[philminotti]

Wow, where to begin...

As has been mentioned numerous times, read and re-read the composite requirements document. They do check everything. Like I said, they failed me on my seat belts on my first time through. I think they cut me some slack on the ride height and "scrub line" specs though.

As Cashburn stated, their 4 post lift has an angle of attack that is much too steep for a cobra, especially one with undercar exhaust. I guess that turned out to be good, because the undercar inspection was deferred. I can't imagine they would have loved my rear main leak.

They spend a lot of time looking for serial numbers on the block and trans. They don't "get it" that aftermarket parts don't have serial numbers. In fact, my Pond block only has "C6AE" casted on it. I spent a fair amount of time just shrugging my shoulders. There's a fine line between playing dumb and looking like an idiot when it comes to the inspectors.

Have the receipt for the block, transmission and car assembly. No leeway here at all. Not only do you need it for inspection, the sum total of these three items will be used to calculate your sales tax when you go to register it. I had forgotten about the tax, and was caught more than a little off guard when I had to pay a luxury sales tax on over $95K.

Whichever manufacturer your car is, have them generate a Certificate of Origin for the car. I didn't have that on my first attempt.

Ultimately, the inspection process doesn't take too long. Mine would've taken longer if I had run over the inspector....because I nearly did when I accidentally tried to start the car with it in gear. I was a bit frazzled by that point...

The registration process on the other hand is achingly painful. None of the clerks knows what a composite is. The senior person will have to get involved every step of the way. And of course, getting that senior person always seems to take an hour. For every step. I got in line at the Hamden DMV at 7am and finally drove home with my new plates at 3:30pm.

Good luck to anyone negotiating this process.

Phil