Required Emission Control Equipment

Environment ministry enforcement officers are equipped with information regarding the required emission control equipment on specific vehicles. Recently, one of our members asked if we knew an accurate source of information that the collector car community could access.

Over the years equipment disappears, particularly the early emission equipment that was so inefficient that it sandbagged both gas mileage and performance. The restorer is, in many cases, at a loss in attempts to ascertain the original equipment on the vehicle in question.

The attached list was provided by Ontario's Drive Clean office. Data for this was collected and collated by personnel from the Transportation Systems Division of Environment Canada and the Road Safety and Vehicle Regulation Department of Transport Canada. At the outset it states that:

  "The situation with respect to records of the emissions control components originally installed on Canadian vehicles, is as indicted below:

·      1975 & earlier           - use U.S. listings

·      1975 to 1979              - no data held by the federal government

·      1980 to 1987              - use data published in this report

·      1988 and newer           - computer listings being prepared, but data submitted by manufacturers is still incomplete."

Our technical contact at Drive Clean also provided us with a US link to a VIN decoder pointing specifically to emission control equipment. This is a good starting point and may well serve the needs of our community. Be forewarned, however, that this is a US site and may be helpful but not necessarily 100% reliable for Canadian vehicles.

COMBINED TABLES BY YEAR, MAKE .pdf Click Here

Q: What about specialty vehicles?

A: The SOP (Standard Operating Procedures) for Ontario's Drive Clean Program has a section covering specialty vehicles which include kit car, rebuilt car, hot rod car (original engine replaced), and grey market vehicles. This section outlines the rules and procedures for the DCF to follow.

Q: What are specialty vehicles?

A: Three special vehicle types are defined in Ontario Regulation 361/98 as amended: 1) a kit car or rebuilt car, 2) a hot rod, or 3) a grey market vehicle. For all other vehicles, the model year used to select emission testing standards is the same year listed on the vehicle registration form. For these specialty vehicles, the model year used to select emission testing standards depends on several factors outlined in the regulation. However, the Ministry of Transportation will always use the model year printed on the vehicle permit to determine whether a vehicle is included in the program.


Q: How will the emission controls on vehicles with engine "changes" (hot rods, kit cars, rebuilt cars) and cars imported without all of the emission controls (grey market) be inspected?

A: During the calendar years 1999 and 2000, all specialty vehicles will be inspected for only for this emission control equipment: gas cap.

During the calendar year 2001 and later, all specialty vehicles of model years up to and including 1999, and all specialty vehicles except hot rods of model years 2000 and later will be inspected only for this emission control equipment: gas cap.

During the calendar year 2001 and later, hot rods of model years 2000 and later will be inspected for all emission control components normally required for the model year of vehicle.

Q: How will tailpipe emissions of vehicles with engine "changes" (hot rods, kit cars, rebuilt cars) and cars imported without all of the emission controls (grey market) be tested?

A: During the calendar years 1999 and 2000, all specialty vehicles will be tested using emission standards for the model year 1980.

In the calendar year 2001 and later, - hot rods and grey market vehicles of model years up to and including 1999 will continue to be tested using 1980 standards;
- hot rods and grey market vehicles of model years 2000 and later will be tested using standards for those model years;
- kit cars and rebuilt cars will be tested using emission standards for the model year of the engine (determined using evidence supplied by the owner).


Q: What is acceptable proof that the vehicle replacement engine differs from that offered by the manufacturer for that model year?

A: You are advised to bring a receipt for the replacement engine to the Drive Clean Facility for your test.


Q: I drive a propane-powered vehicle. How does Drive Clean affect me?

Cars that use alternate fuels, such as propane or natural gas, will require emission tests. The emission tests standards for these vehicles are the same as gasoline powered vehicles. However, natural gas vehicles emissions will be adjusted for methane, which is not a smog-causing pollutant. In the case of dual-fuel vehicles, the emission test will be based on the fuel on which the vehicle is running when it enters the test facility. If the vehicle can also use gasoline, the gas cap test will still be required.

Q: I have an all-wheel drive vehicle. How can that be tested on a dynamometer?

There are a number of types of vehicles which cannot be tested on a dynamometer, for one reason or another. In this case, the emission test will involve a two-speed idle test, where emissions are measured while the vehicle is idling at two different speeds and the results are averaged out.

VEHICLES REQUIRING INSPECTIONS

Drive Clean: LDV model years requiring biennial emissions testing under HTA Reg 628 amendments.
- Model year is the year assigned to a vehicle as registered on the MTO database; read horizontally to determine in what calendar years emissions testing will be required for registration renewal.
- Program calendar year is the actual year when emission testing will be done (in odd years, vehicles with even model years will be tested, and vice versa);
- Year # = year number, the age of the vehicle starting in any program calendar year (e.g., in early 1999 the current model year vehicles, 1999, will be less than 1 year old; most 1998 model year vehicles will be about one year old; 1997 model year vehicles will be about 2 years old, etc); Y = yes, emission testing required; N = emission testing not required.

Notes:

REGISTRATION RENEWAL:
Year #MTO’s HTA Reg. does not require an emissions test for a light duty vehicle (LDV), the model year of which is less than (<) 3, or more than (>) 19 years before the calendar year in which the application for registration renewal is made.For example: if the application for registration is made in 1999,

<> the first year that is 3 years before 1999 is 1996, so 1996 is in the program (1997 is less than three years so is not in the program);

<> similarly, the year that is 19 years before 1999 is 1980, so 1980 is in the program (1979 is greater than 19 years and so is not in the program).

MOE announced that the LDV registration renewal part of Drive Clean would require emission testing of light duty vehicles 4-19 years old. This appears to conflict with MTO’s regulation but MOE simply counts the current model year as one of the first three years. MOE has referred to the first three years as "current year plus two previous years".For example, if the application for registration renewal is made in 1999,

<> the 1996 models will be 4 years old in 1999 (e.g., since 1996 model car could have been purchased in September 1995, so would be 4 years old in September 1999), so these are included in the program;

<> the 1980 models will be 19 years old in 1999 (1999 - 19 = 1980), so these are included in the program.

Even/Odd Model YearsThe easiest way to split LDVs in the biennial program is to use even or odd model years. Since the first three years are not included in the LDV registration renewal part of Drive Clean, MTO will require even model years to be tested when the calendar year is odd (e.g., 1999, 2001, etc.) and vice versa.Resale/change of Ownership:

Applies to all model years up to the same shut off date as the registration program (in 1999, 1980 in program, 1979 not in program).