Hello I'm new so go easy on me. I just failed smog because of no EO # CARB # on the 15% pulley. The emissions passed but they need some proof that the pulley has been blessed by the great state of California. (Insert cynicism here...)

It is a Webb 15% pulley, 2004 mini S

How do I get past this?

Hoping not to buy a stock pulley,
Erik

 

Go some where else to get smog. There are far to many people with 15% p's for it to be a prob.

 

Just curious, did you tell them it was on there? How did they know?

 

Ditto...
A huge number of folks are in CA, and you appear to be the first....
Lets face it...you cannot get a stock pulley back on...removing it destroys it.
goodluck.

 

For the life of me I don't know how he knew it was there. I didn't even know it was an issue. The last time I smogged it in CA it passed flying colors. This time I get failed and a handwritten note from the tech saying need E.O.# Webb SC pulley.

I'm inclined to try another smog shop but am not sure if I am hung up. They submitted my failure into the state smog computer system.

Thanks for the help

 

Totally go to another shop that is BS, apparently they don't want any of your future business.

 

Webb has been out of the market for sometime....
It was one of the earliest pullies...and some of them were even hot-pressed on like the oem.
simple fact....you will never get a pulley with a carb #. Even if you replace the current one with an oem sized one, even a jcw sized one, the mounting method and construction will be different.
I think the correct response would have been "i bent an edge on the orgional pulley trying change the belt...i had no idea what i was doing, and that pulley is just a replacement."
Sounds like you got a new inspector trying to save the world....but of all the mods commonly done/undone, the pulley is the ONE thing left on the car (along with assorted internals) when an inspection is done....folks change CAI, headers, you name it....then swap them back.
That is why folks are VERY skeptical. THOUSANDS of mini's, all modded heavily are in CA....
there is also a core of "nuts" that lurk here, reporting tune parties to government officals, sometimes in other states that DO NOT HAVE RESTRICTIONS (A custom tune, done right is actually cleaner, more efficient, and gets more mpg's). So the fact folks find it hard yo believe...
And the fact the cause of the failure WAS ON A HANDWRITTEN NOTE, and not printed on the failure notice seems VERY odd...i do not live in CA, but have had cars smogged in CT, CO, and NH...CT AND CO both did full dyno tests.....cause what comes out the tail pipe matters more than what you have under the hood.....

 

Live here in So Cal myself, My Mini is definitely not stock, got is smogged 2 days ago for $48 bucks, passed flying colors.

Running a pulley myself, its weird that the tech would give you a hand written note, he/she must have a thing against Mini's...

 

If you think it might help, we could make you a pulley with no logo on it. Obviously that guy could read the Webb Motosports logo on there. So, maybe a blank one would pass?

 

Maybe try some higher octane gas?
Also, I've read, that the car needs to be good and warmed up, never go in cold, as the engine pushes more fuel to compensate for a colder engine.

 

+1 THEN SAY if asked"i bent an edge on the orgional pulley trying change the belt...i had no idea what i was doing, and that pulley is just a replacement."

Just leave it at that. If they say it looks "fancy" then say "yeah, it cost me some $$, the guy I got to fix it said said the stock was hot pressed or somethinnn.....getting a different style mounting one saved me several hundred $$ in labor...he didn't have to remove the supercharger to put on a new one.... I think I'm gonna NEVER touch my car again!! Getting it fixed was a pain!! I guess I suck with tools....."

 

here in ontario they have a new way of doing e tests. all they do is hook up a diagnostic tool and check if you are throwing any codes. If you don't have cat, your car will obviously throw code for that and fail. on the other hand, if you have something like accessport, you can clear the code yourself before your car is tested and pass without a cat!

 

Actually MOST US states (that do emissions testing) do emissions testing this way....a few do the dyno test with a sniffer...
But one word of warning...
Once you clear a codes, the the car will not pass a plug in test right away...a "drive cycle" must be completed for the odb2 to report it is "ready to be tested". Trying to tested with the readiness monitor NOT ready is an automatic fail.

 

And know what the drive cycle is for your MINI or any other car you have to test. The smog people will say just drive around some but it can be much more complex than that. My son's 1998 Ford Ranger has about 20 elements to the drive cycle, including a 'rest period' of at least 8 hours.

 

I failed smog last year because of an AFR sensor. An ex-Mini Mechanic told me 80 miles or so to clear the drive cycle. Not sure how acurate that was, but it (R53) cleared smog.

