbers. 318 V8, Edelbrock dual-plane, Carter AFB, and headers. So, despite this, Greenslip dings me for not having a 2bbl and not having a warm air intake(like I need it). Next stop, BAR smog referee. Major frickin PITA getting the right 2bbl manifold(anyone with half a brain tossed theirs 20 years ago).

I put on the correct carb, fresh rebuilt. Correct manifold. Correct air cleaner. "Correct" (hah!) timing. So now it passes the ref's critical eye... but now I'm no longer in the middle of the numbers, but 80-90% on the high side. Now it takes about a week to go 0-60 and it pings on hot days. Frickin Einstein told me on 3 occasions to put the truck on his stupid dyno, and I had to tell him 3 times that he better tie it good then, because I can't cut power to the front wheels without dropping a driveline.

To top it all off... I probably drove the truck more in the process of all that BS than I normally do all year. Who's he saving?

</rant>

OK, gotta go stick my head in the freezer. Talk about Smog ***** makes me hot.

bd0nalds0n

There's a place I go to in Encinitas, which offers a "package," of a pretest, a real test, and a re-test if it fails. I've found that when I pay them for 3 tests, it only takes one to pass. Funny how that works, but I'm not complaining...

Jim bailey - 928 International

Extortion comes in many forms. The TEST only guys are not allowed to do repairs so theoretically are far less likely to offer to "fix" it. The normal repair facilities who also test do seem to find problems which they for a fee can correct. A good running S-4 should have no problem with emissions a bad running one should be repaired because there is nothing like a good running S-4 !!

goliver

I got the notification by DMW that my old 6 series BMW was selected to be tested at a test only center. In my neck of the woods that means about $30 more for the test. The tech was cool about them not having the right adapter for the gas cap test and let it slide. He also let me push the fresh air intake on all the way as I had done a **** poor job of it when installing the new air cleaner the night before. He said he couldn't push it on himself and would have to fail me if I didn't rectify the situation. It passed as always although it made me nervous this time as I loaned it to my sister for a few months and she took it to Monterrey Mexico a few times and let me know way after the fact that she had to run leaded fuel in it a few times as she couldn't find unleaded. Still runs great and passes with flying colors. Who knows how screwed up the cats got from the couple of tankfuls of leaded fuel?

Regards,

nicobel

Just make sure the car is warmed up enough...
I went to a test only station, the guy was joking about how small the car is (he is like 6 something), he told me that he used to work on 911s and how he liked the P cars...
Car passed like nothing (he even used a "good" fuel cap he had hidden somewhere)
"Did you tune the car yourself?" Answer: Yep, after some $$$....
I was too close to take the car to another station, but i know the guy is kinda crooked and i did not wanted any chance with him...