h0ndaeg

hey guys,
this might sound a bit ridiculous but i got a call from a local number around my area. i wasnt around my phone when i got the call so i got a voicemail.
the voicemail was a automated machine, it read off my license plate number and said my car was a polluter. it told me to contact the chp for a state ref smog or else my car will be impounded.

i called this number back and nobody picks up. it leads to a voicemail saying "the google voice subscriber is not available, please leave a msg after the tone"

i thought that was kind of odd cus why would the chp use google voice to call me?

my first thought was that its one of my friends prank calling me.

bottom line is i just want to know can a chp call you personally regarding smog.

btw my registration is due in FEB but i just recently bought the car in august 2009
i got my dmv registration in the mail and it didnt require smog

xlasianizelx

i heard that in SO Cal, there are some on road portable smog device that reads the amout of smog each car passes by, and when it reads one, it snaps a pics of the license plate.. I heard about stories like these before, but havnt seen one in real life. My Buddy said its like a van with a sensor stick of some sort on top of the roof on the side of the freeway.

maybe its true after all... is ur car stock or modified?

Jonathannx2

I have never heard of that before.

mrharmonic

hell yea if you live in the la are in cali yor ****ed there always out hot and hevey down long beach blvd and imperial hwy. iv been ****ing buy these and good luck trying to run from them becase chp is always with them. i ran from cops one and got a way puer luck i say but good luck with them

GymClassHero619

well this is new.. but don't they also need to know what kind of year your car is to figure out how much smog its suppose to be producing or something..

either way, this is very surprising. More info would be appreciated..

mrharmonic

its not based on how much smog its proud dusing they you thrmo microwave camra's that can look at the carbon heat conposites that come out of the tail pipe and also by the cop pulling some one over he think that its not gona pass smog so if the camre doesnt pick it up the cop will lol i have uncles in chp so i have been lectuerd meny times lol

GymClassHero619

Damn, that might be an issue for me later on I guess. Thanks for the heads up on that.

95_Civic_4dr

OP, that call is 100% real and yes the CHP will call you through the automated machine. Yet another irritating emissions law California put into effect. Later on you either receive a call or notice in the mail to get your car smogged. They love putting these near the 215 freeway, especially near Ontario and other I.E. areas.

When going past those either throw the car in neutral and glide by or throw it neutral and turn the engine off until you pass it.

Yep that's exactly how it works, they set those trucks/vans up mostly on off-ramps or on-ramps, wherever there's only one way out.


Sometimes I wonder wtf I'm still doing here in Cali.

Vindicator9000

cliffs: lolcali.

I haven't had to get my car inspected in 8 years of ownership.

fasthatch95

look up cali smog

77777

wow. we have the vans out here, but they actually test emissions as you drive by so you dont have to go in and get it done, like an actual convenience thing. they dont use it to enforce anything.

add 1 to the list of why cali is the gayest place on earth.

Jimster480

i would say its a scam. I doubt the state is using a google voice account.

blkcivic310

ive lived in cali forever and never herd of this

Luserkid

I drive all over Southern Cali from Malibu to OC to Riverside and have never heard or seen this and find it very hard to believe driving by a machine at speeds of 35 and up could give an accurate reading about your emissions. Now if your blowing black smoke and your neighbor can smell your car from down the street then yea I believe it would pick that up. What I would do is call your local CHP office or even walk in. Alot of times theres no one there so you could get a few words in. But I have yet to hear about this and I try to stay up to date on new emissions as I help alot of people go through the Bar test with there cars.

SarahVTEC

Interesting. It doesn't surprise me CA would have something like this. After all, I've seen the portable smog machines set-up on the side of the road with CHP flagging cars over. It's ridiculous!

eghatch420

http://www.wired.com/autopia/2007/09/california-smog/

RIGHT THERE.

boxeocampeon

thats nuts like they actually ****ing care i would call CHP and see if its real

fastrxu

Wtf

I got snitched on the other day here in nevada for blowing excess smoke out my tailpipe.
DMV said if I don't fix it they will cancel my registration so I stopped driving the hatch for a couple months until next week that I get a fresh b20 soot woot

eghatch420

That sucks. I feel like I could be next, I think it's a really simple call to report it too, like you just call in and give them the plate number, no hold or wait line. I get smoke coming out my tail pipe after I hit VTEC and always think about someone calling when I see it in my rear view mirror.

carfreak2020

That sucks......i knew cali was bad for pollution an but jeez.......As far as i know we dont have smog or emission test thats required around.....the only thing you have to do is a Safety vehicle inspection in New-Brunswick witch is once a year and its only about safety like no holes in the body brakes suspension etc......

Im glad we dont have emission cuz until i get money to rebuild im stuck with my motor with blown rings i got trough a gallon of 5w-30 a month if not more......

BatuKing

There are two reasons why you would get that call, or notification. One is someone called in your plate, saying that they noticed excessive smoke coming from your tail pipe at one point.. YOu guys prob recall the 1800 number to call if you see a car that has excessive smoke.

Second reason is that you drove by a roadside sampling station, which tests your vehicle as you drive by. Usually in southern california area, it is a pilot program that has been around for awhile.

http://www.smogtips.com/remote_sensing.cfm

97ej6dx

Man that sucks to have emission testing! I keep seeing these pop up on H/T probably because most of the members are from california. I feel for you guys!! I would go nuts if i had to get tested.. again i would fail due to having a testpipe.

ReVeNgEd-SoN

Lol at cali and there driving laws becoming evening more strict, glad I don't live there :D.

NC doesn't even require a emissions test

But if they call you for that, I can really see people out there trying to scam for money "oh your car smog is bad, thats a $50 fine pay to this"

97ej6dx

nor dose any thing in illinois south of chicago i love it!! they dont have very strict regulations on vehicle importation either because the police dont enforce it.. so most people title and insure the cars as something else.. not sure how they do the vins

nothing_shocking

Cali sucks... lol. Around where I live, if they tried to put some kind of smog thing in place, they'd have a riot of rednecks. You should see some of the stuff they do to their trucks... Black smoke rolling all the time. Definitely not stock turbo diesels... lol