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Smog Check Executive Summary Report
July 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 894,504 77,873 8.71%
All Tests 969,051 89,705 9.26%

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 90,786 222,553 80,107 196,500
Non-Directed 144,202 278,546 132,465 257,528
Total 234,988 501,099 212,572 454,028

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 98 35 5 2
Non-Directed 115,814 24,777 108,054 22,904
Total 115,912 24,812 108,059 22,906

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 338 70 20.71% 14.79% 6.21% 9.47% 4.44% NA
1977 429 92 21.45% 15.38% 6.29% 8.62% 5.36% NA
1978 522 114 21.84% 15.90% 5.56% 8.62% 3.45% NA
1979 533 120 22.51% 17.26% 6.38% 9.57% 4.32% NA
1980 318 61 19.18% 13.84% 7.23% 9.12% 4.40% NA
1981 374 84 22.46% 17.65% 7.75% 6.95% 4.28% NA
1982 326 65 19.94% 13.50% 5.21% 7.98% 6.44% NA
1983 473 105 22.20% 17.55% 5.07% 8.03% 4.23% NA
1984 753 158 20.98% 14.34% 5.58% 9.03% 5.98% NA
1985 1,018 232 22.79% 17.68% 7.37% 9.14% 4.42% NA
1986 1,410 301 21.35% 15.32% 5.39% 8.87% 4.47% NA
1987 1,513 328 21.68% 16.59% 6.28% 9.05% 5.22% NA
1988 1,775 354 19.94% 14.93% 4.90% 7.83% 3.38% NA
1989 2,309 488 21.13% 15.98% 4.81% 8.49% 3.07% NA
1990 2,613 519 19.86% 13.89% 4.59% 8.73% 4.06% NA
1991 3,152 644 20.43% 14.34% 4.16% 8.31% 3.11% NA
1992 2,996 579 19.33% 13.62% 3.24% 8.01% 3.10% NA
1993 3,673 763 20.77% 15.00% 3.51% 8.52% 3.21% NA
1994 4,257 917 21.54% 14.52% 3.17% 9.58% 3.74% NA
1995 6,185 1,225 19.81% 13.65% 2.31% 7.91% 2.83% NA
1996 5,617 1,130 20.12% 10.36% 1.48% 10.84% 3.36% 10.84%
1997 10,193 1,887 18.51% 8.87% 1.14% 10.14% 2.58% 10.14%
1998 10,512 1,975 18.79% 8.07% 1.38% 11.23% 2.88% 11.23%
1999 16,964 2,617 15.43% 5.51% 0.96% 10.15% 2.47% 10.15%
2000 237 27 11.39% 7.59% 3.38% 3.38% 1.69% 3.38%
2001 226 16 7.08% 3.54% 1.77% 2.21% 1.77% 2.21%
2002 213 11 5.16% 2.82% 0.94% 0.47% 2.35% 0.47%
2003 295 18 6.10% 4.41% 1.02% 1.36% 1.02% 1.36%
2004 251 10 3.98% 2.39% 1.20% 0.80% 1.20% 0.80%
2005 266 16 6.02% 4.14% 0.38% 0.75% 1.13% 0.75%
2006 260 19 7.31% 3.08% 1.15% 0.77% 3.85% 0.77%
2007 264 9 3.41% 1.14% 0.76% 0.76% 2.65% 0.76%
2008 200 3 1.50% 1.00% 0.50% 0.50% 0.00% 0.50%
2009 76 2 2.63% 1.32% 0.00% 0.00% 1.32% 0.00%
2010 45 2 4.44% 4.44% 2.22% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2011 145 2 1.38% 0.69% 0.00% 0.00% 0.69% 0.00%
2012 136 5 3.68% 0.74% 0.00% 2.94% 0.74% 2.94%
2013 253 3 1.19% 0.00% 0.00% 0.40% 0.79% 0.40%
2014 172 4 2.33% 0.58% 0.00% 0.58% 1.16% 0.58%
2015 350 8 2.29% 0.57% 0.00% 1.43% 0.29% 1.43%
2016 78 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2017 74 1 1.35% 1.35% 1.35% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2018 51 1 1.96% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 1.96% 0.00%
2019 58 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2020 35 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2021 42 1 2.38% 2.38% 2.38% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2022 110 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2023 33 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2024 10 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% NA
All Model Years 82,134 14,986 18.25% 10.36% 2.41% 9.21% 3.02% 9.71%

