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Smog Check Executive Summary Report
May 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 965,454 84,418 8.74%
All Tests 1,048,414 97,156 9.27%

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 99,315 235,775 87,130 207,550
Non-Directed 159,261 294,828 146,321 272,494
Total 258,576 530,603 233,451 480,044

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 127 39 6 2
Non-Directed 130,051 26,003 121,847 24,115
Total 130,178 26,042 121,853 24,117

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 382 82 21.47% 15.18% 5.50% 10.47% 4.97% NA
1977 470 103 21.91% 15.53% 5.74% 8.94% 4.68% NA
1978 626 143 22.84% 15.34% 5.59% 10.54% 4.95% NA
1979 610 126 20.66% 15.41% 6.07% 8.85% 4.92% NA
1980 324 64 19.75% 15.12% 7.10% 7.72% 4.32% NA
1981 404 105 25.99% 20.05% 7.43% 10.15% 6.19% NA
1982 437 92 21.05% 15.79% 4.81% 8.70% 4.12% NA
1983 495 96 19.39% 14.55% 5.05% 8.28% 5.45% NA
1984 936 209 22.33% 16.88% 6.94% 8.76% 4.27% NA
1985 1,258 286 22.73% 16.53% 6.28% 10.65% 3.82% NA
1986 1,568 350 22.32% 16.58% 6.06% 9.12% 4.27% NA
1987 1,829 422 23.07% 17.11% 5.47% 9.19% 4.92% NA
1988 2,184 454 20.79% 15.20% 4.99% 8.24% 3.34% NA
1989 2,772 529 19.08% 13.35% 4.26% 8.80% 3.21% NA
1990 3,131 584 18.65% 12.65% 4.15% 8.21% 3.35% NA
1991 3,702 682 18.42% 12.61% 3.46% 7.91% 3.43% NA
1992 3,486 670 19.22% 13.14% 3.76% 7.89% 2.55% NA
1993 4,103 869 21.18% 15.09% 3.27% 8.60% 3.14% NA
1994 5,007 1,035 20.67% 14.36% 2.88% 8.17% 3.38% NA
1995 7,039 1,431 20.33% 13.97% 2.49% 8.38% 2.95% NA
1996 6,258 1,227 19.61% 9.68% 1.26% 10.85% 2.94% 10.85%
1997 11,477 2,097 18.27% 8.56% 1.35% 10.42% 2.74% 10.41%
1998 11,751 2,171 18.48% 8.14% 1.51% 11.31% 2.89% 11.31%
1999 19,321 2,964 15.34% 5.38% 1.05% 10.29% 2.59% 10.28%
2000 318 46 14.47% 11.32% 6.29% 3.14% 1.57% 3.14%
2001 278 22 7.91% 5.40% 1.08% 2.16% 1.08% 2.16%
2002 270 16 5.93% 3.33% 1.48% 1.48% 2.22% 1.48%
2003 381 24 6.30% 3.15% 1.31% 1.57% 1.57% 1.57%
2004 303 21 6.93% 3.96% 2.31% 2.97% 0.33% 2.97%
2005 386 18 4.66% 2.59% 0.78% 1.04% 1.30% 1.04%
2006 351 19 5.41% 4.27% 3.13% 0.85% 0.57% 0.85%
2007 317 17 5.36% 3.79% 0.63% 0.63% 1.26% 0.63%
2008 211 7 3.32% 1.42% 1.42% 1.42% 0.47% 1.42%
2009 100 7 7.00% 7.00% 4.00% 0.00% 1.00% 0.00%
2010 74 1 1.35% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 1.35% 0.00%
2011 197 2 1.02% 0.51% 0.51% 0.51% 0.00% 0.51%
2012 142 4 2.82% 0.70% 0.00% 0.70% 2.11% 0.70%
2013 297 5 1.68% 0.34% 0.00% 1.01% 0.34% 1.01%
2014 175 3 1.71% 0.00% 0.00% 1.71% 1.14% 1.71%
2015 397 5 1.26% 0.50% 0.25% 0.76% 0.00% 0.76%
2016 49 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2017 68 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2018 63 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2019 50 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2020 46 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2021 42 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2022 107 1 0.93% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.93% 0.00%
2023 61 1 1.64% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 1.64% 0.00%
2024 1 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
Other 2 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
All Model Years 94,256 17,010 18.05% 10.18% 2.45% 9.26% 2.97% 5.57%

