i've got an 89 isuzu amigo, i just put in a 98 4.3 v6. every exhaust shop i've called said i couldn't use aftermarket cats and be legal. i asked what the difference is between normal cats and OBD2 cats and they said there was none. so whats the deal. i'm not gonna pay 300 bucks a piece for OEM cats. thats freakin rediculous. not to mention that they wont fit. so can i get this thing smogged or what. what have others done that swapped in a 96+ motor? thanks.

Dallas

Sounds like a load of shite to me. I just had my 86 CJ with Mopar kit at the smog ref, with a JC Whitney aftermarket cat. Passed.

Believe me, they go over that bee-ahtch with a fine tooth comb too. Sounds like Mr. Exhaust guy is getting a kickback from the OEM cat.

Smog nozi doesn't care, as long as the cat is the proper size for vehicle weight, engine size and you're not farting out bad chit into the air.

Exactly what Putz said. Load of shit. I bought my 3" high flow cat from Partsmike of all people. $80 out the door. Had a local shop weld it up with a Flowmaster. Done. My junk went through a smog ref and this was after a v8 swap. There was NO problem with the exhaust. They're trying to do you, without KY. Fire them now.

the letter of the law reads:

Parapharse: you CANNOT replace FACTORY catalyitic converters if the vehicle is 5 calander years old or NEWER

so your '89 is 16 years old...you triple the age requirement, please proceed to the nearest smog referee:)

are your swaps using 96 or newer motors? i got this same answer from 3 Different shops, not just one a-hole tryin to screw me. thanks for the input tho, glad to hear some people are gettin their shit thru the nazis. i'm about to register it in AZ for a month and then bring it in as if i moved.

Dallas

the letter of the law reads: Parapharse: you CANNOT replace FACTORY catalyitic converters if the vehicle is 5 calander years old or NEWER so your '89 is 16 years old...you triple the age requirement, please proceed to the nearest smog referee
Unfortunately when doing an engine swap, you must adhere to all of the laws and requirements based on the new engine, not the production date of the vehicle. Your '98 4.3l is still within the five year limit, that is the reason the shops won't touch a non OEM cat. It's a legal liability issue. Professional shops won't take the risk of doing something that might be in the "gray" area of legality because if you get called on it at the referee they have to eat the cost of redoing it or worse yet get reported to CARB.
Reality is you can probably have someone else weld in an aftermarket cat, take it to the referee and they will never check the numbers or ask for receipts. I've been to the referees several times and they were all cool. As long as everything else is by the book you are probably fine. But there are no guarantees.

You can not install a after market converter. You can either use an oem, or a oem remanufactured cat. Against the law. You knowyou can not by law even replace a cat unless it has been professionally tested to see if its bad or not working. B.A.R = :rainbow: . I hate those fruitty arse fawkers.:mad3:

But the yards can't sell you a cat. At least they won't around here. So I don't see how you have any choice but to use an aftermarket set up. Good Luck, :usa:

well the exhaust shops are tellin me i need a reman OEM cat to be legal, but what if i just told everyone it was a 96 motor? everything is exactly the same as a 96, and i'm even running a 96 computer and wiring. If so then i would be past the 5 year mark and be in the clear. any input?

Dallas

Hey Stinkbug,

I have a 98 4.3 in my 82 toy, and haven't ever gotten around to hooking up my tach. Do you know which wire you are using for the tach feed?

Thanks,

Mark

i'm havin my wiring done by speedscene, they said they would tail out the tach wires for me. i dont know which ones they are but when i get the harness back i can tell ya.

Dallas

Thanks, I appreciate it.

Mark

hey what did you do for cats on yours, i'm assumin you went thru the same thing i'm about to.

Dallas

I used the stock cat, just paid an exhaust shop to put it all together. They didn't care at all about stock or not on the cats, in fact he asked me if I wanted to use a high flow aftermarket cat of the stock one. I went with stock for cost reasons, since I already had it. He also put in all three O2 sensors in stock locations. It came our really clean.

I am in a part of CA that does not require bi-annual smog checks, so I don't have to see a referee unless I sell it. Maybe that is why he wasn't worried about smog.

Just an update on getting the tach to work on my 98 vortec in my 82 toyota.

The three connector plug on my coil had an unused middle connector. My factory service manual for it listed the middle connector as unused. I guess the 98 4.3 vortech stock tach operates via a computer generated signal, instead of off the coil. I hooked the tach wire to that connector and it works fine now.