Hey guys. I am having a hell of a time getting an emissions and safety inspection in Virginia for my 06 Check Colbalt. The issue is that the car is moded to the teeth and no shop wants to touch it. The car is a SEMA 2007, 2008 show winner and the builder did such mods to the car that I can not get it street legal.



My galley has some pics of the car
https://www.cobaltss.net/gallery/bro...mageuser=56935

Problems:

--- Emissions
- No O2 sensors
- No CAT - running straight pipe with a flex pipe. Car has a twin turbo but is not hooked up yet, thoug has the turbo manifold.
- ECU has been flashed completely to trick the car there are emissions when there is not. No "check engine light" comes on even though there should be. This is because of the ECU flash
- Car has wide body kit so inspector can not access the stock gas cap/ filler port.

---- Safety
- No ebrake - car has corvette 14" rotors with Corvette calipers. (Need to place back on stock rotors, pads and calipers, then hook up ebrake cable)
- Car has side camera rather then side mirrors (need to replace side cameras)
- Car has MOMO quick release steering wheel (airbag light on) need to place back on stock steering wheel and airbag. (horn also does not work)


It's a mess as I bought the car for my wife and can not get it inspected to register in VA.
Can any offer a place to get work done and can get the car inspected who are use to high performance/ show cars.

I have been to 3 shops now and everyone is afraid to even touch the car, plus they can not even figure out how the car was modded and how to test it.

So frustrated I could cry.

 

OMG donnas car? lol

So your the buyer that wanted your money back?

Remember you bought a show car something that really isn't driven on the road, you know what you need to change to make that happen

 

no shop will pass it no matter who you take it to if it wont pass legally. they get fined big time for passing inspections on cars that shouldnt. either mod the car so that it will pass or sell it. you bought donnas car i see. at least we know why you wanted to give it back. didnt look into local laws too closely. here in texas they wouldnt have thought twice about passing that.

 

haha.. uhmm maybe you should have thought of the legalities of that car before you bought it. that car is going to be a mess to get back to "inspection" quality.. thank god wisconsin not like that

 

if you put donna's car back to street legal it will look like crap. just my opinion

there is a reason the car was so expensive and a reason those mods are done to that car.

IT IS A SHOW CAR ! ! !

If you wanted a cobalt dd then a 20 thousand dollar or cheaper ss/tc should have been ur best bet.

sorry for sounding like an ass but come on now think more into something b4 purchasing!

 

Hmm, the builder is pretty confident I can get street legal and still keep the show car look.
Donna's car is a piece of art and stunning. It's been really frustrating guys and I am looking for any help or suggestions. Or is the community opinion you shouldn't have bought it tool ..

I am not looking to get an illegal inspection, but just a shop that is familiar with high-end/ performance cars. Normal shops gather around the car take pictures and the say " we have no idea"
I am on the up and up with the car and have even spoken with State Police and the DEQ to make sure I am following all laws and what I need to get the car t pass.

If I can not get it street legal to drive then what do I do with it gang?? pay a $300+ car payment and insurance to have it sit? I bought the car as a gift to my wife, as we have 3 kids and she has been driving a minvan for years but always dreamed of a "fast and furious" type car. She deserves it and I wanted to do something after almost 11 years married.

Donna's "Bad Girl" came on the market and I made a bid. I was always upfront that the car was to be my wife's weekend get away and would be driven not just for shows. I financed myself to the teeth and now can not even register the car or get it inspected. Thanks for the help and kind comments.

 

Also the whole "think before you purchase" is an echo now of my wife who is pissed as hell at me!!

I was ruled by emotion and wanted to do something grand and now it is all falling down on top of me. My wife is saying just what you said " think before you buy, look into it more.. are you an idiot!" but my wife does it with a much louder voice.

What was suppose to be a gift is now a curse that I am dead set to make work and turn around. What choice do I have. Donna will not take it back, and I do not see and easy buyer for a car that can not be driven on the streets for the price I paid. Thanks so much for the help and the lemon in the cut.

 

Honestly if you part out the twin turbo setup(as long as it's complete) and sell the exhaust you would have almost enough cash to fix it.

For the emissions...
Get a new exhaust and a tune. If you can fill up at a gas station they should be able to find a way to test it.
If not then you might have to get some custom bodywork done around the area. Not sure what about it is causing the problem. Another option would be to reroute it to behind the license plate.(both those would put you overbudget).

For safety...
Yes, change the brakes. Or ghetto-rig an e-brake.
If you can prove that the cameras give the same or better view then I think you should be able to get away with it.(you'll have to go a little higher than the testers or low level dmv employees)
Airbags are not required by law. There should be a way to trick the airbag sensor. Post up a seperate thread on here and maybe someone can help.

