So i just purchased an evo and had to smog it, i tried to take it to a smog test shop and they said they cant smog it cause its a gross polluter and had a idle mechanism fault? previous owner had a ticket for the exhaust and had to go to the state ref, failed, but just paid it off.

does this mean i have to take it back to the state ref ONLY?

seems like no shop will smog my car.

 

The previous owner is retarded and passed his problems on to you.
How modded is this car? Does it have a catalitic converter?
Do you have a check engine light on your dash or did the smog place discover the fault/code?
You have some work to do, but you don't have to take it to the ref.
"By law, a Gross Polluter, once it has been repaired, must be certified at a Test-Only station, or at a Gold Shield station."
http://www.autorepair.ca.gov/80_BARR...act_Sheet.html

 

yea go to a test only station, or go to a smog tester, that someone you know knows, and have him "off the books" pass ya...only go to the ref if you get a modified emissions/modified exhaust ticket, theyll dick ya hardcore at the ref i went 3 different times, tryin to get my exhaust to pass the stupid cali db limit test.

 

Why did you buy the car without it being smogged? It's the seller's responsibility to ensure that the car passes smog prior to the sale. Sounds like you got flim flammed by a local...tisk tisk.

On to the resolution, do you know the history of the car at all? It sounds like it's probably missing the cat and/or has a crappy tune.