1st Gen R53 Cooper S Most liked posts in thread: California Compliant Header and CAT??

As Dave O stated, only the OEM manifold/header is legal in CA.
You might be able to get the header welded to fix the crack.
If you do not find a used OEM header to replace your header you can probably safety get away with installing an aftermarket manifold/header on a CA registered car as long as it has a good cat converter. If you go with a good header/cat combo such as the Flashpoint ($800) or Milltek ($1300) you should be OK. I have never had a smog inspector look close enough that he could tell that the header had been changed, especially on the Mini where the header is under a heat shield. A good aftermarket header with cat should have no problem passing the the non-visual portion of the smog test.

 

OEM is the only "header" CARB compliant for Kalifornia.

 

Check out Car-Part.com--Used Auto Parts Market for a used one from a junk yard.

 

^^^^^^^ thats really depressing. "Like you know" move out of CA depressing.

 

As mentioned a good header and cat should pass the emissions test, but they're not cheap.

However, it's hard to believe that there isn't a flex joint available that fits the stock exhaust manifold. A quick search on Summit shows 474 flexible exhaust couplers. You'd think one of them is usable.

 

^^^^ +1 on the replacement coupler. like

 

If you post a new thread asking if someone has a used Gen 1 OEM header for sale you may get a few hits.

I sold mine long ago when I got my RMW header, but some people still have them hanging in the garage and they may want to part with them.:idea:

 

I have a used oem header hanging around probably right around 140k on it though

 

if you broke a flex joint its likely one of the engine mounts if not more than one is trashed.

 

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