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Smog Check Executive Summary Report
March 2023

Download Data (.csv)
  • Initial Tests
  • Initial Test Failures
  • Certification
  • Inspection and Repair Costs
  • Stations and Technicians
  • Smog Check Requirements by Vehicle Type

Initial Tests

Testing Volume

Test Type Performed Failed Failure Rate
Initial Test 1,021,850 91,894 8.99%
All Tests 1,108,953 105,023 9.47%

Initial Tests Performed by STAR Stations

Vehicle Type Test-and-Repair Station Initial Tests Test-Only Station Initial Tests Test-and-Repair Station Certificates Issued Test-Only Station Certificates Issued
Directed 105,392 250,539 92,327 219,718
Non-Directed 168,071 311,932 154,198 288,018
Total 273,463 562,471 246,525 507,736

Initial Tests Performed by Non-STAR Stations

Vehicle Type Test-and-Repair Station Initial Tests Test-Only Station Initial Tests Test-and-Repair Station Certificates Issued Test-Only Station Certificates Issued
Directed 160 29 5 0
Non-Directed 139,978 25,462 130,424 23,629
Total 140,138 25,491 130,429 23,629

BAR-97 Initial Tests by Vehicle Model Year

Model Year Initial Tests Failed Overall Overall Failure Rate Emissions Failure Rate Gross Polluter Failure Rate Functional Failure Rate Visual Failure Rate OBDII Failure Rate
1976 350 76 21.71% 12.57% 4.57% 12.00% 4.86% NA
1977 476 109 22.90% 15.55% 5.67% 11.55% 6.30% NA
1978 550 115 20.91% 14.18% 5.27% 10.73% 4.36% NA
1979 630 145 23.02% 15.87% 5.40% 10.48% 6.03% NA
1980 365 73 20.00% 15.89% 6.58% 8.49% 3.56% NA
1981 416 95 22.84% 18.03% 8.65% 8.65% 7.21% NA
1982 402 94 23.38% 18.66% 7.46% 7.96% 6.22% NA
1983 506 112 22.13% 16.21% 4.74% 9.09% 4.94% NA
1984 868 202 23.27% 17.28% 7.26% 10.94% 5.76% NA
1985 1,182 246 20.81% 15.40% 5.41% 9.64% 4.23% NA
1986 1,478 333 22.53% 16.78% 6.22% 10.15% 4.47% NA
1987 1,749 423 24.19% 18.01% 5.43% 10.12% 4.23% NA
1988 2,082 480 23.05% 15.99% 5.04% 10.71% 4.85% NA
1989 2,735 557 20.37% 13.89% 3.66% 8.99% 3.55% NA
1990 3,105 622 20.03% 13.46% 4.09% 9.40% 3.41% NA
1991 3,662 726 19.83% 13.63% 4.31% 8.71% 2.98% NA
1992 3,555 695 19.55% 13.02% 3.21% 8.41% 3.52% NA
1993 4,020 881 21.92% 15.40% 3.93% 9.60% 2.71% NA
1994 5,122 1,118 21.83% 15.54% 3.59% 9.37% 3.42% NA
1995 7,366 1,520 20.64% 14.36% 2.74% 8.44% 3.30% NA
1996 6,493 1,290 19.87% 9.30% 1.22% 11.46% 3.17% 11.46%
1997 11,830 2,240 18.93% 8.45% 1.23% 10.87% 2.84% 10.86%
1998 12,022 2,193 18.24% 7.01% 1.22% 11.56% 2.84% 11.55%
1999 20,174 3,198 15.85% 5.48% 0.98% 10.69% 2.62% 10.69%
2000 298 38 12.75% 7.05% 3.02% 3.02% 3.02% 3.02%
2001 272 26 9.56% 4.78% 2.21% 4.04% 2.57% 4.04%
2002 247 21 8.50% 6.48% 3.64% 2.43% 1.62% 2.43%
2003 321 19 5.92% 3.12% 0.62% 2.18% 1.25% 2.18%
2004 289 17 5.88% 4.15% 1.73% 0.69% 1.04% 0.69%
2005 368 26 7.07% 6.25% 2.72% 0.00% 1.63% 0.00%
2006 336 22 6.55% 4.46% 1.19% 0.60% 1.79% 0.60%
2007 324 11 3.40% 2.16% 0.93% 0.62% 0.62% 0.62%
2008 247 11 4.45% 2.43% 0.81% 2.02% 0.81% 2.02%
2009 96 4 4.17% 2.08% 1.04% 1.04% 1.04% 1.04%
2010 70 2 2.86% 1.43% 0.00% 0.00% 1.43% 0.00%
2011 173 1 0.58% 0.58% 0.58% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2012 132 3 2.27% 0.76% 0.00% 1.52% 0.00% 1.52%
2013 329 2 0.61% 0.00% 0.00% 0.30% 0.30% 0.30%
2014 147 1 0.68% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.68% 0.00%
2015 368 6 1.63% 0.82% 0.27% 0.54% 0.27% 0.54%
2016 71 1 1.41% 0.00% 0.00% 1.41% 0.00% 1.41%
2017 62 2 3.23% 1.61% 0.00% 1.61% 1.61% 1.61%
2018 68 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2019 48 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2020 38 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2021 45 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2022 136 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2023 80 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
Other 1 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
All Model Years 95,704 17,756 18.55% 10.17% 2.41% 9.82% 3.10% 5.88%

