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I have moved this discussion on to its own thread as I think it is very important, and one which comes up from time to time, and this will make it easier to find.
I am using a BMW M50 engine and have made my exhaust without cats, even though the original donor did have them.
Mark Vickers from VOSA Swansea Tel: 01792 454 354 confirmed the following:
For IVA:
C02 based on ENGINE year of manufacture : mine is June '93 and he confirmed this will NOT require a Cat. (my understanding is this applies upto August '95, but please contact Mark Vickers to confirm).
There is a proviso, that the owner must prove the age of the engine. I have a letter from BMW HO UK stating my engine was manufactured in June 1993, and this was sent to Mark Vickers who has confirmed it does not require a cat.
For MOT:
Emissions are based on the age of the car, but they will use the details stated on the IVA registration. This presumably means it is important to get the engine year stated on the IVA registration if you chose not to fit a cat.
The main issue for me to remove the cats if I could was due to space/ground clearance considerations. The two BMW cats are quite large in diameter (around 5") and there is no room to fit these in the Cabrio engine bay: therefore they have to fit under the floor pan, which results in very low ground clearance. Without them I have gained at least 2" extra ground clearance, which is crucial on a car as marginal as the Cabrio with an under chassis exhaust.
If you check with Mark Vickers first, you should be able to design/make/buy your own exhaust from the outset.
"Vehicles fitted with a different engine must be
tested to the requirements of whichever is older, the
engine or the vehicle.
e.g. A 1995 car fitted with a 1991 engine (of
whatever make), test to 1991 standards for
emission purposes.
Note: The onus is on the vehicle presenter to prove
engine age."
"Vehicles fitted with a different engine must be
tested to the requirements of whichever is older, the
engine or the vehicle.
e.g. A 1995 car fitted with a 1991 engine (of
whatever make), test to 1991 standards for
emission purposes.
Note: The onus is on the vehicle presenter to prove
engine age."
John
Isn't this saying just the same?
You need to prove the age of your engine, so it is important to get it recorded on the registration document when it is assessed at IVA.
Edit - May be I have missed the point? - Are you suggesting that if you fit a newer engine, then the emissions will be based on the age of the car, not the engine?
I am intending to get my Cabrio registered on my 93 K plate Sierra V5 donor. This is older than the engine, so your comments suggest the engine age is irrelevant for MOT purposes?
Mike
Mike
Not sure if you will be able to use the Reg.No from the V5 of your donor. Since the car is essentially different (new chassis number etc) it will have a differnt identity. My donor was a 'G' Sierra and I ended up with an age-related 'G' plate, but not the same as the Sierra.
And that was after a bit of an argument with the DVLA inspector who wanted to give me a Q plate until I forced him to look on their own website and look at the documentaton
Edit - May be I have missed the point? - Are you suggesting that if you fit a newer engine, then the emissions will be based on the age of the car, not the engine?
FWIW, that was certainly my interpretation when I read it a few months ago.
My comment regards the MOT was that the emmisions will be based on the year of the engine not the car itself. Obviously if you have IVA documentation that proves the engine date you will be fine.
For vehicles without IVA info and just a V5 (such as my Hunter) all I have is a V5 with the engine number and CC etc.. Its up to me to prove the engine I swaped into the car is from a 91 year vehicle otherwise I would be tested as per the 97 year reg of the vehicle (and then fail with no cat).
The manuals on the link are pretty clear on all of this.
A slight side note, when I went down to order my sportster, Mark told me that the side pipes now have an integral cat hidden in the front. I'm waiting for them to confirm this. If the reason for not wanting to fit a cat is space and the unsightly look of the thing, then a solution exists. If it's because you're going for max performance then obviously you want to avoid on.
I personally will take the integral cat if it is available as the power loss is really minimal for a road car and it will save the uncertainty when it comes to MOTs and IVA