That's not right. Have her contact a CARB referee station and have them tell her the options. It's not like its a vehicle that can't pass safety standards. You've just received bad info or your talking to someone who doesn't know. Believe me, I've had over 40 vehicles, several vintage, and the stories I got from the DMV are ridiculous! I once brought a Porsche 914 (pre-76, pre smog) into California and he didn't believe me when I told him the engine was in the middle of the car. I had to open the rear trunk to prove it to him even after I showed him the engine bay. I also went to register a Suzuki dual sport and the person at the DMV told me that the only way I could register the bike was with a dual registration (I had to pay for a street license and then a dirt one). I showed her the law but she wouldn't believe me. It took me about 3 hours to register that bike and involved 2 supervisors researching the law books! Honda is a smart company, I find it hard to believe that the needed components can't be assembled onto the bike to make it CARB legal.

I'll check in with my local contact today to see what he says. Murrieta is a couple of hours away from me but it's still in Cali.