Pierre

All year struts are the same. The only difference is between a non-tii and a tii.

The usage problem manifests itself with the insurance company, not the DMV. If you get into an accident on your way to work with your "limited use" vehicle, the insurance may give you a hard time covering you. They may cover the incident and then drop you as a customer since they may feel you cheated them. And they share their information with other companies. I had a lengthy conversation with my insurance agent about it. Insurance companies love to take your money and hate to pay claims. So they'll sound pretty lax when they sell you the policy but will find ANY REASON not to cover you when the time comes.

Old??? Nahhh!!! Old people are old. We are just more mature.

I make a reproduction version of the Kamei in fiberglass with mods that address those exact issues. Click the link for more info. http://www.probimmer.com/Pierre/kamei_repro_spoiler.htm

For those who love to bag on California... We always have had permanent plates, and we have no state inspections (unlike Louisiana where they inspect a car, check for license, registration AND INSURANCE) 75 and older cars are exempt from smog checks and license fees are cheap. I pay less than $70 a year on my 69 and my 74. That's one and a half tanks of gas. From the Louisiana DMV: LICENSE PLATES FOR ANTIQUE, CLASSIC OR VINTAGE MOTORS: ELIGIBILITY. Any private passenger automobile, van, private truck up to 10,000 lbs, motor home, or motorcycle which is at least twenty-five (25) years old and which has been restored to its original condition without modifications contrary to stock specifications, is eligible for this plate. Cars must be and remain stock in order to qualify. No flares, no air dams, no S14s or M20s, no sidedrafts, lowering springs or Recaros. (or a hosts of others mods we do to our cars)

Chamoix, That is a non-tii manifold. The air pump port (plugged in those pictures) is what distinguishes them apart. The manifolds are different. Tii runners are bigger. Whether they make a difference in performance or not is up for debate.

Roundie Sahara license plate 2002TOY. I could not tell if it was a tii. I also think the driver was female but I was too far to be sure. At 7:15 this morning (4-19-12) Seaward and Main. Someone here?

Another option is to buy a set of blue or blacks plates from a swap meet or such. Then go to the DMV and request that same number as a personalized plate. The DMV will grant you the number since it's most likely off the system. You will be issued new modern plates. Stash them and install your old blue plates. Same number. Legal and period correct. Yes, you do have to pay a little extra for the personalized plates.

The M44 is an improvement over the M42. Better power, smoother, better economy. I have both. But the M44 is an OBDII engine. It will require a lot more electrical tweaking to make it work. The DME demands a lot more signals from various components that are not on the engine. If you go that route, make sure you get a complete donor car. I have heard people installing E36 M42 (pre-96) engine management/intake systems on an M44 engine. You'll need to do some research in that department.

I have been sitting on this stuff for over 10 years. It really does not have much value to me. I just can't bring myself to throwing it away especially if someone somewhere can use it. If I am going to schlep it to Bay area, $30 is just a token amount to show commitment. I don't want to dig it up from storage, transport it to Bay area and bring it back home to store it again. Or come pick it up from from my house in SoCal. FREE!!!

I have the complete smog setup, including the pump from my 69. I can bring it to Bay area 02. How about $30? Email me directly.

Amazon. $45,00 NEW.

What does the smoke smell like? Coolant, oil and brake fluid burn and smell very differently. How are the brakes? Are you losing fluid? I have seen brake boosters fill up with brake fluid from a leaky master. But the fluid does not travel to the intake. It settles at the bottom of the booster. The vacuum port is high up on the booster. Unless it has been filling up for a long time and reaching the port. That's A LOT of fluid. If the smoking is significant, the plugs will show it. Take them out. Is it one cylinder or is there oil in all 4? Oil will show an black oily wet residue. Coolant will clean up the plug. Brake fluid? I don't know what the effect of burning brake fluid is. Machine shops can be competent and still make an error. It happens to the best of us.

Decel smoke: Valve guides and/or valve seals.

It's part of the pollution control system. It absorbs fuel vapors that evaporate from the tank while the car is not running. It then sends those vapors to the intake manifold when the car is running to be burned in the combustion process. It's one of the few components that cause no adverse effect to performance. It also reduces or eliminates the fuel smell you may end up having if you eliminate it since doing so vents the tank to the atmosphere. And the tank needs to be vented.

You will need spacers.

I have one. I'm in SoCal. Where are you?

