This has probably been covered before but a search didn't satisfy my question so here goes.

I'm moving to SoCal ('Lower' California ) in september and I would like to make my baby legal. Here's the question, She's a 93 CX with a 97 B18C1 running an OBD1 1995 ECU. Oh yes, just to make it interesting she has a JRSC at 8 PSI as well.

All the smog stuff is installed and running, no codes what-so-ever and I passed the local snif test/**** probe (which is pretty stringent in Washington DC) but i'm scared about the visual inspection.

Do I have a snowballs chance in hell of passing? My biggest concern is the supercharger and the little problem of running an OBD2 engine with an OBD1 computer and smog equipment.

I am really fond of this car and don't want to sell her.

Suggestions are welcome and encouraged.

THANKS!

 

It depends on where you go but offhand I would say that your hosed. The law is emissions equipment to match the year of the engine, which means OBD2 for yours. Throw a SC in the mix, and most smog techs will run for the hills, and send you to the ref.

 

Easiest solution.... keep your car registered at the same old address (or at somebody's place that is in the same county). That's basically what I'm doing right now with my cars - they're registered in Northern California and I live in So Cal. When it comes time to smog, I'll just drive up north, get the tailpipe test done (in some places up there, they can careless what motor you have in the car... if it says "Honda" on the valve cover, and you pass smog and have your car clean looking (no wires all over the place, clean setup w/vacuum hoses all connected), then there are no problems. Otherwise, if you plan to register your car in So Cal, you'll probably have to add/remove parts or the motor itself every 2 years unless you spend lots of time to make everything smog legal - which for me, it's easier to just swap the motor out

 

Yeah, thats what I was afraid of. I just spoke to a CA ref and he basically told me the same thing. I have another question though, what determines the year of the block? There is an obvious date stamp on the front of the head but where is the casting date on the block? do they even look at that? Can I get away with just swapping the head out?

I love this car and I really want to keep her but running back to Washington DC periodically to re-register the car really isn't an option I mean I like to drive and all but really

Mike

 

There is another option that I would not recommend or endorse. Find a shady smog tech and slip him $100. Or you pick up a CX swap and drop it in every two years

 

If your good at working on it, then just dump a d15 back in every two years, it might sound like a hassle but it will present an opportunity to do tune-ups and clean-ups on your b18 while its out of the car which is a 1000 times easier then when its in.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 92sleepR &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> I have another question though, what determines the year of the block? There is an obvious date stamp on the front of the head but where is the casting date on the block? do they even look at that? Can I get away with just swapping the head out?
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In most cases, they just run the block numbers in their databas to determine the year of the block. Otherwise, this is how to determine the year of your block. Take, for example, a JDM engine block that says B18C 2345678 (even a US one will work the same way, so B18C1 2345678 is the same thing for my example). The first part basically tells you what block you have an whether it's US or JDM (the #1, or any number after the last letter identifies the block as US - no number means JDM). The second part, the 2345678, or any 7 digit number underneath, denotes the generation of the block. In this case, 2 shows that it's a 2nd generation B18C longblock. Since the B18C motors first came out in 1994, then the 2nd generation version would be in 1995, thus making your block a 95 block. The head will say a year on it also, but usually the year before the motor was dropped into the car.... like "93" on a 94 GSR head/motor. Another example: B18C1 6xxxxxx would be a 6th gen B18C1 block that came in a US 99 Integra GSR.

 

Ahh Cool. Thats just the sort of info I needed

I think if I find a good deal on a ragged out 95 B18C1 I might just rebuild it, take the opportunity to beef up the internals and swap it out for mine. If I get a good price on my 97 I could still come out ahead and then I won't ever have to screw with it again. I have a good place to work here but I won't in LA. I have no idea what I'm going to do with all the tools and equipment I've gathered

Thanks for the info guys Thats what I love about this board.

Mike