Note: Some model year 1975 and older vehicles required a Referee inspection (for example, engine changes). Vehicle model years 2000 and newer were tested on the BAR-97 because they may not be compatible with the OIS test (for example, a non-OBD-II certified vehicle).

OIS Initial Tests by Vehicle Model Year

Model Year Initial Tests Failed Overall Overall Failure Rate Functional Failure Rate Visual Failure Rate OBDII Failure Rate OBDII Readiness Failure Rate Smoke and/or Liquid Leak Failure Rate
1996 12 2 16.67% 16.67% 0.00% 16.67% 8.33% 0.00%
1997 34 1 2.94% 2.94% 0.00% 2.94% 0.00% 0.00%
1998 180 25 13.89% 10.56% 2.78% 10.56% 7.22% 0.00%
1999 713 90 12.62% 10.24% 1.68% 9.54% 6.87% 0.70%
2000 20,571 3,581 17.41% 15.47% 3.45% 15.24% 11.59% 0.23%
2001 33,503 5,004 14.94% 13.37% 2.75% 13.19% 9.86% 0.19%
2002 26,026 3,849 14.79% 12.94% 3.10% 12.70% 8.94% 0.24%
2003 44,607 5,511 12.35% 10.66% 2.51% 10.51% 7.33% 0.16%
2004 35,096 4,552 12.97% 11.10% 2.74% 10.91% 7.67% 0.19%
2005 56,231 5,920 10.53% 9.00% 2.03% 8.85% 6.26% 0.15%
2006 40,558 4,464 11.01% 9.39% 2.11% 9.21% 6.31% 0.18%
2007 67,782 5,490 8.10% 6.80% 1.53% 6.70% 4.57% 0.10%
2008 39,822 3,452 8.67% 7.57% 1.49% 7.46% 5.18% 0.12%
2009 43,944 2,962 6.74% 5.95% 1.00% 5.88% 4.30% 0.08%
2010 30,454 2,684 8.81% 8.10% 1.03% 8.04% 3.64% 0.05%
2011 64,656 4,331 6.70% 6.18% 0.68% 6.11% 2.92% 0.07%
2012 35,339 3,025 8.56% 7.87% 0.95% 7.81% 3.36% 0.06%
2013 105,266 5,510 5.23% 4.71% 0.64% 4.68% 2.33% 0.03%
2014 35,160 2,534 7.21% 6.59% 0.74% 6.54% 2.93% 0.05%
2015 135,608 5,860 4.32% 3.92% 0.49% 3.90% 1.85% 0.02%
2016 17,976 999 5.56% 5.17% 0.46% 5.15% 2.77% 0.03%
2017 18,748 926 4.94% 4.55% 0.43% 4.54% 2.60% 0.01%
2018 17,756 718 4.04% 3.83% 0.28% 3.81% 2.58% 0.02%
2019 23,528 1,185 5.04% 4.83% 0.18% 4.81% 3.62% 0.02%
2020 12,322 581 4.72% 4.62% 0.15% 4.60% 3.46% 0.02%
2021 12,482 448 3.59% 3.45% 0.15% 3.44% 2.60% 0.01%
2022 5,448 227 4.17% 4.04% 0.13% 4.02% 3.25% 0.02%
2023 2,356 209 8.87% 8.79% 0.13% 8.74% 7.94% 0.04%
Other 7 2 28.57% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
All Model Years 926,185 74,142 8.01% 7.10% 1.25% 7.01% 4.40% 0.09%

