SACRAMENTO - The California Air Resources Board today announced that Yoshimura Research & Development of America, Inc. has agreed to a mutual settlement totaling $90,000 to resolve violations of the California Health and Safety Code related to the sales of illegal off-road aftermarket performance parts in California.

Air Resources Board investigators discovered that Yoshimura sold performance programmers for pollution controlled ATVs without receiving an Executive Order exemption from California’s anti-tampering laws. The device, known as the “Cherry Bomb,” was sold for a number of years without any formal evaluation of its impact on the emissions control capabilities of the vehicle on which it was installed on.

“Maintaining the integrity of the emissions control systems is an important part of California’s clean air efforts, even for systems installed on recreation and performance products,” said ARB Enforcement Chief James Ryden. “We take seriously the failure by any manufacturer to demonstrate that its product does not reduce the effectiveness of the emissions controls installed by the vehicle’s original manufacturer.”

California law prohibits the sales, delivery or installation of aftermarket parts that modify the original emissions control systems of vehicles unless they are proven to not reduce their effectiveness. Manufacturers of both on- and off-road aftermarket and performance parts must follow a comprehensive evaluation process to receive an Executive Order exemption from anti-tampering laws prior to the sale or marketing of modifications.

Yoshimura fully cooperated with ARB during its investigation and resolution of this issue and production of the Cherry Bomb ended in July 2012. The $90,000 penalty collected under the settlement will be paid to the California Air Pollution Control Fund, which supports efforts to decrease air pollution through education and the adoption of cleaner technologies.

Modified off-road recreational vehicles that no longer meet California's emission control requirements pose a significant health threat to California residents. They create higher amounts of smog-forming pollutants, which can then exacerbate respiratory ailments and negatively affect other health conditions such as shortness of breath, headaches, birth defects, cancer or damage to internal organs.