pancake wrote:
Anyone whos been thru the inspection process, can you tell me what needs to be on the car for CHP to pass vehicle inspection?
I want to do the bare minimum and get it inspected and pass so I can get it out of the way.
Working headlights/tail lights/turn signals/brake lights. Does it need a Reverse light?
What about fenders? I don't believe we are required to have fenders but I'm not entirely sure.
Body panels? I'm guessing body panels are not required other than the floor as there are exocets and exoskeleton cars out there.
Windshield? I've heard varying things. I don't believe CA requires a windshield but I'm not sure might depend on the officer. This one's kind of important so if anyone knows please let me know. I want to just run a small wind deflector and no windshield.
Seatbelt? Are they even required on a kit car? I plan on running harnesses but if seat belts or harnesses are not required, I'm going to push this off until later.
And of course VIN inspection for the engine and possibly trans along with the receipts.
I really can't think of anything else but if I missed something please let me know.
I want to get it to the point where its starts and you can drive it around the neighborhood real quick and then get it titled and registered so I dont want to deal with the paperwork and ticking clock on the process.
From what the CHP officer told me, it sounded like most of it was just him going thru the receipts, accounting for everything you bought and adding up the taxes and updating the DMV system live which takes about an hour or two.
From a builder's perspective I'm just curious what i need mechanically to get it passed.
Do we need an odometer?
The answer to your basic question is, "Yes, there are specific requirements, and they're written down."
I have two PDF files made from scans of documents I got from my local CHP office. They are CHP 885 and CHP 892, which are (General) Passenger Car Requirements and (SB100) Specially Constructed Vehicle Requirements. The 892 doc is the one you'll want to pay most attention to, as requirements for our vehicles vary somewhat.
However, the 885 doc has some useful input about where things must be located, sometimes things like how many lumens are required for lights, etc.
Both are updated periodically as new laws are passed. Mine are from April 2019. You can check with any CHP office to see if they remain current. They will also print you the latest ones if you request them.
If you send me a PM with your e-mail, I'll send them. The system won't let me upload a PDF file. Funny because it used to allow them.
Cheers,
Lonnie