CA Smog Referee

[Detoxified]

Originally Posted by BzsBimmer

Smog check is different than going to a state referee station.

If just a smog check, as long as your tune doesn’t defeat the DME from showing ready states, and visual smog defeat devices are in place you should be fine. Get a reader and check your ready states. In CA you’re only allowed up to 2 incomplete monitors.

Sniffer checkpoints are set up randomly along roads. As you drive thru, the sniffers will check for excess emissions. If you get flagged, it should be optional for you to have your car further inspected.

More info here
https://www.bar.ca.gov/Consumer/Road...n_Program.aspx

At 1:20 in the video it says that "consumer surveys are always voluntary". So if you are asked to pull over to test I think you can decline?

[BzsBimmer]

Yes, should be able to.
Just don’t get tricked if they get all interested in your car and want to check out their “dream car” like they did to the OP lol.

That must’ve been akward

[Detoxified]

Originally Posted by BzsBimmer

Yes, should be able to.
Just don’t get tricked if they get all interested in your car and want to check out their “dream car” like they did to the OP lol.

That must’ve been akward

Happened to someone I know too in SD. Cop acted friendly and interested and asked him about his mods and to pop the engine and admire. Ticked for intake etc.

[Tangent]

Originally Posted by robbieracer

California is ridiculous...
I stumbled on this post and now I'm a little worried. I have a 335i that I installed the MHD tune on two years ago, it's due for SMOG in August. I didn't know about the DME check, just the drive cycle test which is fine. Also, my wife's 535d warranty finally ends next month and I was planning on putting a Malone tune on it. Maybe the piggyback (Race chip or other) is a better approach in Cali?...

For what it's worth my Z4 35i passed the CA smog check just fine this last year with an MHD Stage 1+ tune on it. As long as you have cats and have the "OEM catted downpipe" option selected so it doesn't auto-clear any codes you should be fine. They don't even do the drive cycle test on anything MY 2000 or newer anymore, it's just a visual, a check for codes and readiness monitors and that's it. (Maybe gas cap check too) It only takes them about 5 minutes for any of my cars once they're in the bay.

[robbieracer]

Originally Posted by Tangent

For what it's worth my Z4 35i passed the CA smog check just fine this last year with an MHD Stage 1+ tune on it. As long as you have cats and have the "OEM catted downpipe" option selected so it doesn't auto-clear any codes you should be fine. They don't even do the drive cycle test on anything MY 2000 or newer anymore, it's just a visual, a check for codes and readiness monitors and that's it. (Maybe gas cap check too) It only takes them about 5 minutes for any of my cars once they're in the bay.

Thanks, good to know! I only have the stage 1+ too, everything else is OEM.

[az989]

Originally Posted by BPMSport

Learned adaptive values really have no relevance here.

Thanks OP for the good words, glad we were able to solve this for you easily and quickly!

We've done quite a lot of development on the new checks being performed. All BPM customers should have no issues passing after loading the stock software. Any non customers that have DME issues are free to reach out to us for expert help!

So i just bought a 2016 m4 with the full remus exhaust that goes from downpipe all the way back, deleting the secondary cats, i was wondering if f8x even had o2 sensors for the secondary cats? Also would you guys be able to flash me back to stock remotely cuz im in san francisco. Visual inspection for smog is not a problem for me, i just need all the monitors to show complete, currently prev owner told me he got a VF engineering Stage 1 tune, and when i scanned the monitors they had the Cat and o2 montiors all turned off(unsupported).

[RoundelM3]

This is why I'm glad I live in North Carolina...

[JamesGames]

See a few members saying this is why I don't live in CA. My question to you guys; are you guys immune to emission laws we have? I was under the impression emissions laws are 50 state mandated for the most part.

[Danlnyc88]

Originally Posted by Redacre

More like an advertisement to leave California...

lmao

[Danlnyc88]

Can you legally refuse to pop your hood?

[Boostd4]

Originally Posted by Tangent

For what it's worth my Z4 35i passed the CA smog check just fine this last year with an MHD Stage 1+ tune on it. As long as you have cats and have the "OEM catted downpipe" option selected so it doesn't auto-clear any codes you should be fine. They don't even do the drive cycle test on anything MY 2000 or newer anymore, it's just a visual, a check for codes and readiness monitors and that's it. (Maybe gas cap check too) It only takes them about 5 minutes for any of my cars once they're in the bay.

So on January 1, 2020 the OBDII check changed pretty significantly. While they still check for readiness codes and CELs, they now scan for CVN and Calibration ID. The 2nd half of the test is not a pass/fail (yet) at the time of smog...but you will be flagged for Referee Certification on your next smog test. Although I have heard of registrations being held until the car was inspected...but this was only once in my GTR group. Time to get the hell out of CA...

[Boostd4]

Originally Posted by az989

So i just bought a 2016 m4 with the full remus exhaust that goes from downpipe all the way back, deleting the secondary cats, i was wondering if f8x even had o2 sensors for the secondary cats? Also would you guys be able to flash me back to stock remotely cuz im in san francisco. Visual inspection for smog is not a problem for me, i just need all the monitors to show complete, currently prev owner told me he got a VF engineering Stage 1 tune, and when i scanned the monitors they had the Cat and o2 montiors all turned off(unsupported).

Pretty much any type of aftermarket software is going to be picked up by the new scan. If your calibration isn't in the BAR database, you will be flagged for referee inspection.

[Redacre]

Originally Posted by JamesGames

See a few members saying this is why I don't live in CA. My question to you guys; are you guys immune to emission laws we have? I was under the impression emissions laws are 50 state mandated for the most part.