Note: Some model year 1999 and older vehicles required a Referee inspection, were tested at Beta stations, or were 1998/1999 model year diesels.

Initial Test Failures

Initial Test Failures by Failure Type

Failure Type OIS BAR-97
Failed Failure Rate Failed Failure Rate
All Emissions NA NA 9,731 10.17%
All Visual 11,589 1.25% 2,969 3.10%
All Functional 65,749 7.10% 9,399 9.82%
OBDII 64,943 7.01% 5,627 5.88%
Overall 74,142 8.01% 17,756 18.55%

Initial Test Failures by Program Area

Program Area OIS BAR-97
Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate
Enhanced 800,245 64,302 8.04% 79,711 15,145 19.00%
Partial 46,941 3,742 7.97% 4,890 987 20.18%
Basic 73,226 5,670 7.74% 10,595 1,516 14.31%
Change of Ownership 5,773 428 7.41% 508 108 21.26%
All Program Areas 926,185 74,142 8.01% 95,704 17,756 18.55%

Initial Test Failures by Station Type

Station Type OIS BAR-97
Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate
STAR Test-Only 506,780 42,925 8.47% 55,691 10,378 18.63%
STAR Test-Only (Suspended) 8,225 636 7.73% 989 121 12.23%
Non-STAR Test-Only 23,418 1,506 6.43% 2,073 259 12.49%
STAR Test-and-Repair 245,824 20,158 8.20% 27,639 5,563 20.13%
STAR Test-and-Repair (Suspended) 4,330 320 7.39% 328 44 13.41%
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 132,343 7,837 5.92% 7,795 1,140 14.62%
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 2,413 124 5.14% 40 2 5.00%
Business Fleet 166 9 5.42% 0 0 0.00%
Permanent Fleet Registered 24 2 8.33% 0 0 0.00%
Referee 642 532 82.87% 82 43 52.44%
Government Fleet 2,020 93 4.60% 1,067 206 19.31%
All Stations 926,185 74,142 8.01% 95,704 17,756 18.55%

BAR-97 Initial Test Failure Rate by Vehicle Model Year

BAR-97 Initial Test Failure Rate by Vehicle Model Year. A visual representation of the data of the chart in the BAR-97 Initial Tests by Vehicle Model Year table from 1976 to 1999.

Note: Please see tabular data in the BAR-97 Initial Tests by Vehicle Model Year table for BAR-97 tests conducted on other vehicle model years not shown in chart.

OIS Initial Test Failure Rate by Vehicle Model Year

A chart showing OIS initial test failure rate by vehicle model year 2000 to 2019. The chart is a visual display of the OIS Initial Tests by Vehicle Model Year table.

Note: Please see tabular data in the OIS Initial Tests by Vehicle Model Year table for OIS tests conducted on other vehicle model years not shown in chart.

Certification

Certification Volume

Test Type Certificates Issued Total Certificates Issued Percent No Certificates Issued No Certificates Issued Percent
Initial Test 923,628 90.39% 98,222 9.61%
All Tests 996,977 89.90% 111,976 10.10%

Certification Volume by Station Type1

Station Type Certificates Issued on Initial Test Total Certificates Issued Percent No Certificates Issued on Initial Test Total No Certificates Issued Percent
STAR Test-Only 507,736 90.27% 54,735 9.73%
Non-STAR Test-Only 23,629 92.70% 1,862 7.30%
STAR Test-and-Repair 246,525 90.15% 26,938 9.85%
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 130,429 93.07% 9,709 6.93%
All Stations 908,319 90.69% 93,244 9.31%

