UntouchableMX-5

Ok matt i feel like reaching over to the computer next to me and hitting the person after reading that. God Damnit i think i'm going to go pull the cat of my car right now and replace it with a hair spray bottle. Infact lets all go buy a hair spray bottle a day for the next 70 years and use the whole thing on your dogs just despite matt (sleeperSE). The enviroment can kiss my butt along with Math and science. The way i see it is i'm going to go have fun with my car and go racing everyweekend i can afford it and give the enviroment the bird.I was lectured about killing manatees today when i asked a wildlife officer where i can drop a jet ski in the water... ECOFREAKS give me the creeps jet ski's don't do anything to manatees. By the time the enviroment will effect me enought to have to find a new planet i'll be to old to care. I know that sounds selfish but after reading what you wrote it makes me think that even worse. NASA needs to hurry up and find us a new plant anyway. Matt you sound like someone who voted for GORE... WHAT THE HELL WHERE YOU THINKING... damn democrates want us all driving automatics and eventually all electric cars.. DAMN the day i drive a golf cart down the interstate.
So let us all
"give a hoot and polute in the name of matt"

SleeperSE

- Ian, my Miata-driving friend, thank you. Racing is fun and is expensive - but not as expensive as finding a new planet! But I suppose that NASA should hurry up, if their funding allows. ;-)
- No, I would not vote for Gore. Not Family-Man Gore, not I'm-Comfortable-With-My-Sexuality Gore, not Internet-Developing Gore, and not Karate-Chop-Action Gore. I don't like Bush either. I prefer if the most powerful man in the world has a reading level higher than my teeny-bopper sister. I voted for Nader, not because I am a tree-hugger, but because he is the only one of the three who has actually passed a substansive amount of legislation. And although he brought about changes in automobiles after the Corvair incident, cars today are faster, safer, and cleaner than yesteryear.

(I am anxiously awaiting this new ammo to resurface once certain members read this.)

UntouchableMX-5

I personally think the most powerful person in the world should be ME... because then i wouldn't have to drive over to your place to hit you for making this post. I could simply send one of my agents to do it for me.

brittb

Boy, there sure is a lot of emotion on this thread. Here
are some more facts for those that think their Y-pipe
is legal ANYWHERE in the US:

http://www.off-road.com/dodge/tech/Emissions_Legal.htm

You see, the EPA has an interesting view of modifying
an exhaust system without paying them for the compliance
testing (as alluded to by jgadlage).

BTW, SleeperSE, A newer 95-on Maxima with an OFF ROAD
Y pipe CANNOT be lumped into the "Dirty Car" definition.
I'll let you dig through and find out EXACTLY what that
category means...

Thanks for the credit in your post, but please only
credit me for the facts provided. My conclusions from
those facts will be VERY different, as I have dealt
with Government agencies on and off for 10 years after
I got out of the university. The EPA's motivation (I can
guarantee you) is less than noble when it comes to rules
and regulations for pollution. But that is another story...

BB

kratz74

Just curious. I was gonna rag on ya for using a gas mower over an electric one or something like that (in a friendly way). Don't worry about some of our fine folks here. At least down in FL you stay warm all winter (more than I can say for IA). For the record, I do not yet have a Y pipe.

Honeymooner4evr

Nader also did a lot of harm to the environment by believing that Nuclear Power was so disastrous to the environment because of what the military got away with. Now we have more coal and oil burning power plants than ever before. But that's a different topic altogether.

I agree with BrittB. The EPA evidence about dirty cars does not support your argument about the lack of precats. In order to qualify the maxima as a "dirty" car because of a Y-pipe, it would have be running very poorly and have a host of other malfunctioning emissions equipment.

I think that you would have a convincing argument if you did what some others have suggested. Go get your car emission tested "cold" with no modifications. Post the results. Then, find somebody with a similar year and mileage Maxima with say a y-pipe modification w/out precats, and have them post the results of a "cold" emission test. Then, we would all be able to see the difference for at least that 5-10minute warm up period.

