hello,

I received a $400 dollar fix it ticket today for having a JDM H22A engine, adj. cam gears, headers, etc in my 97Honda Accord. I received the ticket in Irvine, CA. The cop said I need to have it fixed by October and show it to the State Ref or Bureau of Automotive Repair i think.

What should I do? has anyone had a similar ticket/story? Advice?

Thanks for your help and advice,

Tony


Modified by ynotlim at 2:13 PM 8/2/2007


Modified by ynotlim at 2:34 PM 8/2/2007

 

Gestapo bastards!
What the heck is this? Are you in 1940's Germany or something?

I feel for you California people, I wonder how much longer it will be for the rest of us.
I would like to know what' he can do also.

 

It angers me that america is turning into a police state. That is complete bullshit man.

 

They should be ticketing big *** SUVs instead of us, even if we have mods, big *** trucks and SUVs cause way more damage to the environment than we will ever do. And that is their "logic" when they ticket us apparently.

Im sorry man I dont know what to do, I guess you could get a friend who has a stock engine and drop that in there for a day or two when you go to the reff, thats just my suggestion ive never had any experience like yours. I know plenty of people here have though probably.

Good luck man

 

OMFG!!! sucks for u to get pulled over by Irvine cops. I live in Irvine and they are such a big B****... Ummmmm so the problem is?? Inspection? pass smog?

I would do what the other told you. stock engine.

 

glad i live in the brew city....

 

Is it a ticket where you either have to make the "repair" and show it to an inspector and it is dropped, or pay the fine if you don't comply? If it is a fix or pay situation, you really might be better off just paying it. Getting another motor in your car will cost you more time and money than just paying the fine. I know the laws are different where you live, but if it is fix or pay, I would just pay. $400 is a lot of money, but I would rather lose the money than let the law dictate how I live.

Since some other people have gotten on this kick, I will too. I won't go so far as to say the U.S. is becoming a police state, but I will say that motor vehicle laws are NOT enforced fairly or without bias. Do you think motorcycles, muscle cars, or collectors get exhaust tickets because they are "too loud"? Nope. The pollution argument is a joke too. But whatever.

 

matt you forgot trucks. this is bull that you got that ticket, but sorry to say it is what it is. I don't know the laws in calli, but still. the other part you are missing mat is that those other cars wouldn't get nearly as good emission ratings as a jdm h22. f the pigoloice.

 

Is the tickect for having an H22 or for having modifications done to the engine??? I dont think cops know the diffrence between an H22 or an F22....

 

i would pay it.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JDM_Acccord &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i would pay it. </TD></TR></TABLE>


Not so easy. There is no such thing as a simple fix in CA. You have to have the car BAR'ed. And that is a bitch...

 

what exactly is bar'ed?

 

jesus. we dont even have inspections in florida. I love Florida!

 

fight the system. tell them bastard cops that the day when muscle cars have to go through smog will be the day u reswap out ur motor. IMO, that ticket is discrimination because you drive an import and not a classic domestic. My 4dr accord never passed smog, i ran an f22b1 w/ h22 head, straight pipe exhaust, no cat. and i will eventually do the same again. Don't give them an inch or they will take it all. F#$! California **** cops.

 

Matt,
Here's some answers to your questions:

- It is a ticket where I have to pay the $400 dollar fine AND show it FIXED to the State Referee.
- I also need to take the car to a BAR (Bureau of Automotive Repair)
- The cop wrote down "H22A" on the citation and KNEW it was JDM, unfortunately this guy was too smart. He could also tell it had adjustable cam gears, etc. You know what, he knew so much he might be a honda-tech member. Lets hope not.

so yeah... pretty much here are my 3 options:
1. Swap the motor
2. Register the car as "off-road use" only
3. Fight the ticket

 

usdm ecu, stock cam gears, carb approved header, bring it to the ref and ask him what else you need to get it bar'd. i know you have to get teh EVAP system working and thats a bitch

if you did an obd conversion then you are screwed

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by raceACCORDingly &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
if you did an obd conversion then you are screwed</TD></TR></TABLE>

This is what screws most people in CALI...

 

if you wire your car to odb2, then you don't need to swap the motor back to stock. You can just replace everything such as cams gear, header, intake back to stock or get the one that are carb. exempt, and everything else to usdm spec, then go to the ref and let them test you...If you pass, I think you can ask the judge to lower down the fined. If you don't pass, they will tell you what else you need to do to your car in order to pass and get it bar'ed.