1 Note: Excludes Basic area dealer, Fleets and Referee stations

Inspection and Repair Costs

Inspection Costs by Station and Test Type1

Station Type BAR-97 Initial Test Count Average BAR-97 Inspection Cost OIS Initial Test Count Average OIS Inspection Cost Total Initial Test Count Overall Average Inspection Cost
STAR Test-and-Repair 27,624 $65.81 245,600 $56.00 273,224 $56.99
STAR Test-Only 55,522 $56.71 505,610 $55.00 561,132 $55.17
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 7,728 $64.02 131,102 $62.24 138,830 $62.34
Non-STAR Test-Only 2,048 $48.68 23,367 $47.52 25,415 $47.61
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 40 $67.27 2,413 $65.46 2,453 $65.49
Total 92,962 $59.85 908,092 $56.15 1,001,054 $56.50

1 Note: Smog Check Inspectors are asked to enter their inspection costs once per month. These costs may or may not include any discounts and may not reflect the actual inspection cost. Additionally, inspection costs entries in excess of $99 cannot be entered into the BAR-97 software.

Inspection Costs by Station and Equipment Type1

Station Type BAR-97 Equipment Only OIS Equipment Only Both Equipment (BAR-97 and OIS)
BAR-97 Initial Test Count Average BAR-97 Inspection Cost OIS Initial Test Count Average OIS Inspection Cost BAR-97 Inspection Count Average BAR-97 Inspection Cost OIS Initial Test Count Average OIS Inspection Cost
STAR Test-and-Repair 0 $0.00 14,217 $60.20 27,624 $65.81 231,383 $55.74
STAR Test-Only 60 $41.30 18,644 $46.91 55,462 $56.73 486,966 $55.31
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 1 $45.00 85,767 $68.08 7,727 $64.02 45,335 $51.20
Non-STAR Test-Only 0 $0.00 10,042 $48.75 2,048 $48.68 13,325 $46.59
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 0 $0.00 2,120 $64.76 40 $67.27 293 $70.51
Total 61 $41.36 130,790 $62.67 92,901 $59.86 777,302 $55.06

1 Note: Smog Check Inspectors are asked to enter their inspection costs once per month. These costs may or may not include any discounts and may not reflect the actual inspection cost. Additionally, inspection costs entries in excess of $99 cannot be entered into the BAR-97 software.

Repair Costs

Repair Station Type Cost Ranges Vehicles Repaired Average Cost Vehicles Repaired (All Cost Ranges) Average Cost (All Cost Ranges)
STAR Repairs (Test-and-Repair, Non-CAP) $1-100 247 $60.36 2,076 $739.97
$101-250 426 $177.43
$251-500 432 $366.34
$501-650 182 $575.05
Over $650 789 $1,499.05
Non-STAR Repairs (Test-and-Repair) $1-100 113 $59.82 754 $638.49
$101-250 207 $167.64
$251-500 159 $370.19
$501-650 65 $568.80
Over $650 210 $1,638.70
Repair-Only $1-100 0 $0.00 0 $0.00
$101-250 0 $0.00
$251-500 0 $0.00
$501-650 0 $0.00
Over $650 0 $0.00
CAP Repairs $1-100 0 $0.00 390 $1,230.61
$101-250 21 $199.10
$251-500 47 $388.90
$501-650 38 $585.56
Over $650 284 $1,532.49
Total Repairs $1-100 360 $60.19 3,220 $775.63
$101-250 654 $175.03
$251-500 638 $368.97
$501-650 285 $575.03
Over $650 1283 $1,529.31

Note: Non-CAP repair costs are based solely on Smog Check Inspector entries. The majority of non-CAP repairs are not entered into the repair database and therefore not included in this summary.