 

^this!

and...

No offence man, but if you actually drive that car then I'd give it 6 months before it looks like crap. Cars that were built like that are trailor queens and just arent meant to be driven all the time. Its meant for people to drool over at car shows. I'm sorry you got yourself into such a sucky situation but you should have really thought twice before buying a car like that. Personally I would save yourself the headache and sell it and then get something stock that she can mod to her street legal liking.

 

Ill buy it for half of what you paid and call it a day?

 

i saw this car at carlise performance and style )))))))

 

You would give me half of what I paid??.. that's nice bro.
.. Crack Kills .. put down the pipe! :P

As for a trailer queen.. I feel and believe cars are meant to be driven and enjoyed not set on a shelf or in a garage. I shot a commercial in which we needed a JAG XKE and I found a collector who let us borrow one for free and just enjoyed having his classic car driven and the guy would really open this car up. It was fun. You can check it out here if you want:
YouTube - Doritos Enjoy the Adventure - Super Bowl Ad

I drive a 02 Harley FLSTC all year round and (unless it snows) and I put a lot of work into her. It's a got a show bike look perhaps, but for me it's my daily commuter and it makes me smile each time I ride.
I feel a car should be the same.

Now that said, the Colbalt will be be driven by my wife as a run about on the weekends and rarely driven. We hope maybe to take it to a few shows, but for now I would like to get it registered all on the up and up for inspection and enjoyed. I appreciate those who offer some advise and help. I am still looking.

Kenny the builder (who has worked hard to help me) suggested I look to the Colbalt community for some help and suggestions in my area for a good shop I can take the car to. So far I see what the community is like now, forums are always tough.

 

So what you are saying is that the twin charge turbo setup is not even fully hooked up?

Your best bet is to

# 1
find out if the 02 sensor wiring is still there. if so, buy the orignal 02 sensors, have a custom down pipe made with a high flow cat (gutted) just so it is there for emmision purposes. have the sensors in the exhaust so u have them there for visual inspection (1 before and 1 after the cat)

#2
get a hold of someone who is a local hp tuners dealer and have them re tune the car!

#3
get a hold of 2 stock side mirror. keep the wiring for the side cameras installed and dont ruin the wiring. hook up 2 manual adjustable mirrors for inspection and take them back out after the car is inspected and put the cameras back in

#4
find a stock steering whell and airbag and install that. it will need to be hooked back up into the clock spring (not that hard to do) and u can put the momo back on after inspection,....by hookin back up the air bag the light should go off

as for the ebrake, I have no idea what kind of custom work has been down so in that case you may be in a huge pile of **** to do for that

hope this kinda helps man

my best opinion is to post it forsale (it may take a while to sell) but try and get your money back and start fresh with something else

you got a lot of money spending ahead of you to get this to pass street legal again

hate to tell you this but I figure you already know the facts

 

Donna's car?? sickkk
Keep it a show car, car's amazing

 

u didnt buy it for your wife because it was purple and knew nothing about it did you!!!???

 

I agree with this. Sell the TT setup, it will be a nightmare to ever get it working right anyways. Get new exhaust with cat and o2 sensors. Surely they have some way of testing the gas cap/filler tube, but since I haven't seen how the widebody kit fits so maybe there isn't enough room.

As far as the ebrake goes, I don't see any way around having to put the stock rear brakes on to get it to work. Also, side cameras WILL NOT work. Even if you "prove" they work as good as side mirrors, the law still states that you MUST have side mirrors.

 

Hey PsychoCam .. that is some good help.
- I have the original CAT coming for the car. I will take it to an exhaust shop, take out the flex pipe an weld in. Then drill a bung hole and place in the O2 sensor. Estimate $300 for work

- Supposedly according to Kenny (the builder) the O2 sensor in the manifold is still there but turned off. I will have to check. - (no cost if there and manifold can use O2 sensor)

- For the turbo I really want to keep that on the whine of a super charger and then the blowoff sound of a turbo is sweet. Kenny offered to take it off, but I am going to take it to be tuned and have them reflash the system. Estimate $800 - $1000 for the job

- I already bought fold-away side mirrors.. so no worries there, an easy fix $100

- I have the original steering wheel and airbag. I will attempt to but in tomorrow and hope the SRS light goes out. (no cost)

- Kenny is also sending me Colbalt rotors, calipers and pads so I can hook up the Ebrake, as he advises the cable is still there just zip tied under the car. Once I get the parts I will roll under and look.
we will swap brakes for an even trade . (no cost)

