rk-d

Flash back to factory for smog shouldn’t be a big deal and I suspect will bypass this issue. I suspect CA won’t be doing forensics to assess prior tune history - I doubt they’ll have the expertise to do that for every make and model of car out there.

Even if they could tell the ECU has been flashed, who is to say that you didn’t decide to flash back to stock in order to be compliant with the law?

ipse dixit

Jealousy

phaser

Yeah that's it nothing to it.
I began tuning around the year 2000 and have really enjoyed it on both cars and motorcycles, Alpha-N and Speed density. I've used EFI Live, HD Race Tuner but prefer HP Tuners as I own that software suite and have used it with great results I'm pretty familiar with this stuff along with the OBD port. LOL.
My comment was obviously over your head. There is profoundly more to this issue than what you imagine, much more than reading fault codes. There are more different types of ECUs than you likely know and each has it own architecture.
The point I was making at least from experience here is that I find it extremely hard to believe that CA has come up with a device that instantly examines scores of ECUs from different years and various manufacturers and then determines what parameters have been modified from stock on a medley of different control units and then determine if it is has been done in a "non compliant" fashion. This world is nowhere near as simple as you obviously believe.
You should do some research before you pop off here about who is clueless. Log onto a tuning forum and you will get the idea.

goin2drt

This is interesting. Sounds like you are well versed. Honest question and really don't care about the topic but more for my own pleasure of wanting to tune a car (or should I say have it tuned).

So if you have a tune on your car say with a Cobb Accessport. If you remove that tune back to stock via the handheld, can the dealer officially know that car HAD a tune on it at some point and if so how do they know? Like does there scanner flash some screen up or would the technician really have to dig to some sub menu to see?

Also then how (if they are) do "piggy back" tunes compare. For example there is a Burger "piggy back" tuner for the F56 Mini. The manufacture claims you can simple unplug the tuner before heading into service and there is absolutely no way they can tell. Is this true or if they wanted to dig they could find out?

phaser

Things have really gotten complicated with this tuning stuff and I would say that you are wise to go with the pros at this point.
I can tell you that when I began to tune on my own the learning curve was steep, very steep(dynamic using STFTs and LTFTs, MAF calibrations, A/F ratios, Volumetric Efficiency, Power Enrichment, etc). This was many years ago.
My advice would be to find a well known, reputable tuning outfit and go with their product, stage I, Stage II etc. which is what I will be doing from this point on.
It is my understanding that in the late model cars the dealer is able to read how many flashes have been delivered to the cars ECU.
Burger JB4, Race Chip, and other "piggybacks" are not a flash but rather a means of tricking your cars electronics into raising the level of boost in a nutshell.
You can research the traceability of these "piggybacks" and find that it can be a subject with a high level of disagreement.

Carlo_Carrera

You are no where near over my head. I have decades of first hand car ECU tuning experience, going back to swapping out actual ROM chips in the ECU. You clearly have none. You spent your entire morning reading about tuning on the internet and now trying to BS your way out of this to save face. Too late.

These days a proper retail OBD2 scanner will tell if the ECU has been flashed and if that flash is Non-OEM. It is really that simple. As I said earlier, a 15 year old in high school shop class could, and has, deciphered the pertinent information.

Bluehighways

I've lived all over the USA. I even spent a decade one year in Detroit. Managed to get transferred to California in 1979. I love it here. Often I hear folks from other parts of the country boast about how low their tax (pick your poison) Sales, Gasoline, Income, Real Estate, etc., etc., etc. is. But if you add up all the various state taxes one is obliged to pay in any given state, the difference in the total is actually quite small. Typically the things that a state buys: Education, Roads, Bridges, Infrastructure Repair, etc. cost about the same everywhere. If it's less it's usually because the labor to produce these things cost less. This in turn is almost certainly reflected in your reduced income as well. In the end, it's all been pretty much a wash in my experience and so far, I've seen northing that would dispel this.

As to checking emissions on cars & trucks and tightening the testing and enforcement of vehicle emissions; I'm 100% for that. I can clearly see (no pun intended) the effect that improved emissions controls and the enforcement of their maintenance has had on the air quality here in California. I've lived in both the San Francisco Bay Area and the Los Angeles Area. The improvement in air quality, particularly when I look back 10 or 20 years is simply amazing.

So like the bumper stickers that have periodically become popular here say: "Welcome to California! Now Go Back Home!"
.

RRich

End of tuning?

From the CARB website.

What is OBD III?

OBD III is a term used to describe the concept of "remote OBD." Under this concept, vehicle would have the ability to transmit OBD fault information to roadside receivers, for example, through cellular networks. The benefit of such a concept is that a motorist would not have to take their vehicle to a station for an emissions inspection as long as the vehicle is communicating that there are no active emission-related malfunctions. If the OBD II system has detected a problem, the vehicle owner would be expected to have the problem repaired in a timely fashion. Correction of the problem would be verified through the OBD data transmitted after the vehicle has been serviced.

California has not adopted any kind of mandatory remote OBD program at this time. The remote OBD concept has been studied by states, including California, through pilot programs that are based on voluntary participation.

Carlo_Carrera

^ My god, that, is going too far.

phaser

Oh OK Carlo. You changed "chips" in your Fox body Mustang GT back in the day, big deal, a monkey could do that. I would love to sit one on one with you and talk about this stuff.

ipse dixit

If tuners are really serious that their tunes are not detectable, ask how many of them will warranty your car in the event their tune results in a denied warranty claim.

phaser

Exactly and if they do "warranty" their tune what is the chance that they will cut you a check for you repairs at your friendly neighborhood Porsche dealer.
Counterpoint being, how many guys with 911s tuned by reputable, well known outfits have had any major engine damage?

ipse dixit

Define “major”.

That said I know of at least two instances where a tuning shop paid out of pocket die repairs to the owners car after a denied warranty claim. On the condition they do not speak publicly about it.

phaser

Major=not minor.
Don't you think it is wise to have the funds for an engine or transmission repair if you are running a tune with a significant power increase?

ipse dixit

I dunno.

I’d imagine if most people were told that the tune was undetectable they would just rely on the warranty in the event of an engine or transmission issue.