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 2 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
1997 5 3 60.00% 20.00% 0.00% 20.00% 20.00% 0.00%
1998 164 18 10.98% 6.10% 1.22% 5.49% 1.22% 0.61%
1999 765 92 12.03% 10.98% 1.57% 10.72% 8.24% 0.26%
2000 19,542 3,256 16.66% 14.76% 3.32% 14.53% 10.72% 0.23%
2001 31,907 4,728 14.82% 13.13% 2.82% 12.91% 9.56% 0.23%
2002 24,506 3,493 14.25% 12.34% 3.17% 12.13% 8.48% 0.21%
2003 42,839 5,091 11.88% 10.23% 2.42% 10.01% 7.06% 0.22%
2004 32,551 4,090 12.56% 10.68% 2.60% 10.52% 7.26% 0.17%
2005 56,326 5,698 10.12% 8.70% 1.86% 8.56% 5.97% 0.14%
2006 36,543 3,950 10.81% 9.19% 2.12% 9.01% 6.29% 0.18%
2007 64,938 5,261 8.10% 6.75% 1.63% 6.65% 4.44% 0.09%
2008 35,154 2,926 8.32% 7.30% 1.34% 7.18% 5.07% 0.12%
2009 41,244 2,632 6.38% 5.63% 1.04% 5.57% 4.10% 0.06%
2010 27,821 2,257 8.11% 7.46% 0.86% 7.43% 3.41% 0.04%
2011 57,024 3,715 6.51% 5.95% 0.74% 5.89% 2.69% 0.06%
2012 30,955 2,563 8.28% 7.58% 0.96% 7.54% 3.33% 0.04%
2013 99,832 5,063 5.07% 4.55% 0.63% 4.51% 2.12% 0.03%
2014 30,814 2,140 6.94% 6.28% 0.85% 6.26% 2.73% 0.02%
2015 130,455 5,592 4.29% 3.81% 0.55% 3.79% 1.78% 0.03%
2016 17,222 881 5.12% 4.73% 0.49% 4.71% 2.57% 0.02%
2017 18,268 875 4.79% 4.42% 0.49% 4.38% 2.56% 0.04%
2018 17,294 717 4.15% 3.78% 0.38% 3.77% 2.56% 0.01%
2019 21,193 948 4.47% 4.28% 0.22% 4.28% 3.17% 0.00%
2020 12,647 513 4.06% 3.88% 0.18% 3.88% 2.93% 0.00%
2021 12,105 427 3.53% 3.40% 0.17% 3.37% 2.59% 0.03%
2022 5,887 244 4.14% 3.94% 0.19% 3.94% 3.09% 0.00%
2023 3,179 230 7.23% 7.05% 0.19% 6.98% 6.26% 0.06%
2024 45 3 6.67% 6.67% 0.00% 6.67% 6.67% 0.00%
Other 7 6 85.71% 28.57% 14.29% 28.57% 14.29% 0.00%
All Model Years 871,234 67,412 7.74% 6.82% 1.25% 6.73% 4.20% 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 9,595 10.18%
All Visual 10,921 1.25% 2,802 2.97%
All Functional 59,391 6.82% 8,725 9.26%
OBDII 58,650 6.73% 5,248 5.57%
Overall 67,412 7.74% 17,010 18.05%

Initial Test Failures by Program Area

Program Area OIS BAR-97
Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate
Enhanced 752,324 58,553 7.78% 78,205 14,478 18.51%
Partial 43,179 3,256 7.54% 4,648 925 19.90%
Basic 70,128 5,181 7.39% 10,839 1,484 13.69%
Change of Ownership 5,603 422 7.53% 564 123 21.81%
All Program Areas 871,234 67,412 7.74% 94,256 17,010 18.05%

Initial Test Failures by Station Type

Station Type OIS BAR-97
Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate
STAR Test-Only 476,419 39,073 8.20% 54,184 9,994 18.44%
STAR Test-Only (Suspended) 8,261 569 6.89% 1,462 127 8.69%
Non-STAR Test-Only 23,869 1,531 6.41% 2,173 284 13.07%
STAR Test-and-Repair 231,508 18,678 8.07% 27,068 5,353 19.78%
STAR Test-and-Repair (Suspended) 3,960 227 5.73% 209 27 12.92%
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 122,506 6,636 5.42% 7,672 956 12.46%
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 2,055 82 3.99% 38 4 10.53%
Business Fleet 400 10 2.50% 0 0 0.00%
Permanent Fleet Registered 2 0 0.00% 0 0 0.00%
Referee 679 537 79.09% 85 39 45.88%
Government Fleet 1,575 69 4.38% 1,365 226 16.56%
All Stations 871,234 67,412 7.74% 94,256 17,010 18.05%