 

You could always just spray black plastidip on the pulley, it would have a flat look and if you did it thick enough it would hide the screws and a non MINI person would think it was stock.

 

Figured I started this thread, I'd follow-up. I did pass smog but not without a ton of hoops to jump through. It sucked; much stress.

Most important, I genuinely appreciate the help and insight of those who responded. In a small attempt to pay forward the help I received, here is what I learned.

What is different? We all have pulleys and we all pass.
-Jan 2013 new CA law that essentially rewards smog techs/stations for higher failure rates. Higher failure rates result in a STAR certification. Smog shops with a STAR cert get cars sent to them by the state of CA.
- In my case car passed 3 previous smogs. Previous techs probably never looked; it is hard to see. Now there is serious incentive for these guys to find things. In addition to the shop owner getting additional customers, a failure by the smog tech results in he/she not being able to work in a STAR shop.

How did the tech know?
- my pulley was bright colored and had Webb Motorsports 15% engraved on the end. (that is why he wrote it on the failed smog sheet)
- Seems like performance parts have been dominated by braided, logo'd and anodized. (Men are like trout- we like shiny objects) I predict the future of performance parts aesthetically will change.

- CA does approve some performance parts. ( I'm guessing it is a ridiculous hurdle for manufactures.) Getting over the hurdle results in the part being assigned a Executive Order Number (E.O.#)


But most important is a thank you. Next for me is being more involved updating my profile to include a bunch of suspension stuff, cat back exhaust and searching the forums about my half working stereo with intermittent rear speakers.

Cheers
Erik

 

I don't where you got told higher FAILURE rates are better for business, that's is absolutely false!
How did your MINI have 3 previous Smog's, there only once every 6 years.
CA is cracking down on diesel cars and trucks, I have had two cars previous before my MINI with a lot more engine work, ie. most of the stuff was "off road", "illegal" etc. And have passed no problem, every time.
A tech can't personally fail a car of visual inspection, sure if you've got a header without a cat, YES, but the only LEGAL way you can FAIL, is if the computer says so, never heard of someone failing a visual inspection EVER.
Got a Buddy with a 650+ horsepower Cobra, and he actually just passed a Smog test, talk about shiny objects, everything under his hood is aftermarket.
It's pretty obvious that the tech was trying to give you a hard time, and hopefully you'll never use his/her Smog shop ever again!

 

Maybe not better for business but better for gov regulations. Like quotas for speeding tickets. Glad I don't live over there. Less glad during the winter however.

 

My 04 R53 in CA passed the emission sniffer test no problem last year, but after the test the tech asked where my Carb sticker or cert was for the Alta CAI... I couldn't produce it so i was provided a print out for failing the visual inspection.. Also had 15% pulley which they didn't notice.

 

Yes, they can. I added a supercharger to my Miata in 1995. Passed smog until 2008, then magically it failed the visual. Puled the SC and still had to produce the EO for the JR header.


Not sure what state you're in, but in CA you can easily fail a visual. Otherwise, what's the point of the visual??
Now you've heard of one more.

 

Also doesn't an oil change help if you're near due?

Things like this make me very happy to live in SC where we got rid of inspections of any kind a long time ago. I mean hey, the person next to you could be driving a death trap but no one's pushing an eco-agenda either.

 

i bought my mini stock and it did not pass smog -__- did a pully upgrade and ac delete and guess wat it passed smog lol! that was 2 years ago! now im catless and headers fully port and polished head and many other things and hehehe i "passed smog"

sooo mini friends i have a "passed"

 

The smog check is the one type of service where you should search for the least intelligent technician.

 

I Live in the great state of califonia, at least until i retire and get out of here,. I use to work in my cousins auto shop and we did smog checks. The BAR would send cars in with something minor wrong with the smog system. Such as a small hole in the bottom of teh evaporative canister, something could only find by trying to pull a vacuum on it. If you did not find it and passed the car about a month later they would send you a letter saying what you fail to find and fine you. The first fine was $500 and the second could be double or triple that. I have also found over the years that some of the crooked shop will try to find something to fail you on even if you pass the emissions part. They want to see if you are willing to kick down some xtra $$$ to get it to pass. You just need to find a good shop that you trust to get your work done. And when you do pass it on to other people in the area. Word of mouth is the best advertising a shop can get.