UntouchableMX-5

hey matt i'm looking online for a old ford pick up right now.. i think i'll run no exaust at all on it. Maybe i should just let it idle outside my house all day untll it catches fire because of no exaust. then i can throw some hair spray cans in the cabin and have a good old fire works show at the expense of the enviroment. Wanna come watch?


PS for those that think i'm evil.. i'm kidding around and i'm actually quite good friends with mr Sleeper SE. i'm just ragging on him for giving a crap about the enviroment when he's not the usual sort that would care!

Dave B

Matt-

You do realize many guys have passed emissions tests with Y-pipes and a RT cat, right? That right there has a lot to say about the overall efficency of the VQ30DE. Upon startup is the ONLY time the Maxima's emissions MIGHT be slightly above regulated levels. The guys that didn't pass were missing the correct level by 0.002 and such and this level is only exceeded for maybe 2-3 minutes or so on a ice cold motor. I do not agree with running a car with no cat all. The main cat serves a major purpose and is needed. The major reason why the Y-pipe is illegal is because you cannot tamper or modify with the emissions control system on a car.

I work in the environmental consulting business and I work on both soil remediation and air compliance. I can tell you there are a lot more important environmental issues we should be concerning ourselves with. Water should everyones number #1 priority to clean up. It is just gut-wrenching to see how much pollution 500 gallons of fuel can cause underground. 500 gallons of fuel will contaminate about 2 million to 2.5 million gallons of water. It is mind bogling how many underground fule tanks and fuel lines are leaking throughout this country. As many of you know, there is groundwater moving below us at various depths. This water moves towards many of the rivers you and I get our drinking water from and the same goes for much of the wild life. Materials from farming (ie pesticides, herbicides, animal waste) is also another majr problem.

Don't get too caught up in the "sky is falling" media coverage. You MUST remember that this information is coming from scientists that are trying to get more grant money to do studies and write more papers. The scientist's goal is to "shock" the uninformed public. What the scientists don't want you to know is that much of the ozone layer was starting to crumble well before the industrial revolution ever started. Volcanos are the main reason why the ozone layer is disappearing. Once the ozone layer starts to go, it will go at a quick rate. That's just the way things happen in the environment.

It is amzing to me that the auto industry has come this far is such a small amount of time (~30 years). Cars of the late 90s are producing 20Xs less emissions than they were just 10 years ago. Amazing. We are now at a period where 250hp cars are producing absolutely no emissions except for water. Flat out amazing. What's even more amazing is that the automakers have the technology to make cars and trucks get approximately ~30% better gas mileage, BUT they will not do so until the absolutely have to. Like every other business, they want the big fat profit margin.


Dave

Jeff92se

iTrader: (82)

I just want to say, my VE and all the VG Y-pipes are as legal as pie. LOL.

And to add... I replaced my cat w/ a RT unit. Thus my car is running cleaner now than when it had the stock cat(old and used up). Soo nah, nah, nah...

This thread reminds me of that cartoon? Captain enviroment or Captain Recycle or something?

JMAX95

Sleeper has made some intelligent points in his post. Sure, there are people who disagree, but that's his view. Calling him names and saying that he's an A$$ doesn't help. Why do people get angry because of what someone thinks or believes? If you want to get a y-pipe, fine. No one if forcing not to get one. What does that have to to do with pouring oil into the drain and spraying aerosol cans? Come on people, counter intelligently.

Stillnmax

right now im working on a lil something something that will enable me to run Straight pipes ...

UntouchableMX-5

I make fun cause i know him and he got a good laugh out of it. For all you to know he's probably going to get a Y pipe for his max. He's trying ot catch my car.. he he

kratz74

He'll have a hell of a time trying to sodder in those precats...

UntouchableMX-5

Hey matt did you know that speeding is illegal? So is oral sex in some states? I don't see the later of the 2 being enforced does that make it wrong? They try to enforce the first one but they are wasting there time. it will never end.