Stations and Technicians

Licensed Stations by Type/Privilege and Program Area

Station Type Basic Change-of-Ownership Enhanced Partial Total
STAR Test-and-Repair 104 32 1,700 76 1,912
STAR Test-Only 18 2 1,628 34 1,682
STAR Sub-Total 122 34 3,328 110 3,594
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 465 60 1,944 205 2,674
Non-STAR Test-Only 29 9 282 40 360
Non-STAR Sub-Total 494 69 2,226 245 3,034
Basic Area Dealer 51 0 0 0 51
Business Fleet 0 0 3 0 3
Permanent Fleet Registered 3 2 49 4 58
Referee 5 0 30 0 35
Government Fleet 44 5 298 13 360
Repair Only 1 0 35 1 37
Unknown Type 3 3 119 4 129
Other Station Sub-Total 107 10 534 22 673
All Stations 723 113 6,088 377 7,301

Stations Conducting Test by Equipment Type

Station Type Equipment Type
BAR-97 Only OIS Only BAR-97 and OIS
STAR Test-and-Repair 0 234 1,585
STAR Test-Only 2 95 1,531
STAR Sub-Total 2 329 3,116
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 1 1,590 315
Non-STAR Test-Only 0 112 86
Non-STAR Sub-Total 1 1,702 401
Permanent Fleet Registered 0 9 0
Business Fleet 0 2 0
Basic Area Dealer 0 40 6
Unknown Type 0 20 87
Government Fleet 9 133 27
Referee 0 5 28
Other Station Sub-Total 9 209 148
All Stations 12 2,240 3,665

Referee Inspections

Inspection Type Total Completed
CAT BAR Label 685
Law Enforcement Citations 589
Smog Inspection/Repair Disputes 542
BAR Referrals 244
Repair Cost Waiver + Parts Locator Service 180
Engine Change/Replacement 109
Clean Gas 76
Specially Constructed Vehicle/Kit Car 28
Grey Market 16
All Inspections 2,469

Referee Certificates Issued

Certificate Type OIS BAR-97
Certificate of Compliance 221 80
Certificate of Non Compliance 0 0
Repair Cost Waiver 40 6
Limited Parts Exemption 7 0
Exempt Vehicle 3 12
Exempted by Directive 15 0
Permanently Exempt Vehicle 0 0
Temporarily Exempt Vehicle 0 0
All Certificates Issued 286 98

Technicians

License Type Licenses
EO (Inspect Only) 4,283
EO + EI (Inspect and Repair) 4,233
All License Types 8,516

Smog Check Requirements by Vehicle Type

Fuel Type Model-Year GVWR1 OBD II Equipped? Smog Check Required
All2 Four model-years and newer3 All All None
Fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth model-years4 All All None
1975 and earlier All All None
Gasoline and Flex Fuel
(Methanol or Ethanol)
1976-1999 All All BAR-97
2000 and newer 14,000 and less Yes5 OIS
No BAR-97
Over 14,000 All BAR-97
Hybrid 2000 and newer 14,000 and less All OIS
Dedicated Propane and Natural Gas
(CNG, LNG, or LPG)
1976-1999 14,000 and less All BAR-97
Over 14,000 All None
2000 and newer 14,000 and less Yes OIS
No BAR-97
Over 14,000 All None
Diesel 1976-1997 All All None
1998 and newer 14,000 and less All OIS
Over 14,000 All None6
Full Electric Powered All All All None
Motorcycle All All All None
Other Vehicles: Two Cylinder Engine,
Two-stroke Engine,
Off-highway Registered
All All All None

1 Gross vehicle weight rating
2 Includes gasoline, flex fuel, hybrid, dedicated propane, and natural gas vehicles. A Smog Check is required for all out-of-state 1976 model-year and newer vehicles registering in California for the first time and other initial registration events determined by the Department of Motor Vehicles.
3 Vehicles four model-years and newer are not subject to biennial (every other year) or change-of-ownership Smog Checks. Add four to the model-year of a vehicle to determine the first year a vehicle will be subject to a change-of-ownership Smog Check. For example, a 2010 model-year vehicle will be first subject a change-of-ownership Smog Check in 2014 (2010+4=2014).
4 Fifth through eighth model-year vehicles are not subject to biennial Smog Checks. However, a change-of-ownership Smog Check is required. Add eight to the model-year of a vehicle to determine the first year a vehicle will be subject to a biennial Smog Check. For example, a 2010 model-year vehicle will be first subject to a biennial Smog Check in 2018 (2010+8=2018).
5 In the future, BAR may identify some vehicles that have GVWR of 14,000 and less or that have problematic OBD II systems that may require the BAR-97 test.
6 Fleet vehicles are subject to the ARB Periodic Smoke Inspection Program (PSIP).

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