Registering in New York?

[351cobra]

Does anyone own an Ultima in New York State if so what procedure was needed to get the car on the road? Were there any changes required such as steel brake lines, mandatory fire suppression, catalytic converters, 3rd brake light or any other such nonsense? I built another English bred car a 427 AC Cobra replica and was able to register it as a 1965 so these issues were avoided on this car but the Ultima would be a "Specially Constructed Vehicle" so no vintage registration could be finagled. Any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated.

[james]

Doesn't the age of the car depend on the age of the engine? I remember talking to a guy from NY a couple of years ago about the same thing. He said that he made sure the engine he was going to use was pre 72, and he didn't have to worry about all of the modern emissions regs etc. It also meant that the car would be registered by the age of the engine,. so the safety regs would also apply.

I guess the best people to ask are your local VLO, who should be able to put you right on all of the legislation that applies.

James

[mkoch1]

You need to talk to your local DMV. In Maryland they told me until I register my canam it doesn't exist. Whatever year I register it in, will be the model year. To make things worse MD bases the emission requirements off the model year, not the year of the engine like most states. The told me that when the car is ready I have to bring it by for a safety inspection, but didn't specify what that meant. I would assume things like a 3rd brake light will be required. If they require things like 5-mph bumpers, I screwed.

[debushau]

I registered a Caterham 7 this year as a 2002 model. It was not too hard. You need to take the car to the Salvage Authority where they will check the car for stolen parts. The DMV technical services division will ask you for a few photos of the car and have you fill out a questionnaire that verifies that you have all of the required US spec lamps, cat, safety devices. There is no actual inspection though, it's all done by mail. Once Salvage and Technical is cleared, then any licensed inspection place does the safety check. Depends really upon your local garage as to how thorough they are. A newly registered car is actually smog exempt for a few years but once it comes within smog testing, it's tested on the year of the engine. In NY, I think pre-1999 have it slightly easier. Once you get the inspection sticker, go to the DMV and make sure you have all of your receipts and certificate of origin to get registered. Pay tax, drive away.

[PiB]

Rules differ from state to state but generally states don't require 5 mph bumbers and the other laudry list of rules on the NHTSA. Stuff like 5 mph bumbers, airbags, OBD II engine and etc. is all federal and only applys to complete cars being imported. A properly adjusted Chevy V8 might pass emissions?? EFI might allow better calibration to pass emissions too. A person could try to license their car in another state that has an easier approval process. In Nebraska and Florida there is zero emission testing. I know people who have all there cars licensed out of state for tax purposes. But there is no doubt California is tricky. A new law was finally passed (Fox ?) in Cali that was supposed to make specialized cars easier to license but when I read it it still sounded tricky.

[bigmack]

In my experience with my Speedpro(Now F.A.S.T) EFI system, I think it would be VERY easy to tune an EFI setup to comply with emissions tests-especially if you have an O2 sensor incorporated into the exhaust. Not all 02 sensors are the same, but the wide-band sensors allow you to read somewhere in the neighborhood of 10:1 up to 18:1 A/F ratio. You would simply adjust the fuel pulse width in the fuel map (at different RPM's and Engine Load) according to your wide-band 02 reading. Its not a real big deal. Here in Texas, only the major cities are required to test emissions. With the Speedpro system you can save an assortment of data files on your laptop for the track, daily driving, etc... It makes it easy if you want to run 13.0:1 A/F ratio at the track, and 14.7:1 on the street for better gas mileage and emissions compliance.

Cheers!
-Mack

PiB said: Rules differ from state to state but generally states don't require 5 mph bumbers and the other laudry list of rules on the NHTSA. Stuff like 5 mph bumbers, airbags, OBD II engine and etc. is all federal and only applys to complete cars being imported. A properly adjusted Chevy V8 might pass emissions?? EFI might allow better calibration to pass emissions too. A person could try to license their car in another state that has an easier approval process. In Nebraska and Florida there is zero emission testing. I know people who have all there cars licensed out of state for tax purposes. But there is no doubt California is tricky. A new law was finally passed (Fox ?) in Cali that was supposed to make specialized cars easier to license but when I read it it still sounded tricky.

[afortier]

If you've got EFI, just lean it WAY out on the day of emission testing. I pass every two years no prob, and this is with no cats and egr blocked off on a 97 obd2 turbo vehicle that is known for failing emissions.

[drdrdrt]

Here is another possible option: apply for a Dealer's License in your state. Then you may need only a title for your Ultima, not a registration. It is the registration for a license that usually requires the emission testing requirements. You use your dealer's license to obtain dealer plates. You can have several sets of dealer plates for your cars. After all, they are all for sale aren't they? (at a grossly inflated price) This may also help you get around insurance issues, as you "have a liability policy that covers the few cars in your auto dealership." In Oregon, where I live, if you sell very many cars in a year they actually REQUIRE you to have a dealer's license. Check your state, but dealer plates may be the way to go. Just a thought. David

>> Edited by drdrdrt on Friday 25th October 20:40