SleeperSE

- Thank you for coming to my defense, JMAX95. I appreciate the support.
- My Miata-driving friend just stated that I was in the market for a Y-pipe. That is incorrect. He only joined this website so that he could harass me. Please ignore the Mazda-lover.
- After reading some of the latest developments from governmental type people, perhaps I was a bit over-concerned. brittb's latest post has a link that states that ANY mod to your car from intake through the muffler is illegal and is subject to a hefty fine. The trick is that no one enforces the law. Also, Dave B's thread makes me an even stronger believer in the VQ30DE's efficiency and strength.
- I still wonder about the amount of pollutants that are released during start-up, but I have no way to feasibly test this until summer as my beloved Max is at home until this semester's up. (Parental rule #306.722 sec. A - No car Freshman year.) If someone could go and try the cold-start test with and without the Y-pipe, I would absolutely love to see the results. I'm sorry that I couldn'thave been of better help with that.
- I was not aware of Nader's impact on Nuclear power. No source of power is perfect and he was probably off making congress aware of that.
- I'll make a deal with you all. Keep your Y-pipes (maybe I'll get one now), but try to be more conscious of what your personal impact on the environment is. I don't see why everyone is so damn opposed to just keeping an eye out and following basic rules like recycling and not littering. It's really not that big a deal. Anybody have any other suggestions?

SleeperSE

- As a follow up to my friend's prodding, I would just like to say something to the effect of kiss my rear-end.
- Ian has spent considerable time on that itsy bitsy four-banger. He rebuilt the engine, boring it out slightly in the process, added a Ground Control/Koni set-up and a Front Sway Bar, popped on a new intake and cat-back, had the headers bored, and has lightweight wheels. He started working on his car quite a while before I began and is currently keeping it SCCA legal for his class.
- While he is most decidedly quicker in the corners, I still feel that my Max is quicker in a straight line at almost any speed (he probably has me at launch to 20 due to RWD and lighter weight and a nice clutch). I can't wait to get my coilovers, cams or s/c, exhaust (yes, with the frickin' y-pipe), intake, bored headers, wheels and tires, and finally, my GTR badge. Then we'll go out and play, Miata-boy.
- Just keep in mind that I can still carry four people, more luggage, and my air conditioner doesn't zap 40% of my power when I turn it on!

SleeperSE

- Thank you to everyone for participating in this thread. I am very pleased at the level of involvement that we got out of it.
- We've learned a lot of things through this controversy. We now know that practically any modification to a car is illegal - fortunately they don't check it. We've learned about emissions and who are major polluters and who are not. We have learned that the Y-pipe isn't so bad at all. And we have all learned that all too many signature pics get really, really old after a while.
- Thank you to all those who retrieved information and valuable links that we should all go see and thank you to those who could build great arguments. I feel that debate is one of the greatest builders of common sense and general logic. Having people come in to defend or challenge my writings was tons of fun. I hope that we were all able to gain something through this.
- I had a lot of fun with this thread - even though I'm now labeled a tree hugger. See you all later.

Enjoy the Ride,
Matt

Jeff92se

iTrader: (82)

Bored headers? Ie.. ported stock exhaust manifolds? Well the ve manifolds apper to be cast iron but upon closer inspection, they are tubular steel welded to cast iron flanges. Are you sure you can port the stock manifolds? Who you going for cams??

The Sleeper

i think i'm gonna have to change my nick name now...

SleeperSE

- I talked to two shops and they both said that they could bore the headers out.
- JWT is supposed to have cams out eventually. I'm hoping they're done when I need them. I'm stickin' to BMW's philosophy of letting the brakes and the suspension be quicker than the engine.

SleeperSE

- Stillnmax, my moronic nemesis, thank you so much for contributing to my thread. Your glorious intellect and perfect grammar have been an inspiration to me. I was so impressed with all that you did to intelligently counter my points. (I can't wait to call my opponent a "potty-head" during my next debate.)
- By the way, your baby picture is so cute. How old were you when the shot was taken?