By that logic, if I smoke, am I really infringing on your rights? If I fly in a plane, which produces more smog than anything, is that wrong? If I buy a new car every year (again, studies show that about 25% of a car's carbon footprint is produced at the factory) is that infringing on your rights? Where does it end? When is there enough "equality" for all? Again, if Californians truly valued air quality over having to go through all the smog check stuff, than why does the government have to force it on people? I don't know ANYONE that supports smog checks when you ask them except the guys that own the shops that do the checking. It's like taxes. It's great to raise them when someone else is paying the extra chunk. If you smoke in an elevator while I'm in it, then you are infringing on my right. If you smoke in a car with your kids in it, you are infringing on their right. If you smoke in a public place... you start getting into a gray area. Where does it stop? It doesn't. It's a constant debate to find a balance about individual rights and how they infringe on others. Individual rights are not absolute. Californians do value air quality. That's why we have smog checks. And our air has become cleaner even as our volume of cars have increased. I support smog checks. I don't own a smog shop. I am not even in the industry. I own 7 cars that require smogging every 2 years. It's a good thing. And I am not an exception. With no smog check, people would be neglecting the maintenance of their cars, spewing pollutants in the air and cause a major health catastrophe. With a smog check, my 97 Z3 will still be spewing 4000 ppm of Nox into the air and I wouldn't even know it. But I also support the exemption of older cars because their impact is small and they are driven infrequently. Data shows that miles driven by cars 76 to 81 are still too high to have them exempted from smog checks. It's not a conspiracy. It's not a special interest group looking to screw people, it's not a bunch of radical socialists that want us all to drive Priuses and ride bicycles. We're not turning into China. (Have you seen the pollution in China???) We just want clean air. Ultimately, like it or not, it works. Smog checks and smog regulations have allowed us to have cleaner air AND 240 hp out of a 2 liter motor, with practically no emissions and 30+ MPG. Like taxes, people don't like smog checks. They are inconvenient and can be expensive. But they are necessary.

Freedom does not include infringing on other's freedoms. If I don't care about the environment and don't care about pollution, do I have the freedom or the right to spew a bunch of carcinogens in the air for all my neighbors to breathe? California has more regulations because we have more people. If people decide with their wallets, they can decide to move out of California if they don't like the regulations. The people vote for their representatives to implement regulations that the majority wants. That's democracy. I'm a car guy. I like old cars. I spend time at the track. I organize spirited drives through the canyons. I also like fresh and clean air. It's not one or the other. It's a balance. There is no reason we can't have some of both. References to Obama, Barbara, tree-huggers, socialism and PITA are childish and immature. If you have a 77 or older car (35 years old) and do indeed car classic car insurance, which means the car is rarely driven, then so exceptions do allow you to skip the full rigor of the smog test. But if your old car is a daily driver, then make it run clean. That's only fair.

Don't get me wrong. I wanted the bill the pass. But comparing the failure of the bill to People's Republic of China? REALLY? Here is the reality. It failed3 to 4, not 9 to 0. So it was close. And it's up for reconsideration. This is the 2002 board. All 2002s are exempt from smog inspection except for the 76s. And if you have a 76 in stock from, it will easily pass if it runs well. M20? Legal. Motronic m10? Legal. Sidedrafts and megasquirt are not. But honestly. Do you know how dirty a sidedraft setup is? I want my performance but I do want to breathe clean air. And if you REALLY REALLY want a sidedraft car, get a 75 or older. And add a cat even if you don't have to. It's a small price to pay fro clean air. I have a 76 E12 with a 3.3 Euro motor. Passes smog with no issues. I have a E21 323i. Passes with no issues. I just had to add a cat. Small price to pay. We have it great here in California even with CARB and the DMV. The guys in Sacramento don't want us to turn into China. They just want to prevent a bunch of dirty cars from polluting excessively. A 78 Pinto can pollute as much as 200 times what a modern 328i does. I had some smog issues with my 97 Z3. Nox were at 4000 ppm. Max is 400, average is 150. I replaced the cat. Nox went down from 4000 to 200. And that's an M44 stock efficient motor by design. 20 times lower. That's huge. We like our cars. But we also like clean air. There are still too many 76 to 81 cars on the road that need to be scraped. When the numbers are fewer and their use is limited, we can then extend the exemption to newer cars. Or we can exempt the visual and pass the sniff test only.

Go to the DMV and inquire about the VIN just to confirm if it's stolen. They will tell you. They may not provide with much more info but here in California, then will tell you back fees and if the car is current, off the system or stolen. The DMV website can be of some help too. In California, it is. You may also check with the Highway Patrol if DMV has no record of the VIN. I would got with the 184 VIN. That's the correct one for the car. Why was it swapped? Here in California, years ago, 73s and old cars were exempt from smog inspections. So, when a 73 or older car was getting ready to be crushed, the VIN plate, the steering column top cover were swapped on later cars, especially if they were modified. Not legal but a common occurrence. But why would someone replace a 75 VIN with another 75? Odd. Let us know what you find out.

If space permits, buy it. Tinker some, learn some, will it run? How bad is it? then decide. If it's too far gone, it's a good parts car. Find another one to restore. By then you would know what to look for. And keep this one as a source for parts, and something to practice on. Sometimes, taking something apart without worrying about reassembly is a great learning experience. If it has a good motor and a bad body, you can look for another car with a good body and a blown motor. Then swap. Space. The great intimidator, limitator gets you in trouble with the neighbor.

Sylvania works too. As long as you use the silver based bulbs, not the brass type.