Here's a copy of Dan's post from 2005, #26775
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It appears that using the KEP EO can be a handycap. This has been my feeling all along ... to use the EO you must use and prove that you have KEP's exhaust, etc. and it is not actually necessary except to meet the criteria of the EO. What the state wants is a clean running car, as clean as the donor vehicle. A suby van will pass smog using a Vanagon Cat and muffler, by the way.

I've gotten the bar code sticker from the Ref twice (for two different
vans) that means I no longer have to go to the ref. When smog time come I go to a regular smog shop. They scan the Bar code and it tells them how to smog the car.

I got this sticker from the ref without attempting to use the EO.

Just show your conversion, running clean, show some papers that indicate the source of your engine, leave the EO behind, and let the ref do the rest. The smart thing to do is to go to a smog shop first and make sure it is going to pass. They can sniff (pretest) it and save you the trouble of failing due to bad cats or PCV valves.

I posted to the list my recommendations on this topic a while back.

Here it is again:

Here in San Diego we have no problems with properly done OBD1
conversions and the BAR. If you show the ref the registration from the
donor car, or other suitable evidence that your engine came from an
early Legacy, SVX, etc., it has a labeled check engine light, and it
passes the sniff test, they are happy.

In my opinion the Exc. order is not particularly helpful, since it
requires a particular exhaust, talks about fault codes, and starts the
ref on an investigative path that is not in the interest of the
converter. For example, if you ignore the exec. order and use your own
parts, a stock Vanagon muffler and cat can be used. Mention the exec.
order, and you must have a Y92E or whatever KEP specifies. The Vanagon
setup is perfectly acceptable UNLESS you try to use the exec. order.

I understand that some locations have nightmare problems. But here in
San Diego they welcome cleaner Subaru Vangons.

Here are my recommendations to smooth the process:

1. Stick to OBD1 donor cars.

2. Secure the registration of the donor car or its equivalent.... often they can even be found at the junkyard.

3. Have no codes. Install a speed sensor and whatever else you need to
run the conversion with no codes.

4. Smog test the car before your ref appointment. Your smog tech can do a pre-test for the year of Legacy your engine came from, and tell you if it is going to pass based on his personal experience. Don't take it in unless it is clean!

5.. Make sure your conversion has a labeled, functioning MIL (Check
engine light) on the dash or instrument panel

6. Show them what you have, don't mention the KEP exec order, and then
shut up. Be friendly, but don't offer any more information than they ask for. Don't mention that your donor car was an automatic, used to have dual exhausts, etc. If they ask, speak up. But you don't need to point out your conversion's deficiencies.

7. Be confident. The state actually welcomes conversions, which are far cleaner than the WBX. You don't need to apologize for what you have
done.

DDF