Looking For Budget Project Car Ideas

[CRCRFT78]

There have been numerous guys that have successfully been able to get 2nd and 3rd gen RX7s with LS1 swaps to pass smog in California. As I understand it, the rule is that the engine has to be stock and must retain all emissions that were standard for the year of the engine. The engine must also be from a newer car than the chassis.

Yes you can pass smog and still do a swap. My 78 with the LT1 passes and has a stock LT1 with cats, O2 sensors and stock manifolds but there is more to it than that. If I had to go to a referee I would be screwed.

the truth is that there are LOTS of affordable pre '76 cars out there to build.

That is correct but what type of "budget build" are we talking about? Pre 76 cars don't require smog which in turn would have no affect on your budget. Anything after that would require the vehicle to be compliant with the law. Which in turn affects your budget. Just don't present a build without covering all aspects of it. Don't smog a car with a stock v6, drop in a juiced 455 afterwards and present it as done. Magazines have done this. Go through the complete process for the vehicle chosen so those readers that want to attempt such a build have some indication of what they're getting themselves into. Again sorry for the rant.