Is it possible to get a motor combo like the 408 ci with boost and lots of HP to pass smog? I am getting ready to start a build and I want to go as radical as I can but it still has to pass smog, Damn California laws!!!! What should I do to ensure its stays legal?

 

I think the only thing you would be able to do to stay legal is not put it in. Seriously, though, a 408 won't be spewing out dirtier air, but it will certainly be spewing out a much higher volume of air than anything Gen III small block on the market right now. That is what will get you, the volume of offending material.

My guess is your only hope of passing smog would be to put in a very mild cam. Now a mild cam for a 408 is what, something like a 218/224? Even then, I wouldn't be very smug about it. And the next question is, what's the point? Why bother with a 408 if you're going to cam it down?

When I was considering a 408, most every shop I talked to relished the challenge of making one that would pass CA smog. At the end of the day, I decided that if was going to do a motor swap, I'd just make a nice, aggressive 6.0L and tune it to pass. The risk of sinking $7K+ into a motor, only to have to pull it or sell it soon afterward did not appeal to me.

Good luck with your decision.

 

There are cities/towns in California that dont require smogs. You can get a PO box in that city and register your truck there. Then you are except from smog. I know there is a town up north that is like that. My uncle has his truck registered up there and has not smog to deal with.

 

Thats the ticket I need to find that city. Thanks!!