will do!
State Ref failed..
- Thread starter AFLOCOBRA
- Start date
Just an update, finally after having to prove through emails to the referee my new PCM and all monitors are ready I have been rescheduled for May 5 for hopefully the final inspection and be done with this crap.
Did a dealership provide you that info?
no sir, my buddy has that snap on scanner hes a full blown mechanic.
Awsome. Hope all goes well may 5th
thank you sir. Will keep you all updated. crossing my fingers.
also forgot to mention cylinder 8 has shown no issue after what happened.. compression has stayed the same hoping it stays that way..
Put some money aside for future rebuild. Till then enjoy the car.
Well there’s no doubt that the Federal and state governments are seriously monitoring the modded car scene. I will not get into the politics.
However, I’m curious, why did you get ref’d? Please know, I’m not being accusatory.
I live in California, and in the late 25 years, in no particular order: 12 Mustangs, 1 Golf R, 1 GTI, 1 Camaro SS, 1 G8, 1 Dakota R/T, turbo Subaru’s countless grocery getters and work trucks.
Not 1 ref summons.
I think the California comments are a bit subjective. Always have been. But I personally love living near the coast, the tallest trees in the world, some really nice big cities AND the country.
And at the same time have enjoyed some really high horsepower cars that I can drive year round.
Is it expensive to live here? Yes. I’m also in a profession most people would look down on, would be beneath them and would assume there’s no money in it. But I’ve had tons of fun cars. Current stable is a 2014 GT500 and a 1967 Mustang 347/5 speed street or track full 6 year restomod project. Wife drives a 2018 Golf R.
We try to live within our means and don’t get into the politics. We’ve enjoyed living where we live. In California.
However, I’m curious, why did you get ref’d? Please know, I’m not being accusatory.
I live in California, and in the late 25 years, in no particular order: 12 Mustangs, 1 Golf R, 1 GTI, 1 Camaro SS, 1 G8, 1 Dakota R/T, turbo Subaru’s countless grocery getters and work trucks.
Not 1 ref summons.
I think the California comments are a bit subjective. Always have been. But I personally love living near the coast, the tallest trees in the world, some really nice big cities AND the country.
And at the same time have enjoyed some really high horsepower cars that I can drive year round.
Is it expensive to live here? Yes. I’m also in a profession most people would look down on, would be beneath them and would assume there’s no money in it. But I’ve had tons of fun cars. Current stable is a 2014 GT500 and a 1967 Mustang 347/5 speed street or track full 6 year restomod project. Wife drives a 2018 Golf R.
We try to live within our means and don’t get into the politics. We’ve enjoyed living where we live. In California.
Last edited:
OP’s car had a specific case; however it is becoming more apparent that even returning the vehicle to a factory tune from a tuner will trigger a state ref. Something within the cars ECU is changed and shows it has been tampered with.
Interesting. Unless this is something that’s just now starting to happen, I’ve never ever had a state ref summons.
This is not new and not everyone seems to be getting sent to the ref with other than stock calibrations. This has been going on for roughly 3-4 years in California and is not specific to Mustangs. I have found that Subaru, BMW and Mitsubishi owners have been having the same experiences after doing some digging.
I will say that Cobra and Lightning owners seem to be targeted more though. This could simply be because that's what I pay attention to most though.
There is some info out there demonstrating that the state knows which vehicles are being molded most and I do believe there is some targeting going on.
Last edited:
And that’s my point, 3-4 years is fairly new to me. Especially since we smog every 2. But with all the cars I’ve had as noted above, which out of the 12 Mustangs included 3 Terminators and 3 GT500’s, I’ve never been the victim of a targeted ref summons.
Not trying to argue, but my point is unless this is a new campaign, I don’t feel this is a widespread problem in California. At least not how it’s been made out to be. Not saying it won’t be in the future either.
But the tone of this thread is sounding like they’ll get to a point where all smog checks with a tuned car will get flagged. Hence, the tuned car will go the way of the Dodo. And if that’s the case, I’m glad I have a 662hp factory car, and a smog exempt ‘67.
Last edited:
The problem I have with your assessment of this thread and situation is that you obviously have not followed any of other threads detailing the same issue over the years.
You are essentially drawing a conclusion over one data point. If you take the time to search this forum you will find that this is a much larger issue for our hobby than you realize.
The most disturbing situation I have found is the svt member (can't remember who) that had his car flagged for a ref inspection without ever having the car plugged into the state computer with an aftermarket tune in place.
Just because you haven't had an issue doesn't mean it's not an issue or a possibility.
Again. Do some searching and understand the issue at hand before drawing a conclusion.
Last edited:
Dude, you need to chill out. Why are you getting aggravated?
I’m simply saying I have never personally had an issue. I’m am not ignorant to what’s going on with emissions (globally and domestically), and the issues surrounding them. And I’m not ignorant in general. Not going to go toe to toe with you as that would be a waste of time. But in MY EXPERIENCE, and yes, among all my car buddy’s, a ref summons has not been a common occurrence.
But if you read my comments, you’ll see that I acknowledge that the future could- and in my opinion- will make our hobby more challenging.
But you need to chill, and not take offense.
Don't take my direct approach as aggravation it is nothing of the sorts. I am merely explaining to you that this is a larger issue than you are attempting to make it out to be.
Last edited:
Your direct approach is making an assumption that my comments are made in ignorance, when in fact I’m simply sharing my personal experience - living in California.
So if you have a problem with my comments, then you need to take a step back, re-read and think about what I’m saying before you warm up those typing fingers.
Last edited:
Just stop.
Users who are viewing this thread
