Passed the BAR exam!

[surebimmer]

Good job. Did they give you any trouble because all data wiring manual shows two o2 sensors for a 95? Or have they fixed that now? Got mine bar'd there 4 years ago.

[eandrade]

No worries...I remember searching for this info when I started this swap and couldn't find real first hand details. Hope it helps you guys out, definitely makes me feel at ease knowing I can take the car to any smog shop now.

[davi tech]

+1 on the info. thanks

[MR 325]

Thanks for posting this, definitely great info for those wanting to BAR their swap.

[eandrade]

Yeah, the numbers were really borderline. He ran the 15mph @ 2nd gear and the 25mph in 3rd. I wonder if that had anything do do with it? (The NOx is super high @ 15mph, but really low @ 25mph?)

[jrdeamicis]

Hey Ernie!

This is great!

Now your car is worth a lot more!

That smog was close! But it passed!

[e30shmobberr]

I need to get my car bar'd when i get it back. only thing is i have a kragens air filter, which i dont think i will pass with

[hwy84]

Congratulations!

I am stoked to see that even a mildly cammed motor still can pass with old cats... I am considering doing something similar to my S50.

[eandrade]

Dyno graph from a few weeks ago

Goal achieved by VirtualErn, on Flickr

And the smog test results

Smog check results by VirtualErn, on Flickr

[eandrade]

I just wanted to give the folks on here a summary of what I went through with my engine change verification appointment with the California BAR. Some background...

Car: 1990 325i
Engine: 1998 M3
The goal was to get the car certified as a 1995 M3.
Work done:

• Full OBDI conversion
• S50 Manifold
• S50 Valve cover (and coils)
• S50 wiring harness
• 3" MAF
• TRM ECU
• Schrick street cams (264/256)
• ABS relocated to passenger side tray so I could run a stock OEM S50 intake (thanks to Julian @ BNB Designs)
• 24lb injectors
• OBDII exhaust manifolds (with O2 ports plugged)
• Custom fabbed X-pipe between exhaust manifolds and midpipe with the S50 O2 sensor
• Stock S52 OBDII midpipe (with O2 ports plugged)
• Eisenmann race exhaust
• UUC 11lb Lightweight flywheel (with ECU set for high idle @ ~1K RPM)
• Spark plugs were ~6K miles old (NGK-R single electrode platinums)

The process is fairly straightforward.

1. Make sure you read this page. You probably already know this but the rules are that you have to maintain the same smog equipment from *the donor vehicle*. That means for my 1995 M3, I had to have one O2 sensor measuring before the cats, EVAP canister, and the PCV setup.
2. I called up the BAR office (1-800-952-5210) to setup an appointment. If you don't want to navigate some annoying menu system, call this number 1-800-622-7733. They'll locate the nearest ref station; for me, it was Las Positas College in Livermore.
3. The ref came out and took some basic info about the swap. He was a pretty nice guy, asking about the Massive Brake kit I have, who did the swap, how hard it was, and what the @*&# was that loud rattling (I'm running an E46 M3 6-speed)
4. They did a walkaround of the car to note any preexisting scratches/dents/damage. The ref's assistant checked the oil.
5. The ref did a stomp test to verify that the check engine light was functional. Did a few cycles of ignition on/off to verify that it goes on & off as expected.
6. He looked for the O2 sensor, thinking they were on the exhuast manifolds (it's on the X-pipe).
7. They then ran it on the dyno through the usual 15mph and 25mph rolls. I was worried as hell here because the car had been sitting for about 20 minutes. And the cats are fairly old (~150K miles or so).
8. Next up was EVAP. The location of my EVAP can was a bit difficult to get to (underneath the brake master cylinder) so they decided to skip it. They also didn't have the right adapter for the fuel tank fill pipe.
9. He also did a fuel cap pressure test (passed)

All in all, it wasn't too bad. But that was after spending a crapload of money to get the motor converted over properly.
Like I said, the ref I had seemed like a friendly guy. And I lucked out with the sniffer test (I was right on the edge).

Hope this helps, PM me if you have any questions.