CA Smog Check

How often does my vehicle have to be tested?

CA Smog Checks are required biennially (every other year) on vehicles more than six model-years old. Furthermore, a Smog Test is required if you market a car that is more than four model-years old and when enrolling an out-of-state vehicle for the very first time in California.

How do I help my automobile pass a CA Smog Check?

Performing regular and proper maintenance according to your owner’s guide rather than tampering with the emissions-control gear will help improve your vehicle’s chances of passing a Smog Check. If the “Check Engine” light comes on, then take your car to a certified repair station as soon as you can to have the issue diagnosed-do not wait for the automobile ‘s next scheduled Smog Test. A blinking or flashing light indicates a malfunction that needs to be addressed promptly to avoid serious harm to the motor or emission-control systems. Check your owner’s guide for repairs that may be covered under your car or truck maker ‘s emissions warranty.

Which are the elements of a CA Smog Check?

CA Smog Checks are designed to measure the amount and type of pollutants your vehicle is emitting. A Smog Test may contain any of the following tests:

• Visual examination of emission control systems and components
  Functional inspection of the vehicle’s search engine lighting, ignition timing, exhaust gas recirculation system, fuel evaporative system, and gas cap
• Tailpipe emissions review

What vehicles need a CA Smog Check?

Gasoline-powered vehicles, hybrid vehicles, and alternative-fuel vehicles that are model year 1976 and newer need a CA Smog Check, together with the following exceptions:

• Four model-years and newer do not need a change-of-ownership inspection.

To determine the first year a car is subject to a biennial or change-of-ownership CA Smog Check, add four or six, respectively, to the model year of a vehicle. For example, a 2010 model-year automobile will first be subject to a biennial Smog Test in 2016 (2010 6 = 2016) and also a change-of-ownership Smog Test at 2014 (2010 4 = 2014).

Diesel-powered vehicles 1998 and newer with a gross vehicle weight rating of 14,000 pounds and less need a Smog Test.

Motorcycles and electric-powered vehicles are currently exempt from the CA Smog Check Program.

Is your CA Smog Check Program biased against older automobiles?

No. Even though California law requires the Smog Test Program to focus on high-polluting vehicles, the CA Smog Check Program also doesn’t require older vehicles to meet the very same emissions standards as newer vehicles. Smog Test emissions criteria take into consideration the age, make and model of each car, to ensure a car is never held to a standard that applied when the vehicle was originally manufactured.

I have a car that is six model-years old. My DMV registration renewal note says it must possess a CA Smog Check, but I thought it was exempt from the biennial Smog Test requirement.

A gas-powered automobile is excused from CA Smog Check until it’s seven model-years old. Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) computers are made to recognize the exemption and process your renewal accordingly. Contact DMV in case you think there’s an error. If you cannot resolve the issue with DMV, a country Referee facility may have the ability to help.

What is the Enhanced Area?

An improved Area is a metropolitan area designated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as not being in attainment with federal health standards for ozone. Vehicles registered in an improved Place are subject to a treadmill emissions test on a dynamometer and may require testing in a STAR-certified channel.

Have California auto emissions standards changed?

Yes. BAR periodically corrects some criteria to increase their fairness. Because of this, some criteria become slightly more stringent than they were formerly and some slightly more lenient. California’s emissions criteria consider the model-year, automobile make and model, and gross weight of the vehicle. Older cars have significantly less stringent criteria than newer ones. No older vehicle is ever held to the very same criteria as a newer, more technologically advanced car or truck. Allowances are made for normal wear and tear at a vehicle’s emissions control system as it ages. The last adjustment occurred in 2010.