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 874,903 90.62% 90,551 9.38%
All Tests 944,536 90.09% 103,878 9.91%

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 480,044 90.47% 50,559 9.53%
Non-STAR Test-Only 24,117 92.61% 1,925 7.39%
STAR Test-and-Repair 233,451 90.28% 25,125 9.72%
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 121,853 93.60% 8,325 6.40%
All Stations 859,465 90.91% 85,934 9.09%

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 27,044 $66.53 231,065 $55.19 258,109 $56.38
STAR Test-Only 53,906 $57.03 475,494 $53.73 529,400 $54.07
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 7,555 $64.72 121,971 $64.73 129,526 $64.73
Non-STAR Test-Only 2,172 $49.41 23,812 $48.26 25,984 $48.35
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 38 $64.65 2,049 $65.25 2,087 $65.24
Total 90,715 $60.32 854,391 $55.57 945,106 $56.03

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 12,157 $57.04 27,044 $66.53 218,908 $55.09
STAR Test-Only 60 $54.85 16,372 $45.10 53,846 $57.04 459,122 $54.04
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 16 $84.92 80,633 $70.56 7,539 $64.68 41,338 $53.37
Non-STAR Test-Only 0 $0.00 10,129 $48.51 2,172 $49.41 13,683 $48.07
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 0 $0.00 1,855 $64.96 38 $64.65 194 $68.02
Total 76 $61.18 121,146 $63.83 90,639 $60.32 733,245 $54.21

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) $1-100 297 $60.84 2,016 $670.47
$101-250 384 $172.76
$251-500 433 $361.77
$501-650 179 $576.38
Over $650 723 $1,393.42
Non-STAR Repairs (Test-and-Repair) $1-100 87 $57.02 634 $679.25
$101-250 175 $170.65
$251-500 136 $378.88
$501-650 44 $566.59
Over $650 192 $1,663.35
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 $0.00 472 $1,191.32
$101-250 48 $210.65
$251-500 52 $377.56
$501-650 39 $565.95
Over $650 333 $1,532.99
Total Repairs $1-100 384 $59.98 3,122 $751.00
$101-250 607 $175.15
$251-500 621 $366.84
$501-650 262 $573.18
Over $650 1248 $1,472.19

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 33 1,683 78 1,898
STAR Test-Only 20 2 1,625 33 1,680
STAR Sub-Total 124 35 3,308 111 3,578
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 461 58 1,926 205 2,650
Non-STAR Test-Only 30 8 288 41 367
Non-STAR Sub-Total 491 66 2,214 246 3,017
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 3 125 2 133
Other Station Sub-Total 107 10 540 20 677
All Stations 722 111 6,062 377 7,272

Stations Conducting Test by Equipment Type

Station Type Equipment Type
BAR-97 Only OIS Only BAR-97 and OIS
STAR Test-and-Repair 1 210 1,597
STAR Test-Only 3 87 1,533
STAR Sub-Total 4 297 3,130
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 1 1,530 303
Non-STAR Test-Only 0 116 79
Non-STAR Sub-Total 1 1,646 382
Permanent Fleet Registered 0 1 0
Business Fleet 0 2 0
Basic Area Dealer 0 41 5
Unknown Type 1 26 80
Government Fleet 8 124 26
Referee 1 3 29
Other Station Sub-Total 10 197 140
All Stations 15 2,140 3,652

Referee Inspections

Inspection Type Total Completed
Law Enforcement Citations 690
CAT BAR Label 629
Smog Inspection/Repair Disputes 609
BAR Referrals 272
Repair Cost Waiver + Parts Locator Service 181
Engine Change/Replacement 94
Clean Gas 73
Specially Constructed Vehicle/Kit Car 44
Grey Market 24
OBD Monitor Issues 2
All Inspections 2,618

Referee Certificates Issued

Certificate Type OIS BAR-97
Certificate of Compliance 255 69
Certificate of Non Compliance 0 0
Repair Cost Waiver 38 8
Limited Parts Exemption 5 2
Exempt Vehicle 8 20
Exempted by Directive 16 0
Permanently Exempt Vehicle 0 0
Temporarily Exempt Vehicle 0 0
All Certificates Issued 322 99

Technicians

License Type Licenses
EO (Inspect Only) 4,220
EO + EI (Inspect and Repair) 4,190
All License Types 8,410

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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