In California, are 'smog exempt' cars exempt from even having to show up at the smog testing facility? Or do they still have to get a smog certificate from a state authorized smog test facility? For those of you who don't live in California, the above may seem like a no brainer, "Smog exempt means exempt from smog testing", but if you live in California you know that making sense has nothing to do with California's environmental or pollution laws.
The reason I am asking is because if you put a JDM Subaru engine in a car, and you have to get it smog tested, it may not pass based on a physical inspection that shows the engine number is not entered into Big Brother's database and can therefore not be passed.