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 1 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
1997 11 3 27.27% 27.27% 9.09% 27.27% 18.18% 0.00%
1998 165 17 10.30% 6.67% 3.03% 6.67% 4.85% 0.00%
1999 590 73 12.37% 10.00% 2.20% 9.32% 6.44% 0.68%
2000 17,778 2,951 16.60% 14.64% 3.36% 14.39% 10.42% 0.25%
2001 28,911 4,195 14.51% 12.93% 2.60% 12.73% 9.38% 0.20%
2002 22,650 3,217 14.20% 12.44% 3.00% 12.19% 8.64% 0.24%
2003 40,726 4,767 11.71% 10.12% 2.38% 9.95% 6.80% 0.16%
2004 29,340 3,608 12.30% 10.45% 2.64% 10.24% 6.96% 0.21%
2005 55,326 5,473 9.89% 8.47% 1.94% 8.33% 5.77% 0.14%
2006 34,603 3,773 10.90% 9.38% 2.04% 9.23% 6.39% 0.15%
2007 60,693 4,706 7.75% 6.49% 1.50% 6.41% 4.38% 0.08%
2008 30,795 2,574 8.36% 7.31% 1.45% 7.16% 5.04% 0.15%
2009 43,299 2,715 6.27% 5.66% 0.86% 5.61% 3.94% 0.06%
2010 26,632 2,208 8.29% 7.64% 0.92% 7.59% 3.52% 0.05%
2011 53,118 3,394 6.39% 5.85% 0.71% 5.81% 2.64% 0.05%
2012 27,396 2,337 8.53% 7.78% 0.97% 7.74% 3.52% 0.04%
2013 92,836 4,784 5.15% 4.66% 0.62% 4.64% 2.21% 0.02%
2014 27,524 1,919 6.97% 6.26% 0.88% 6.22% 2.70% 0.04%
2015 122,947 5,511 4.48% 3.97% 0.61% 3.94% 1.81% 0.03%
2016 16,281 882 5.42% 4.95% 0.52% 4.93% 2.65% 0.02%
2017 17,193 853 4.96% 4.62% 0.41% 4.60% 2.92% 0.02%
2018 15,046 668 4.44% 4.11% 0.37% 4.07% 2.86% 0.03%
2019 17,781 844 4.75% 4.53% 0.28% 4.48% 3.41% 0.04%
2020 10,593 480 4.53% 4.29% 0.26% 4.29% 3.44% 0.00%
2021 11,167 494 4.42% 4.24% 0.17% 4.23% 3.35% 0.02%
2022 5,455 214 3.92% 3.85% 0.07% 3.85% 3.12% 0.00%
2023 3,365 215 6.39% 6.27% 0.09% 6.27% 5.56% 0.00%
2024 124 10 8.06% 8.06% 0.00% 8.06% 7.26% 0.00%
Other 2 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
All Model Years 812,348 62,885 7.74% 6.84% 1.24% 6.76% 4.20% 0.08%

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 8,507 10.36%
All Visual 10,067 1.24% 2,484 3.02%
All Functional 55,580 6.84% 7,566 9.21%
OBDII 54,896 6.76% 4,582 5.58%
Overall 62,885 7.74% 14,986 18.25%

Initial Test Failures by Program Area

Program Area OIS BAR-97
Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate
Enhanced 703,199 54,374 7.73% 68,419 12,777 18.67%
Partial 39,655 3,156 7.96% 3,948 845 21.40%
Basic 64,640 5,009 7.75% 9,282 1,258 13.55%
Change of Ownership 4,854 346 7.13% 485 106 21.86%
All Program Areas 812,348 62,885 7.74% 82,134 14,986 18.25%

Initial Test Failures by Station Type

Station Type OIS BAR-97
Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate
STAR Test-Only 452,497 36,844 8.14% 48,602 9,101 18.73%
STAR Test-Only (Suspended) 8,080 523 6.47% 1,165 74 6.35%
Non-STAR Test-Only 22,836 1,557 6.82% 1,976 234 11.84%
STAR Test-and-Repair 211,864 16,909 7.98% 23,124 4,549 19.67%
STAR Test-and-Repair (Suspended) 4,020 291 7.24% 227 41 18.06%
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 109,456 6,279 5.74% 6,456 850 13.17%
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 1,854 76 4.10% 16 1 6.25%
Business Fleet 274 6 2.19% 0 0 0.00%
Permanent Fleet Registered 19 0 0.00% 0 0 0.00%
Referee 443 357 80.59% 61 36 59.02%
Government Fleet 1,005 43 4.28% 507 100 19.72%
All Stations 812,348 62,885 7.74% 82,134 14,986 18.25%

