california smog requirements?

Any vehicle, diesel or gasoline, brought into California and registered for the first time are required to pass the California smog requirements. Every two years thereafter. So, yes, a valid smog certificate will be required. Of course that's making some assumptions as there are exemptions. Is the RV 1997 or newer? If yes, it's required. Is the GVWR 14,500 or less? If so, it's required.....Dennis

Don't know about MH's but on my 2500 HD diesel it's a visual inspection only. All parts must be there without modification. They check for error codes and do a rap test for excessive smoke but really it's just a money mill.

mjphelan wrote:
I Am looking at buying a class A diesel from Texas, can anyone tell me if I need to worry about california smog requirements?

a google search turned up this:

Clicky

Any diesel 1998 or newer require smog certificate.
Coming out of state, or local doesn't matter.
BUT ,, there are lot of exemptions.
Vehicles with more than 14K gross are consider commercial and they don't require smog, while they fall under 20 years engine replacement rule.
Than RV seems to be exempt to almost everything.
I would call CA DMV and they have convenient call back feature, so you don't need to hold for 1 hr.
Worse come to worse, you will have to get smog certificate, what is strictly formal in CA. No probe, no rolling, no engine reving. They plug OBD (if equipped) to check for codes and make sure the EGR and CATs are still there.
Actually dealing with rare vehicle, they will open the engine compartment, try to make smart face and close it, letting you go in 2 minutes.
They did that on my Mercedes diesel sedan.

Previous posters are correct. May 2010 we bought new Ram 3500 megacab from Dave Smith Motors in Idaho and drove it home. Had to take it to smog station for visual and 3 full throttle accels while another tech watched for smoke. It had about 1100 mi on it. Test cost $85 and entered into DMV database. Unladen weight certificate, smog test, and tax and license later and got our license plates. We live in an exempt county so no 2 year tests required. We smog em when we sell em!!!!

We purchased our 2004 Itasca Horizon 36GD with the 330CAT just about 5 years ago and, it DID NOT REQUIRE ANY SMOG TESTING OR CERTIFICATE! The GVWR is 27,910 lbs. So, it is over (considerably) the 14,000 lb. Diesel exempt rule.

California's smog rules change all the time. My son is a Bureau of Automotive Repair Agent and, he sends me stuff on smog all the time. As of the last message he sent me a short while ago, it's still the same, any diesel '97 or newer and over 14.5K in GVWR, is exempt. I have a document that specifically states something about motorhomes (diesels I think but, not sure, will continue to look for it) and exemptions.
Scott

I have a 2006 Winnebago Sightseer with only 8700 miles. The DMV has hit me every year for a smog check on my moho. I have not been able to contact them by phone (they never answer and then cut you off after waiting 30 minutes) and a trip to the DMV office is a horror story!
Good luck.

I have a 2003 National with a 330 CAT. One year my renewal had a smog check required with it. I took the renewal to AAA and they checked and found out it was a mistake, it did not need smog check.

In 2013 I purchased a 2008 Fleetwood Diesel Pusher, gross GVW 31,000 lbs, from a dealer in Nevada. To bring it into California, all that was required was a VIN verification inspection (can be done by DMV or CHP) and to pay California Use Tax as part of the registration process. No smog was required due to gross GVW. I think the amount of used tax will be your biggest fret!

Edit: Forgot to say I have not been required to have a smog since Reg in Calif.