EDL Requirements for 2009 Truck - New Driver

According to EPA regulations, installing an older engine into a newer vehicle is generally considered "tampering" and is prohibited under the Clean Air Act, meaning you cannot put an older engine into a newer vehicle unless the resulting configuration is identical to a certified vehicle of the same or newer model year, ensuring emissions are not adversely affected; this includes matching all emission control systems and design parameters with the newer vehicle's standard



ENGINE SWITCHING FACT SHEET

UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20460

March 13, 1991

OFFICE OF AIR AND RADIATION

Pursuant to frequent requests for information received by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

(EPA) regarding the legality and effects of engine switching, this document will summarize federal law

and policy pertaining to this matter, and will discuss other related issues.

A. Federal Law

The federal tampering prohibition is contained in section 203(a)(3) of the Clean Air Act (Act), 42

U.S.C. 7522(a)(3). Section 203(a)(3)(A) of the Act prohibits any person from removing or rendering

inoperative any emission control device or element of design installed on or in a motor vehicle or motor

vehicle engine prior to its sale and delivery to an ultimate purchaser and prohibits any person from

knowingly removing or rendering inoperative any such device or element of design after such sale and

delivery, and the causing thereof. The maximum civil penalty for a violation of this section by a

manufacturer or dealer is $25,000; for any other person, $2,500. Section 203(a)(3)(B) of the Act

prohibits any person from manufacturing or selling, or offering to sell, or installing, any part or

component intended for use with, or as part of, any motor vehicle or motor vehicle engine where a

principal effect of the part or component is to bypass, defeat, or render inoperative any device or

element of design installed on or in a motor vehicle or motor vehicle engine, and where the person

knows or should know that such part or component is being offered for sale or is being installed for

such use. The maximum civil penalty for a violation of this section is $2,500.

EPA received many questions regarding the application of this law to a situation where one engine is

removed from a vehicle and another engine is installed in its place. EPA's policy regarding "engine

switching" is covered under the provisions of Mobile Source Enforcement Memorandum No. lA

(Attachment 1). This policy states that EPA will not consider any modification to a "certified

configuration" to be a violation of federal law if there is a reasonable basis for knowing that emissions

are not adversely affected. In many cases, proper emission testing according to the Federal Test

Procedure would be necessary to make this determination.



A "certified configuration" is an engine or engine chassis design which has been "certified" (approved)

by EPA prior to the production of vehicles with that design. Generally, the manufacturer submits an

application for certification of the designs of each engine or vehicle it proposes to manufacture prior to

production. The application includes design requirements for all emission related parts, engine

calibrations, and other design parameters for each different type of engine (in heavy-duty vehicles), or

engine chassis combination (in light-duty vehicles). EPA then "certifies" each acceptable design for use,

in vehicles of the upcoming model year.

For light-duty vehicles, installation of a light-duty eng~ne into a different light-duty vehicle by any

person would be considered tampering unless the resulting vehicle is identical (with regard to all

emission related parts, engine design parameters, and engine calibrations) to a certified configuration of

the same or newer model year as the vehicle chassis, or if there is a reasonable basis for knowing that

emissions are not adversely affected as described in Memo 1A. The appropriate source for technical

information regarding the certified configuration of a vehicle of a particular model year is the vehicle

manufacturer.

For heavy-duty vehicles, the resulting vehicle must contain a heavy-duty engine which is identical to a

certified configura- tion of a heavy-duty engine of the same model year or newer as the year of the installed engine.I Under no circumstances, however, may a heavy-duty engine ever be installed in a

light-duty vehicle.

The most common engine replacement involves replacing a gasoline engine in a light-duty vehicle with

another gasoline engine. Another type of engine switching which commonly occurs, however, involves

diesel powered vehicles where the diesel engine is removed and replaced with a gasoline engine.

Applying the above policy, such a replacement is legal only if the resulting engine-chassis configuration

is equivalent to a certified configuration of the same model year or newer as the chassis. If the vehicle

chassis in question has been certified with gasoline, as well as diesel engines(as is common), such a

conversion could be done legally.

Another situation recently brought to EPA's attention involves the offering for sale of used foreign-built

engines. These engines are often not covered by a certified configuration for any vehicle sold in this

country. In such a case, there is no way to install such an engine legally. EPA has recently brought

enforcement actions against certain parties who have violated the tampering prohibition by performing

illegal engine switches.

It should be noted that while EPA's policy allows engine switches as long as the resulting vehicle

matches exactly to anv certified configuration of the same or newer model year as the chassis, there are

some substantial practical limitations to performing such a replacement. Vehicle chassis and engine

designs of one vehicle manufacturer are very distinct from those of another, such that it is generally not

possible to put an engine into a chassis of a different manufacturer and have it match up to a certified configuration. Therefore, practical considerations will generally limit engine switches to installation of

another engine which was certified to be used in that same make and model (or a "twin" of that make

and model, e.g., Pontiac Grand Am and Oldsmobile Calais). In addition, converting a vehicle into a

different certified configuration is likely to be very difficult, and the cost may prove prohibitive.