Smog Check Arden

How often does my vehicle have to be tested?

Smog Check Ardens are required biennially (every other year) on vehicles more than six model-years old. Additionally, a Smog Test is required if you market a vehicle that is more than four model-years old and when registering an off-road car for the first time in California.

How do I assist my vehicle pass a Smog Check Arden?

Performing routine and appropriate maintenance according to your owner’s manual and not tampering with the emissions-control equipment will help improve your car or truck ‘s odds of passing a Smog Check Arden. When the “Check Engine” light comes on, take your vehicle to a licensed repair station when you can to have the problem diagnosed-do not wait for the vehicle’s next scheduled Smog Test. A blinking or flashing light signals a malfunction which needs to be addressed promptly to prevent significant harm to the engine or emission-control systems. Check your owner’s manual for repairs which might be covered under your vehicle maker ‘s emissions guarantee.

Which are the components of a Smog Check Arden?

Smog Check Ardens are designed to measure the amount and type of pollutants that your vehicle is emitting. A Smog Test can include any of the following tests:

• Visual examination of emission control systems and components
• Functional inspection of the vehicle’s On-Board Diagnostic (OBD) system
• Tailpipe emissions inspection

What vehicles need a Smog Check Arden?

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

• Four model-years and newer don’t require a change-of-ownership inspection.
• Six model-years and newer do not need a biennial (every other year) inspection.

To determine the first year a vehicle is subject to a biennial or change-of-ownership Smog Check Arden, add four or six, respectively, to the model year of a vehicle. As an instance, a 2010 model-year vehicle will first be subject to a biennial Smog Evaluation in 2016 (2010 6 = 2016) plus 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 lbs and less need a Smog Test.

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

Is your Smog Check Arden Program biased against older vehicles?

No. Even though California law requires that the Smog Test Program to focus on high-polluting vehicles, the Smog Check Arden Program also doesn’t demand older vehicles to satisfy the same emissions standards as newer vehicles. Smog Test emissions criteria take into account the age, make and model of every vehicle, so that a vehicle is not held to some standard which applied when the vehicle was originally manufactured.

I have a vehicle that is six model-years older. My DMV registration renewal notice says it should have a Smog Check, but I thought it had been exempt from the biennial Smog Test requirement.

A gas-powered vehicle is excused from Smog Check Arden until it is seven model-years older. Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) computers are designed to recognize that the exemption and process your renewal consequently. Contact DMV if you think there’s an error. If you are unable to resolve the problem with DMV, a state Referee facility could be able to help.

What’s an Enhanced Area?

An Enhanced Area is a metropolitan region characterized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rather than being in attainment with federal health standards for ozone. Vehicles registered in an Enhanced Place are subject to some treadmill emissions test on a dynamometer and might require testing at a STAR-certified channel.

Have California vehicle emissions standards changed?

Yes. BAR periodically adjusts some criteria to raise their fairness. As a result, some criteria become marginally more stringent than they were formerly and some slightly more lenient. California’s emissions criteria consider the model-year, vehicle make and model, and gross weight of the vehicle. Older cars have significantly less stringent criteria than newer ones. No older vehicle is held to the same criteria as a newer, more technologically advanced vehicle. Allowances are made for ordinary wear and tear at a vehicle’s emissions control system as it ages. The last alteration occurred in 2010.