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Alright so I've searched and I've came up with the obvious that swapping an older engine into a newer car is illegal. But WHY is it illegal? Does this law only apply to newer vehicles? (ie certain year and up) A lot of people have said things to me about doing the b16 swap and yes, I've looked and how it's not worth it and too much money and to do the k20 swap.. blah blah blah.. I know. I'm not doing the swap but anyways.. I told them that I heard it was illegal to put an older engine into a newer car.. then they came back and said, 'well what about older cars? you always hear about people owning camaros, chevelles, novas..' (blah blah blah) 'putting older engines in'.. So.. what is the reason anyways? I've been wondering this for quite some time.

 
Rep Power: 812

its more for emissions control. they don't want new cars having outdated motors.

 
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So this law only does apply to certain vehicles? Can someone show me a statute? I guess this is just something that I don't understand at all... enlighten me lol

 
Rep Power: 812

i'm pretty sure its for any car. You can swap a k20 into an old hatch and be fine, but you can't swap a b-series into your new 05 civic. Best bet is goto the police station and have them show you the law in their book or whatever. But yea its for emissions. They don't want an 05 ulev civic being converted into a 2000 si as far as smog. That and the whole odbI, II thing too.

 
Rep Power: 384

well i think what your talking about is whatever they rebuild the engine as well, i mean yea you may have an old 66 engine and want it in an 69 body or whatever so whats the law on that i think is what he is asking

 
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Exactly... I don't understand why it's okay for older cars but not newer ones? I mean yeah there are the hobbyist/collector plates that are pretty much (well at least in WI) exempt from any special modification laws.. but not counting those..
If anything, I'll just have to call the state dept and find out..

 
Rep Power: 360

In cali after the cars is 30 years old smog/emission are out the window.

Time for whatever.

 
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So what you're saying is that if you have a 1976 Firebird but blew your engine... and you found an engine from a 1975 Firebird, you can't put it in? This law just sounds crazy to me

 
Rep Power: 337

its stupid. and no cop is gonna tell you to pop your hood to see if your motor is stock or not. thats ridiculus. i doubt alot of cops know what the hell a b16 is from a d17. mod control imo. stupid and useless but still.

 
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Actually...they will! Cops do it all the time especially in Cali. They're trained to look for all that stuff. And no way you're passing inspection with an older motor in there. Those people aren't stupid.

 
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Bite your tongue bro. I have i/h/e and was doing 50 in a 45. Cop said I was speeding by him reving my exhaust (I wasnt I was drivin normal). Asked me to pop my hood and checked out everything. I live in Mission Viejo mind you, a suburban city in the OC so its loaded with rich people, "this aint the ghetto" is what im sayin, so not a lot of ricers comin round. ANd the cop still checked under the hood

 
Rep Power: 384

in last months edition of honda tuning with the article on the (88 to 91) crx doing the k series swap there is one little exerept at the end of saying it wont be carb legal without serious investment so older car, so sounds like its not all fine line or anything that you still need do other things to make sure you are carb legal, maybe there wasnt room for a cat or something but there is one example of confusion

 
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well yea passing smog is a requirement, new engine or not.

 
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hey i live in GA. i doubt cops are trained in that stuff here cause its not as neccessary as in cali

 
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there are always federal standards but a lot has to do with your locala area

 
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so say if i were to put a k20a1 or k20a2 it would have to b the same year as my car so that it wouldnt b "illegal" and pass inspections? cause ive been pondering to do a k20a2 or k20a in my 05 would i b able to pass inspections nd wat not?

 
Rep Power: 297

yea.. its illegal.. my friend has a 2003 civic with a d17a1 in it and blew his motor.. then he bought a d17a2 from a 2001 civic... they guy he bought it from said its illegal to swap in the 2001 civic motor into his 2003 civic.. stupid you think about it... its basically the same motor

 
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So crazyasian does have a point.. say he blows his engine on his 05.. he HAS to look for an engine from another 05? That's soooo retarded.. geez
here in central WI we don't have emissions testing or anything? And no cop around here is going to ask for someone to pop their hood either. I've been living here for 23 years and I've never heard/seen of it once

 
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it really depends on where you live and if they check for this sort of ****. i'm in the metro detroit area and really no one gives **** unless something really impractical (like a loud *** f-body or something).

 
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BTW they made a b18(integra) in 2001so if you own a 2001 civic you could potentionally swap one in

but what what if you move to cali with a car with a swapped motor thats older than the frame, are they going to tell you to junk it... it makes no sence that in one state a car is legal and in another its illeagal... total BS

 
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^^ well its not BS... each state and city can make their own laws...

 
Rep Power: 321

the classification for cars is the platform. So if the engine you use is used on the same plateform then technically you can. For example a k20a2 from a rsx into a 7th gen civic because they use the same plateform and are technically the same car.


I think the loop hole is that you can use the older engine if that engine was made during the same yr as your car. IE 2000 b16 on a 2001 civic like others have said. But it does vary from state to state.

 
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in Cali, you can swap any engine into any car. as long as everything is installed correctly and it passes emmissions. you have to take the car to a referree and have them look at it, and legally pass the BAR - Bureau of Automotive Repair - and make it all legit.

yeah a car can be legal in one state and illegal in another state. each state has their own emmission laws. some states (louisiana i think) dont require you to have smog checks in order to register ur car.

So Cali cops are highly qualified and very often make you pop your hoods. even a shiny chrome SRI can land you a "modified emmissions" ticket. Cali laws are hecka strict. even more so for street racing. you can get ur car crushed at the junk yard now. all expenses on you!! =)

 
Rep Power: 363

being able to swap any engine into any car is a ridiculous exaggeration.

you can only swap if:

-same year or newer engine
-engine from the same weight class (ie. any crv motor swap is illegal into a civic/integra/rsx/etc)
-same company (ie. mitsu engines are not legal with hondas)
-has to pass with all original equipment (factor intake mani, header, cat, etc all from the same car as the engine came from)
-car passes the sniffer test
-must have VIN plates on block (unless it's jdm)
-no check engine lights
-all correct smog equipment (ie. fuel hose cannot be coolant hose, etc)

jdm swaps CAN be bar'ed.

 
Rep Power: 257

The simple fact is that the emission laws for a vehicle equipped with an emission system is not state law its federal law. Most vehicles manufactured after 1985 came eqiupped with vehicle emissions system as a standard federal requirement. The reason you can take a newer engine and place it in a older car is because the engine has been designed with a more efficient emissions system. An example being classic 70's camaro's/mustangs. These car can use just about any engine they want. Because these cars were not manufactured with emission systems. Technically they do not even need catalytic converters to pass emissions testing. If you have a newer civic with a d17 and you blow the engine, then choose an engine from a 03. As long as the emissions system/efficiency is the same. You will pass emissions and shouldn't have any problems. Technically yes it is against the law, only becauce they placed this rule to prevent people from running enigines in newer cars with lower emission systems. Doubtfully anyone will be able to distinguish the difference between an 05 d17 and an 03 d17. So why worry about it. The odds of you ever getting caught are next to none. However dropping a b18 in a 7th or 8th gen would use an emissions equipped engine with a lower efficiency emissions system. Thus would cause you problems if caught.

 
Rep Power: 336

i wonder if i could put a b series in my car cause my corner of ky just got rid of e check hmmmmmmm

 
Rep Power: 321

its possible. Someone on the site already put a b-series engine in a 7th gen.

 
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They did although I believe it was a royal pain in the azz and they fabbed their own motor mounts etc. But hell if you have the time, knowledge and tools. GO FOR IT. Were doing away with e-check in SW ohio come DEC. Thank heavens, that test is so stupid.