- I purchased a filler tube and will extend the fill cap just behind the SPARCO cover. So that is my plan, I found a fabricator for the job. Will require a bit or welding or just some simple JV weld. $45 for parts - estimate $200-$300 for the labor

and that should do it I think: estimated total: $1700
Plus I already spent another $2200 on Kenny in adding a K40 and diffuser, a viper alarm, Audi LED strip lights to the headlights, and a sweet front plate flip that hides on lock and rolls out on unlock. Modding out a MOd .. making it your own.. LOL

The air ride system leaks bad, so I will probably later upgrade to a digital air ride management system, change out all the valves, re-tape and connect so that it doesn't leak. Right now if I stop for gas by the time I am done filling up the car it is sitting on the tires, plus the tank fill pressure is down, so that leads me to believe the leak is at the take fill. I will get to that later once I solve everything else and find more funds. Cash for gold .. blood bank?? I will find something.

Sorry for the long long post, but I appreciate your advise PsychoCam .. now your thinking

 

Question.. do the turn signals not cancel after you turn in a Colbalt or do I need to buy a new turn handle/switch?, as my blinkers do not cancel but you have to manually flip it back to center after the turn.

If you really get me going I also plan .. down the road to figure out the huge current draw on the car. The battery will die in a matter of hours do to all the gadgets and electrical components in the car. I will look into a possible second alternator and battery and split the electric functions so at least you can get into the car without a jump, and you have to use an anderson cable (I learned the hard way) to get power to the car, as the battery is buried under the trunk mod.

I plan to keep it a show car, but one you drive, get looks and have my wife eventually enjoy.

 

My signal sticks also. Not a big deal but no it's not suposed to be like that. What kind of battery is it?

Go here for your battery(s)...
Kinetik High Current Power Cells

Here's how to do the dual alternator setup...
https://www.cobaltss.net/forums/elec...or-pics-90785/

And thanks for NOT giving me any credit. I only said most of what PsychoCam said 5 posts before him...no big deal.

 

Donna's car was amazing, a little over the top, but thats what made it what it was. shoulda went to someone with SHOWING it in mind imo, thats what it was for. not to be a dd...

it's a SHOW CAR, not meant to be driven...what did you expect?

best advice, put it back up for sale...as mentioned above, it'll prob take a while to sell, but it seems as though you just want to make it drivable which is gonna cost a bit of time/money as well...take it to some shows, have fun with it while trying to sell it...

to each his own...if it were me, i'd repaint it a killer paint scheme, different rims, different front bumper, maybe different rear bumper and some other things to make it my own and off to the shows i'd go lol

 

With all due respect, like a lot of others have said, it's a show car, it's meant to be a piece of art that gets trailered from point A to point B, it wasn't really meant to be a DD, and therefore you can't really expect it to be a piece of cake getting it inspected. First and foremost your best bet would be to get some cats, because around here at least, as long as you can find a little bit of a "backwoods" inspection shop, they'll look under your car for a catalytic converter, make sure all your lights work, and send you on your way.

 

Incorrect. A shop technically cannot pass a car, they can only do work to it to make it pass. If you bring a car with out 02 sensors or a cat to a shop, on a trailer/towed in, they are allowed to work on it. Unless the emissions standards where he is from, or the EPA state other wise, but here if you have need a cat, 02 sensor, or any emissions related parts put on, you need to bring it in on a trailer (if it doesn't have any of those already). If you do that, they cannot turn down your business "technically"

 

Batcap has good batteries for running mulitple car electronics too. I have two of them in my Z cuz the stupid battery kept dying all the time. Now I only have to jump it if it sits for awhile.

You said the battery was burried but if you can get it hooked up to a trickle charger while it sits that should stop you from coming out to a dead battery all the time. I need to invest in one myself for the winter.

 

some more advice for you.

if you are trading corvette brakes for stock setup that is kinda stupid. you can get a stock setup on ebay and sell the corvette stuff.

I reccommend fixing the air ride system first so can actually drive the car for the day without any air leaking out etc

dont dump money into the car w/ mods until it is fixed prior to modding it. kenny is a good guy but they already made 20,000 dollars on it. why spend more money for him to keep modding it when it cant even get inspected.

fix the essentials first and for most

also what is the dash screen display? it looks really cool? any better pics of the screen and middle screen on?

 

I put a gel Die Hard Platinum in the car and so for it cranks right up and works like a champ. I has the shop test the old blue top battery and it was dead in the dirt, no way of holding a charge any more.

Things are looking good right now as I got everything for safety inspection done other then the brakes and I will throw those on this week once I get the parts. I jacked the car up and the ebrake cable is still right there nicely tucked away. This should be a simple swap. I get it inspected as the horn, light, mirrors and everything is working great now for a safely inspection.

Making good progress. I appreciate the advice and help.