david borla

To clear up some possible confusion about "50 State Street Legal" claims made by some exhaust manufacturers regarding aftermarket cats for the 997 line.

All aftermarket catalytic convertors for the 997 are illegal California if the car is still within the warranty period.

Actually, for any vehicle 2006 or newer, replacement of the OEM catalyst is not allowed for vehicles that are still within their warranty period.

Furthermore, there must be an "Exemption Number" available through the California Air Resource Board (CARB) for any catalytic convertor to be considered street legal in California for any vehicle. You can find this information here http://www.arb.ca.gov/msprog/aftermk...es/amquery.php

If you live in California please be very careful regarding "50 state street legal" claims regarding catalytic convertors. Beware of manufacturers who are new to the game and have not done their homework or are willing to take the risk of deceiving their customers.

I would hate to see 997 owners left with a vehicle that is not street legal. At the very least, re-purchasing the stock exhaust setup is a costly endeavor not to mention the hassle.

997driver

Thanks you for your concern Dave, it is really good information that consumers MUST know before buying!

4thporsche

This is good information. Not to be subversive but what are the chances if you get pulled over and the cop figuring out you have non-OEM cats? When cars are smogged they do a visual. Can a person at a smog shop or service station tell the difference between after market and OEM? Also, would 200 cell cats fail the sniffer test?

The reason I ask these questions is that I want to put 200 cell cats on my car. I already have an aftermarket exhaust (yes, I am thinking of switching to Borla) and headers. The car obviosly sounds modified but I can't imagine someone checking to see if I have swapped out the cats. Also, I bought my car new, out-of-state, so I believe I have to get it smogged next year. If I swap out the cats will I fail the smog test?

Are there any 200 cel cats that are street legal in CA (excluding warranty period restrictions)?

Thanks -

Streamlined

Fwiw here's a old CHP booklet that covers some modding issues -
http://www.chp.ca.gov/html/streetlegal.html

As I understand it, if you have already gotten the PO's attention enough to pull you over there is a chance that he will be looking the car over for infractions and perhaps generate some revenue off of fines. It seems like if he did notice the sound of your exhaust and thinks its too loud and/or sees aftermarket tips and such, he can cite you and the car will have to be tested and checked over. Not sure if this would likely happen with a new Porsche since it probably is more directed at boy racer types, but there have been training videos floating around showing officers being instructed on how to check over cars for violations so I guess there is a chance, but who really knows what the likihood is that you will get caught by a traffic stop.

jcnesq

I have PSE so pretty sure I would pass in Calif as it is a factory option - but I am also pretty sure my Fabspeed Cold Air Kit is something I could get busted for. I imagine the focus is on young kids and ricers, but pissing off an officer might likely get you an equipment ticket.

Thanks, David, for your post.

User 4621

This is a good point. Most if not all aftermarket cats will pass the CA smog test easily. HOWEVER, as mentioned above, any aftermarket cat without a CARB exemption (which is basically all of them AFAIK), can technically fail a visual inspection. Same is true for intake systems.

Personally, I have never heard of someone failing a visual, but I installed stock cats instead of aftermarket ones anyway for peace of mind.

In any case, if you live in CA and install aftermarket intake or cats, I would recommend keeping your OEM parts just in case. You can always re-install them to get your fixit ticket cleared.

BTW, another good reason is that these parts could raise a flag at your dealer too. When I brought my car in for a CEL reset and my service rep saw my EVOM intake, they took a look to see if the car had any mechanical over-revs recorded.

Dave07997S

Good advice..also, keep in mind we here in Ca. don't have to smog our cars when new for the first 7 years except when transferring title. I'm not sweating this at all..

Dave

david borla

I know for certain that in California for vehicles 2006 or newer, replacement of the OEM catalyst is not allowed for vehicles that are still within their warranty period.

Furthermore, here is a link to all CARB exempt catalytic convertors.

http://www.arb.ca.gov/msprog/aftermk...rmktdevice.php

As you can see, there is nothing CARB exempt that is newer than 2004 and there is nothing in any year for Porsche.

Other states are beginning to adopt CARB's laws. As you know emissions has become a major political topic and there are elctions coming up. I would expect things to get more strict regardless you live.

The bottom line is this. KEEP YOUR STOCK EXHAUST PARTS SO YOU CAN RETURN THE CAR TO STOCK IF NEED BE!!!!

Obviously it's up to you if you want to use aftermarket cats and it's also up to you if you have any interest in understanding the laws before you make your decision.

Also, please remember that there are state laws and there are federal laws. If the EPA decides to enforce their current emissions laws then this whole aftermarket catalyst thing is over. If you can't return to the OE catalyst you will not be able to register your Porsche for street use.

In my opinion (and it's just my opinion), there's no reason to use aftermarket cats as they are just as illegal as eliminating the cats alltogether. Unfortunately, you will have to swap your performance system out and replace it with the OE exhaust when it comes time for street use and smog tests.