Off road H-pipe or an H-pipe with cats January 16, 2007, 01:00:59 PM As some of you know, my 88 Tbird is going to undergo an HO conversion in the near future (probably within the next 4-6 weeks). I'm looking at getting an H-pipe for the car to replace the restrictive Y-pipe (I wont be replacing the rest of the exhaust till later). Here in NC, we do have emission laws, but cars older than 1996 are not tested. It says:"Cars older than 1996 do not have OBD systems, and methods for testingolder vehicles are prohibitively expensive. By 2006,about three-fourths of the state’s urban highway emissions are expected to come from 1996 and newer vehicles. However, the older cars are subject to anannual visual inspection of their emissions control devices."There is an H-pipe with cats from Summit for $169, but even that is quite a bit more than an off road H-pipe. Being an 18 year old working part time, $70 or so is a big deal. So should I go the safe route and get the H-pipe with cats or save the money with the off road pipe? If I got the off road pipe, could that cause any future hassles as far as inspections go? Thanks for your time. Quote Selected
Off road H-pipe or an H-pipe with cats Reply #1 – January 17, 2007, 12:35:51 AM Yeah to pass a visual inspection you need the cats. If you don't have cats you don't have part of your emission system and you fail:hick: . Quote Selected
Off road H-pipe or an H-pipe with cats Reply #2 – January 17, 2007, 07:06:49 AM I'd find a good used Mustang or Mark VII H-Pipe and hollow out the cats on it.They can be found pretty cheap if you look around.Looks legal,but isn't. Quote Selected
Off road H-pipe or an H-pipe with cats Reply #3 – January 22, 2007, 10:51:21 PM I'll probably just get the $169 H-pipe with cats and just be safe with it. It's not like I'm going really high performance yet. Thanks for the tips. Quote Selected
Off road H-pipe or an H-pipe with cats Reply #4 – January 22, 2007, 11:06:52 PM see if you can find a nice/sleazy inspection guy.... you never know. personally thats what im doing. cant wait till 2012, though, then my car will turn 25 and i could run open headers if i wanted to!!!! Quote Selected
Off road H-pipe or an H-pipe with cats Reply #5 – January 22, 2007, 11:13:30 PM Wait, if my car is over 20 years old( 23) I can get away with NO CATS? Christ, we get away with murder now. Quote Selected
Off road H-pipe or an H-pipe with cats Reply #6 – January 23, 2007, 09:10:19 AM Quote from: ZondaC12;125203see if you can find a nice/sleazy inspection guy.... you never know. personally thats what im doing. cant wait till 2012, though, then my car will turn 25 and i could run open headers if i wanted to!!!!I'll be doing that at the end of this year. Mwuhahahahato get Historic tags in Maryland meaning no more emissions must be either1- 25 years old or2- 20 years and a discontinued model.I don't have cats now but we don't get a visual insp. here. It just fails when they put the sniffer to the exhaust.:hick: Quote Selected
Off road H-pipe or an H-pipe with cats Reply #7 – January 23, 2007, 01:49:49 PM Quote from: 84 Fila;125207Wait, if my car is over 20 years old( 23) I can get away with NO CATS? Christ, we get away with murder now.Whered you read this? So my car will be legal next year? Or is it a county thing and not a state thing? Quote Selected
Off road H-pipe or an H-pipe with cats Reply #8 – January 23, 2007, 05:35:16 PM I heard it, I don't know for a fact. Thats what I wana know. And I would think it was a state/county thing Quote Selected
Off road H-pipe or an H-pipe with cats Reply #9 – January 23, 2007, 07:10:31 PM depending on your state, its usually 20 years or 25, most often 25 years old. at this point the car legally can become an antique. you get "historical" (in NY) or maybe your state calls em "antique" license plates, and theyll say that on the plate. you can get cheaper insurance through your insurance company if they have a special kind for antiques. BUT youll probably run into mileage limits, maybe they want you to have a second car as a daily driver because this type of plate is NOT intended for daily use. dont cheat and abuse the antique plates, its bad for the old car hobby. also, at least here in NY, you DONT have to register it as an antique, maybe you dont either, for it to be expempt from emissions testing/checking. especially if all you have to pass is a visual inspection of the underside of your car (due to lack of ODB II) but i know for sure as an antique all it has to pass is safety. and even then they might not look it over too close, again that kind of registration is intended for the occassional pleasure cruise on the weekend or for a cruise-in at the ice cream joint or a show. i just wanted to let you know the option is there. it would be pretty neat though, huh? imagine, your bird/cat is an antique vehicle! Quote Selected
Off road H-pipe or an H-pipe with cats Reply #10 – January 23, 2007, 07:17:36 PM Well, as I heard it localy, it has to be 20, then just pass visual if you get pulled over and your set. i have a " y pipe with cats" which was hollowed out and now the cats are empty. All else is stock, accept the smog pump is on the car, just not hooked up. So as I see it, I'm clean either way Quote Selected
Off road H-pipe or an H-pipe with cats Reply #11 – January 23, 2007, 07:48:50 PM what part of NC? I live in winston-salem, NC and i have no cats and they never even hardly look at my car, just unstick and stick a new one on!(emission sticker) Quote Selected
Off road H-pipe or an H-pipe with cats Reply #12 – January 24, 2007, 02:09:47 PM Wait, youre in Winston!? I'm just 10mins north of you in King! Woooo, a nearby Fox tbird owner!!!And yeah, there's a place very close to my house called Moorefield's and thats what they do too, but I'd rather be on the safe side. Knowing my luck, I'd get the one guy that actually does check. Quote Selected
Off road H-pipe or an H-pipe with cats Reply #13 – January 24, 2007, 07:12:09 PM We don't have inspections in Illinois. All the state (no private tests are allowed, it's only done at state run places) does is stuff a snifer in the exhaust once every 2 years. If you pass cool if not they make you fix it till it passes or you spend $500 fixing the emissions system. If you spend $500 fixing it and it still dosen't work then you get a pass. Since we have no safety inspection there are some pretty interesting cars on the road (read really, really, rusty :hick: ).On yeah in Illinois a car has to be 25 years old to achieve "antique" status. Quote Selected
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