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US sues eBay for allowing sale of emissions defeat devices

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Re: US sues eBay for allowing sale of emissions defeat devices

#181

Post by grecy »

User23 wrote: post #116
grecy wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> My understanding is that such parts are not by themselves illegal. The crime is actually using them on the road. My understanding was that they were legal for track purposes. That certainly used to be the case, but it changed recently, and the EPA has been aggressively going after anyone who sells them for any purpose. If you're in the US and sell things that can modify emissions stuff, they're coming for you. Peri…

Does this include chip tunes?

It does, but it's worth noting that a manufacturer of such devices can make it meet federal emissions regulations (if they want to spend the $$$$ on R&D), and they can sell devices that are 100% legal in all 50 states.

Examples are Green Diesel Engineering (Who did a TON of dyno time and used to work for a major OEM on emissions stuff) and Banks (who are virtually an OEM at this point)

Re: US sues eBay for allowing sale of emissions defeat devices

#182

Post by CobaltFire »

oceanplexian wrote: post #134
fsckboy wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> My understanding is that such parts are not by themselves illegal. The crime is actually using them on the road. My understanding was that they were legal for track purposes. ok, it's just a single datapoint, but motocross racetracks in New England, already built in the woods away from civilization, started requiring mufflers about 50 years ago, early 1970's

We’re not taking about mufflers. For example in California “Emissions defeat system” means you simply used an off-brand air filter that wasn’t blessed by the government. The parts may even be more efficient and less polluting, the government bureaucracy everyone here is worshipping doesn’t give a rats behind.

This is disingenuous; you have to do a lot more than change an air filter. You would have to change the actual piping, etc. with one that the seller declined to spend the money on certifying as compliant.

Further, and most people don't know this is a thing, you CAN tune your car as much as you want and have it certified with all of those parts as a one off for about $5,000 and a six-ish month wait. This is how you can legally import overseas vehicles and get a California title and registration, but it's $5,000 per test, and it usually takes more than one if you aren't super prepared. After the certification the entire engine (including all modifications) are regarded as that being the SMOG compliant form.

One other major loophole is kit cars; SB100 allows for non-SMOG vehicles to be built as a kit. Not everyone's cup of tea, but you can build things like the Superlite GT-R [0] or SL-C [1] and never SMOG it.

0: http://www.superlitecars.com/gtr/

1: http://www.superlitecars.com/slc

Re: US sues eBay for allowing sale of emissions defeat devices

#183

Post by devit »

Osiris wrote: post #76
WirelessGigabit wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not on you to decide that I get to breathe in carcinogens.

As a motorcycle rider, these people that dump black smoke when they accelerate are just pumping poison straight into my lungs. I hate it so much because there’s nothing I can do about it. At least cars have cabin air filters. I get to suck it straight in unfiltered.

You could wear an FFP2 or FFP3 mask with a valve.

Re: US sues eBay for allowing sale of emissions defeat devices

#184

Post by Scoundreller »

kps wrote: post #178
Scoundreller wrote: post #164

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m still trying to get the gov to cough up the documents, but funny how the gov didn’t tell our telecoms to ban them from roaming on our cellular networks. Nor identify domestic users that imported them and put on a transition plan to get them off our networks. If they’re actually so harmful to public health. Though I wonder if our telecoms were behind this; they prefer you to buy your device from them.

I don't think “harmful to public health” is a consideration. Pretty much every country with a functioning government requires RF certification for electronics, but especially radio transmitters. It's never going to be worth hunting down individual buyers or hassling tourists, but selling is another thing.

Cell phones do have emitted energy regulations based on estimated tissue absorption. And they vary country to country (some countries even further regulate them near schools & other locations).

If they were causing harmful interference, I’d like to think they would be harder-headed about it.

Re: US sues eBay for allowing sale of emissions defeat devices

#185

Post by wutwutwat »

lokar wrote: post #138
genter wrote: post #119

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, I believe the officer I talked to didn't care and thought I was a pansy.

This. More so for loud motorcycles, since cops tend to also own them.

This logic is absurd. Cops are hands off with bikers not because they own bikes. Extrapolating your logic one could say:

Cops don’t ticket cars because they also own a car

Cops don’t stop people with guns because they also own guns

Cops don’t go after bikers because they factor in if the offense is worth the risk, to both themselves and the public. There’s also a whole thing with outlaw motorcycle gangs that plays into it. Most non entry level bikes can out maneuver and outrun cop cars with ease, yes, even those slow looking Harley’s. Starting a chase over loud pipes would put a lot of innocent people at risk and for what? It isn’t worth it and it’s safe to say if the biker is running modified pipes they are not on an entry level bike.

Story: a buddy of mine had a gsxr 1000 and would purposely screw with cops on the freeway and as soon as they’d light up he’d be gone and doing 200mph within a few seconds, fitting between cars easily. Within 30-60 seconds a bike can be damn near a mile away from a cop car. Radioing ahead won’t help if you don’t know where they went and they were never running a plate to run… most cops know it’s pointless to chase and often immediately call it off. Public safety is more important. Those types of bikers have a way of making the issue go away all on their own eventually. You can’t temp fate that much and not eventually meet yours.

Re: US sues eBay for allowing sale of emissions defeat devices

#187

Post by brianwawok »

sokoloff wrote: post #180
brianwawok wrote: post #174

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's 100% adjustable by user. Very likely when replacing them they got bumped? The classic way is you go in a garage or against a wall and shine them, and measure to ensure the horizontal line is going down towards the ground (vs going up and blinding everyone). Not only is it nicer for oncoming traffic, they actually work a lot better...

I typical set the high beams on and aim those straight ahead. That gives max range for high beams and the low beam down and right (for right drive countries) is then also very close to optimal.

Yah. If you are being flashed it's likely at least 1 degree upward, which is not helping a driver see the road.

Re: US sues eBay for allowing sale of emissions defeat devices

#188

Post by dharmab »

numtel wrote: post #83
Osiris wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a motorcycle rider, these people that dump black smoke when they accelerate are just pumping poison straight into my lungs. I hate it so much because there’s nothing I can do about it. At least cars have cabin air filters. I get to suck it straight in unfiltered.

As a car driver without a cabin air filter, (are cabin air filters even effective against exhaust gases?) both diesel trucks and motorcycles require me to close my windows and vents because of the smell. At least cars have smog equipment to reduce the emissions. Motorcycles mostly don't.

Most motorcycles made from 2017 onward have factory emissions equipment with cleanliness similar to cars (due to the Euro5 regulations from that year forward). Since most bikes have one configuration globally, even US models implemented Euro5.

Re: US sues eBay for allowing sale of emissions defeat devices

#189

Post by Eisenstein »

Scoundreller wrote: post #169
wredue wrote: post #149

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Canadian government “secret spat” doesn’t seem so secret. Xiaomi stuff is laced with various levels of spyware. There’s also tech relations issues due to huawei shenanigans and back doors.

So are iPhones and US Android phones, but I guess when it’s a “partner” country’s corporations doing the spying, that makes it okay.

> I guess when it’s a “partner” country’s corporations doing the spying, that makes it okay.

According to the government? Yes, of course.

Re: US sues eBay for allowing sale of emissions defeat devices

#190

Post by mikestew »

dumbfounder wrote: post #146
lokar wrote: post #138

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This. More so for loud motorcycles, since cops tend to also own them.

I am in favor of louder pipes for motorcycles for safety reasons. But there is such a thing as too loud.

If noise made your bike safer, you’d get an insurance discount. People say such things so that they don’t come off as sociopathic, not because it is true. Don’t parrot them.
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