Surprisingly, most states do not require annual emissions testing as part of the registration process. I just moved out of CA and when I registered my M4 in the new state there was no smog or inspection requirement. It was also a fraction of the cost of my annual CA registration.

I love CA, and I miss it a lot, but there are some really dumb regulations. A classic car is anything 25 years old, but the emissions exemption for a classic car is pegged at 1975. So even if you have a 1976 Porsche 911 you still need to get it smogged

[HyeM3]

Originally Posted by Boostd4

Pretty much any type of aftermarket software is going to be picked up by the new scan. If your calibration isn't in the BAR database, you will be flagged for referee inspection.

If someone's on a stock tune but uses bm3 to configure a couple custom settings (cold start, exhaust flaps, DTC codes) on the stock map do you know if the car would get flagged as having aftermarket software?

[Boostd4]

Originally Posted by HyeM3

If someone's on a stock tune but uses bm3 to configure a couple custom settings (cold start, exhaust flaps, DTC codes) on the stock map do you know if the car would get flagged as having aftermarket software?

Yup, anytime the stock DME programming is changed it will be picked up. BM3 is a layer of software that sits on the car's ECU, so there is a checksum that is altered once the software is installed. Luckily BM3 saves your factory CVN and Calibration ID when you install it. As long as you don't have hard parts that are dependent on the calibration, all that you need to do is uninstall BM3 for your smog...drive it for 100ish miles to reset the monitors...and reinstall it after your smog is complete.

[HyeM3]

Originally Posted by Boostd4

Yup, anytime the stock DME programming is changed it will be picked up. BM3 is a layer of software that sits on the car's ECU, so there is a checksum that is altered once the software is installed. Luckily BM3 saves your factory CVN and Calibration ID when you install it. As long as you don't have hard parts that are dependent on the calibration, all that you need to do is uninstall BM3 for your smog...drive it for 100ish miles to reset the monitors...and reinstall it after your smog is complete.

Oh wow that's good to know, thanks for the help!👍🏼

[Boostd4]

Originally Posted by HyeM3

Oh wow that's good to know, thanks for the help!👍🏼

No problem, I went through hell and back when I had to smog my GTR recently. I had to remove everything (injectors, intakes, etc.) from my FBO setup and reflash the ECU completely back to stock. California is the worst...

[Mandi90TT]

Originally Posted by JamesGames

See a few members saying this is why I don't live in CA. My question to you guys; are you guys immune to emission laws we have? I was under the impression emissions laws are 50 state mandated for the most part.

Nope, emissions laws are state by state. And even within some states, it depends on what county you live in.

Colorado, for example, if you live in any of the counties that comprise Denver and Bolder, you have to do emissions checks.

Everywhere else in Colorado, nope, no emissions checks.

Out of curiosity, why would you think that California's laws apply to the rest of the US?

[AlterZgo]

Originally Posted by JamesGames

See a few members saying this is why I don't live in CA. My question to you guys; are you guys immune to emission laws we have? I was under the impression emissions laws are 50 state mandated for the most part.

Emission laws vary by state. Additionally, how they test is also very different. I moved from CA to AZ. AZ is a bit more stringent in that you need to smog your car after 6 yrs and you have to go to specific state testing centers. But, the testing centers are definitely more relaxed and they are fine as long as your car passes all the OBD readiness checks (no sniffer test even required).

I have a BPM tune. I switched back to stock map and got it to pass after driving around and doing the OBDII readiness drive cycle.

Also, a word about BPM... I called Mike and got his voicemail and just hung up without leaving a msg. 30 min later, he calls me back anyway and tells me exactly what I needed to do to get my car to pass smog. He also told me not to worry about my Remus exhaust w/ secondary cats deleted and explained how that would not impact the smog check and he was right. It worked flawlessly.

Not trying to do a commercial for BPM but just stating facts b/c I appreciate people who support their products and their customers... especially 4 yrs later, long after the sale.

[deeldoo]

Originally Posted by VF-1J

That's what I thought too. I flashed back to stock and the referee still saw the CID and CVN didn't match what they have as a stock BMW reading. I honestly can't go much deeper into that, not my domain. But BPM Sport reprogrammed it for me. I just thought I'd put out the good word because I couldn't find any other solutions that didn't break the bank. It was stressful. All because I made the mistake of popping my hood and showing my intake!

My local bmw can flash me to stock, i pay the guy cash. What is this 2 grand nonsense?

[JamesGames]

Originally Posted by Dave 90TT

Nope, emissions laws are state by state. And even within some states, it depends on what county you live in.

Colorado, for example, if you live in any of the counties that comprise Denver and Bolder, you have to do emissions checks.

Everywhere else in Colorado, nope, no emissions checks.

Out of curiosity, why would you think that California's laws apply to the rest of the US?

I didn't mean that California's stricter laws would apply to rest of usa. I know each state has own laws. I just assumed each state had some sort of regulations to control emissions in 2020, really wasn't wary that it was THAT easygoing elsewhere.

With that said I have exhaust mods and in 15 years haven't been hassled....Yet

[CSF Cooling]

You want the BEST PSA EVER??

I got pulled over in my F10 M5 in California, 1st thing in the morning. Right after start-up - I have no cats in my car.

Full shake down, pop the hood, exhaust, etc..

Didn't go to inspection, showed up for the court date (in a suit). Judge asked me why I hadn't fixed the car yet, I told him I was planning on selling the car out of state and that he cost of going back to compliant was more expensive than I wanted to bear with. He asked if I wanted a 30 day extension, I said, i'd rather pay the fine.. Paid $700 that day at the court house with a check, and that was that.. Never had to deal with it again. I've gotten new registration after that with no issues.

TLDR - Just pay the fine and move on - way cheaper and less time consuming than dealing with trying to be compliant.