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 812,288 90.81% 82,216 9.19%
All Tests 874,567 90.25% 94,484 9.75%

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 454,028 90.61% 47,071 9.39%
Non-STAR Test-Only 22,906 92.32% 1,906 7.68%
STAR Test-and-Repair 212,572 90.46% 22,416 9.54%
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 108,059 93.23% 7,853 6.77%
All Stations 797,565 90.96% 79,246 9.04%

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 23,115 $67.94 211,003 $55.88 234,118 $57.07
STAR Test-Only 48,353 $58.50 450,492 $53.66 498,845 $54.13
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 6,443 $65.10 107,989 $65.57 114,432 $65.55
Non-STAR Test-Only 1,965 $51.57 22,537 $47.62 24,502 $47.94
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 16 $70.86 1,810 $65.10 1,826 $65.15
Total 79,892 $61.60 793,831 $55.73 873,723 $56.26

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 2 $99.99 12,433 $60.48 23,113 $67.94 198,570 $55.60
STAR Test-Only 15 $56.57 15,612 $48.61 48,338 $58.51 434,880 $53.84
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 15 $99.00 69,780 $71.74 6,428 $65.02 38,209 $54.32
Non-STAR Test-Only 60 $51.75 9,751 $49.04 1,905 $51.56 12,786 $46.54
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 0 $0.00 1,724 $64.89 16 $70.86 86 $69.28
Total 92 $61.29 109,300 $65.02 79,800 $61.60 684,531 $54.24

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) $1-100 223 $56.04 1,721 $694.55
$101-250 334 $172.10
$251-500 369 $372.89
$501-650 153 $575.60
Over $650 642 $1,401.38
Non-STAR Repairs (Test-and-Repair) $1-100 81 $57.20 496 $716.92
$101-250 143 $179.39
$251-500 91 $369.36
$501-650 40 $574.08
Over $650 141 $1,905.90
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 $0.00 512 $1,235.65
$101-250 29 $206.12
$251-500 55 $402.31
$501-650 43 $578.63
Over $650 385 $1,505.62
Total Repairs $1-100 304 $56.35 2,729 $800.14
$101-250 506 $176.11
$251-500 515 $375.41
$501-650 236 $575.89
Over $650 1168 $1,496.65

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 1,661 76 1,874
STAR Test-Only 20 2 1,623 32 1,677
STAR Sub-Total 124 35 3,284 108 3,551
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 458 57 1,932 205 2,652
Non-STAR Test-Only 31 8 357 40 436
Non-STAR Sub-Total 489 65 2,289 245 3,088
Basic Area Dealer 50 0 0 0 50
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 34 1 36
Other Station Sub-Total 103 7 414 18 542
All Stations 716 107 5,987 371 7,181

Stations Conducting Test by Equipment Type

Station Type Equipment Type
BAR-97 Only OIS Only BAR-97 and OIS
STAR Test-and-Repair 1 241 1,549
STAR Test-Only 2 99 1,534
STAR Sub-Total 3 340 3,083
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 1 1,561 300
Non-STAR Test-Only 1 123 71
Non-STAR Sub-Total 2 1,684 371
Permanent Fleet Registered 0 3 0
Business Fleet 0 2 0
Basic Area Dealer 0 44 2
Unknown Type 0 30 69
Government Fleet 12 111 20
Referee 1 3 29
Other Station Sub-Total 13 193 120
All Stations 18 2,217 3,574

Referee Inspections

Inspection Type Total Completed
Law Enforcement Citations 701
CAT BAR Label 566
Smog Inspection/Repair Disputes 548
BAR Referrals 223
Repair Cost Waiver + Parts Locator Service 167
Engine Change/Replacement 99
Clean Gas 68
Specially Constructed Vehicle/Kit Car 35
Grey Market 14
OBD Monitor Issues 2
All Inspections 2,423

Referee Certificates Issued

Certificate Type OIS BAR-97
Certificate of Compliance 177 58
Certificate of Non Compliance 0 0
Repair Cost Waiver 57 8
Limited Parts Exemption 2 1
Exempt Vehicle 1 12
Exempted by Directive 15 1
Permanently Exempt Vehicle 0 0
Temporarily Exempt Vehicle 0 0
All Certificates Issued 252 80

Technicians

License Type Licenses
EO (Inspect Only) 4,275
EO + EI (Inspect and Repair) 4,204
All License Types 8,479

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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