Is it illegal to have cold air intake in california?

My brother got pulled over tonight in his subaru wrx (its not an STI) and the police officer said it was illegal for him to have cold air intake with a cone something or other and there was one other offense. The officer let him go without any problems but now we are wondering. Is it actually illegal in california to have cold air intake or was the cop just in a bad mood? Thanks guys

This Site Might Help You. RE: Is it illegal to have cold air intake in california? My brother got pulled over tonight in his subaru wrx (its not an STI) and the police officer said it was illegal for him to have cold air intake with a cone something or other and there was one other offense. The officer let him go without any problems but now we are wondering. Is it actually.

The air intake is part of the emissions system. It is illegal to modify the emissions system, so it is entirely possible that the cold air intake is illegal in California.

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Eric is correct that such a modification is improper unless a specific authorization has been made. A Google search shows that there are cold air intakes which have been approved for use in CA, so the officer may have been wrong. At any rate, I do not find any statute which makes it an offense to operate a vehicle with an improperly modified emissions system, which would be a reason he was not cited. (It is illegal to SELL unauthorized modifications, Veh C sec. 27156, but I don't find anything about using them.) Your brother's problem is that unless the modification is permitted, the vehicle is not going to make it though a smog check with a modified emissions control system, and he will not be able to register the vehicle until it is corrected. It is an offense to drive an unregistered vehicle. He may want to be proactive and take the vehicle to a smog check station now and see if there is any problem to avoid a later hassle. (Of course, if he has already made it through a smog check, then he already knows there is no problem.)