 

Sure I forgot trucks, and I know the H22 has better emissions than those I mentioned (except maybe some bikes). What I meant by the emissions argument being a joke is that they try to argue that JDM and modifed Honda engines have too high of emissions, but they are nowhere near as high as muscle cars, trucks, etc. I wasn't missing that.

What are the consequences for not having your car Bar'd or passing the smog inspections? Here in WI you cannot renew your registration, but if you spend enough $ trying to fix it you can get a waiver. You have to renew your registration annually, but you have to go to emissions testing every other year in to renew, and whenever you purchase a vehicle. For OBDII cars they pretty much just plug into your DLC and do OBD readiness checks, and do a gas cap test. If your computer passes all its readiness tests, your car will pass emissions. A MIL/CEL is an automatic failure.

I haven't renewed my plates on my project car in 3 years. Since it was last registered I have gotten 3 expired plate tickets at about $80 a piece. I just pay and move on. I won't, shall we say "detune" my car to pass the tests, while other people get away with whatever because they aren't driving an import.

If that cop knew that much and was possibly an import enthusiast he is a monumental piece of **** for still writing you the ticket. To me he might as well be selling the drugs he confiscates from people. I have been stopped by cops who cut me breaks because they were young once too and loved to work on cars and drive fast.





Modified by MatterMatt at 11:52 PM 8/2/2007

 

No BAR=no registration=immediate impoundment if pulled over...

 

not true just fix it 400 really not that bad....just pay it i got one for 600 for just an intake and exhaust.

edit nvm just read your ticket..usually they dont say you have to get a bar...but good luck man

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by MatterMatt &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Sure I forgot trucks, and I know the H22 has better emissions than those I mentioned (except maybe some bikes). What I meant by the emissions argument being a joke is that they try to argue that JDM and modifed Honda engines have too high of emissions, but they are nowhere near as high as muscle cars, trucks, etc. I wasn't missing that.

What are the consequences for not having your car Bar'd or passing the smog inspections? Here in WI you cannot renew your registration, but if you spend enough $ trying to fix it you can get a waiver. You have to renew your registration annually, but you have to go to emissions testing every other year in to renew, and whenever you purchase a vehicle. For OBDII cars they pretty much just plug into your DLC and do OBD readiness checks, and do a gas cap test. If your computer passes all its readiness tests, your car will pass emissions. A MIL/CEL is an automatic failure.

I haven't renewed my plates on my project car in 3 years. Since it was last registered I have gotten 3 expired plate tickets at about $80 a piece. I just pay and move on. I won't, shall we say "detune" my car to pass the tests, while other people get away with whatever because they aren't driving an import.

If that cop knew that much and was possibly an import enthusiast he is a monumental piece of **** for still writing you the ticket. To me he might as well be selling the drugs he confiscates from people. I have been stopped by cops who cut me breaks because they were young once too and loved to work on cars and drive fast.
Modified by MatterMatt at 11:52 PM 8/2/2007</TD></TR></TABLE>

oh shut up, you knew the rules, you broke them and now you gotta pay. You don't like the rules, do something about it....but don't bitch about some 40 year old car not having to pass emmissions

 

The bottom line is that these are the rules. The only way to get that changed is to go through your state government. Of course we all know that they won't give a sh** about you unless you are a campaign contributor. We also know that most people on Honda-Tech don't have the means for that.

My Point: The only people who can have the rules changed for their own good are those with truckloads of money. In other words, you aren't rich, you're screwed. Good luck.

 

I knew I was breaking the law, and I knew I would have to pay. I said, "I just pay and move on." I wasn't bitching about getting the tickets for expired plates. I don't care so much about collector cars as the trucks, and newer muscle cars that you never really hear about getting pinched for this kind of stuff.

I'm glad you felt the need to post a half-*** response to my post. Try reading a little more. Maybe try answering some of the questions? F*ck the laws that are in place, and if you think contacting my state legislature or joining some interest group will change the law you are kidding yourself.


Modified by MatterMatt at 7:54 AM 8/3/2007

 

[QUOTE=MatterMatt]F*ck the laws that are in place, and if you think contacting my state legislature or joining some interest group will change the law you are kidding yourself.[QUOTE]

1. I also stated that you wouldn't be able to get the laws changed. I agree that it sucks.

2. "F*ck the laws . . . " is why you are out all that money.

Trust me, I think it is wrong just as much as everybody else here, BUT keeping a low profile goes a long way in keeping people out of this kind of trouble.