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Smog Check Executive Summary Report
September 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 Tests 880,441 77,270 8.78%
All Tests 956,768 89,195 9.32%

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 93,149 224,093 81,992 198,238
Non-Directed 144,496 275,391 131,770 254,092
Total 237,645 499,484 213,762 452,330

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 123 50 3 2
Non-Directed 115,252 23,986 107,301 22,300
Total 115,375 24,036 107,304 22,302

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 291 60 20.62% 14.09% 6.87% 9.62% 5.84% NA
1977 458 106 23.14% 14.19% 4.59% 10.92% 6.33% NA
1978 489 101 20.65% 14.31% 6.13% 8.38% 4.29% NA
1979 525 136 25.90% 17.71% 6.48% 12.57% 6.67% NA
1980 307 55 17.92% 12.05% 4.23% 6.51% 3.91% NA
1981 329 70 21.28% 18.54% 9.12% 7.29% 5.17% NA
1982 378 83 21.96% 16.93% 7.94% 8.20% 4.50% NA
1983 459 94 20.48% 16.99% 7.19% 6.54% 4.79% NA
1984 752 168 22.34% 18.75% 6.52% 7.18% 4.26% NA
1985 1,041 236 22.67% 17.29% 6.15% 8.55% 4.13% NA
1986 1,516 347 22.89% 15.90% 6.73% 9.96% 5.41% NA
1987 1,490 354 23.76% 17.38% 5.44% 10.07% 5.17% NA
1988 1,720 361 20.99% 14.83% 5.29% 8.20% 3.31% NA
1989 2,491 496 19.91% 13.93% 3.97% 8.91% 3.49% NA
1990 2,632 521 19.79% 12.92% 3.42% 9.23% 3.72% NA
1991 3,253 632 19.43% 13.06% 3.66% 8.64% 3.32% NA
1992 2,918 545 18.68% 12.44% 2.81% 8.53% 3.12% NA
1993 3,765 834 22.15% 15.62% 3.98% 9.08% 3.08% NA
1994 4,467 855 19.14% 13.03% 2.69% 8.06% 3.16% NA
1995 6,553 1,266 19.32% 13.31% 2.49% 7.61% 3.40% NA
1996 5,405 1,089 20.15% 10.31% 1.28% 10.32% 3.70% 10.32%
1997 9,946 1,829 18.39% 8.73% 1.32% 10.46% 2.73% 10.46%
1998 10,258 1,909 18.61% 7.96% 1.47% 11.34% 3.20% 11.33%
1999 16,143 2,449 15.17% 5.05% 0.86% 10.02% 2.52% 10.01%
2000 230 20 8.70% 4.35% 1.74% 3.04% 3.48% 2.61%
2001 200 13 6.50% 4.50% 2.50% 1.00% 1.50% 1.00%
2002 207 18 8.70% 5.80% 1.93% 1.93% 1.93% 1.93%
2003 304 14 4.61% 2.96% 1.64% 0.99% 1.64% 0.99%
2004 287 13 4.53% 2.09% 0.00% 0.35% 2.09% 0.35%
2005 258 21 8.14% 5.81% 1.94% 1.55% 1.55% 1.55%
2006 251 18 7.17% 5.18% 1.59% 0.80% 1.99% 0.80%
2007 259 13 5.02% 3.09% 0.00% 1.54% 1.16% 1.54%
2008 212 11 5.19% 1.89% 0.00% 0.94% 2.83% 0.95%
2009 90 3 3.33% 2.22% 1.11% 0.00% 1.11% 0.00%
2010 63 1 1.59% 0.00% 0.00% 1.59% 0.00% 1.59%
2011 182 5 2.75% 2.20% 0.55% 0.55% 0.00% 0.55%
2012 153 1 0.65% 0.65% 0.65% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2013 292 8 2.74% 0.34% 0.00% 2.05% 1.03% 2.06%
2014 146 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2015 400 6 1.50% 0.50% 0.00% 0.75% 0.25% 0.75%
2016 96 2 2.08% 1.04% 0.00% 1.04% 0.00% 1.05%
2017 86 1 1.16% 1.16% 1.16% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2018 46 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2019 48 1 2.08% 2.08% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2020 23 1 4.35% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 4.35% 0.00%
2021 31 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2022 57 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2023 268 1 0.37% 0.00% 0.00% 0.37% 0.00% 0.37%
2024 89 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
All Model Years 81,864 14,767 18.04% 10.09% 2.37% 9.15% 3.15% 9.60%

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
1997 8 2 25.00% 25.00% 12.50% 25.00% 12.50% 0.00%
1998 131 12 9.16% 6.11% 5.34% 6.15% 4.62% 0.71%
1999 605 66 10.91% 9.92% 1.49% 9.27% 6.79% 0.59%
2000 17,659 2,913 16.50% 14.69% 3.35% 14.44% 10.42% 0.47%
2001 29,499 4,308 14.60% 12.98% 2.79% 12.79% 9.19% 0.36%
2002 22,431 3,203 14.28% 12.48% 2.97% 12.17% 8.36% 0.46%
2003 41,060 4,763 11.60% 10.09% 2.44% 9.88% 6.83% 0.32%
2004 29,522 3,609 12.22% 10.52% 2.76% 10.31% 7.00% 0.36%
2005 46,968 4,878 10.39% 9.06% 2.05% 8.93% 6.08% 0.25%
2006 34,506 3,688 10.69% 9.28% 2.23% 9.09% 6.13% 0.29%
2007 58,825 4,746 8.07% 6.85% 1.73% 6.72% 4.49% 0.20%
2008 31,373 2,653 8.46% 7.46% 1.45% 7.33% 4.97% 0.19%
2009 36,598 2,475 6.76% 6.13% 1.00% 6.00% 4.17% 0.18%
2010 25,686 2,180 8.49% 7.87% 1.00% 7.77% 3.56% 0.14%
2011 52,884 3,466 6.55% 6.09% 0.69% 6.03% 2.72% 0.08%
2012 26,663 2,245 8.42% 7.67% 1.04% 7.61% 3.30% 0.11%
2013 92,464 4,829 5.22% 4.67% 0.72% 4.64% 2.23% 0.04%
2014 25,994 1,804 6.94% 6.45% 0.79% 6.41% 2.90% 0.06%
2015 125,859 5,805 4.61% 4.06% 0.67% 4.04% 1.93% 0.03%
2016 15,993 825 5.16% 4.81% 0.46% 4.81% 2.62% 0.02%
2017 16,915 923 5.46% 5.13% 0.41% 5.11% 2.96% 0.02%
2018 14,958 682 4.56% 4.29% 0.37% 4.27% 2.79% 0.03%
2019 17,130 869 5.07% 4.87% 0.25% 4.86% 3.52% 0.02%
2020 11,030 489 4.43% 4.26% 0.21% 4.25% 3.29% 0.02%
2021 11,342 460 4.06% 3.86% 0.23% 3.85% 3.04% 0.01%
2022 7,952 330 4.15% 4.04% 0.13% 4.04% 3.29% 0.00%
2023 4,185 234 5.59% 5.57% 0.02% 5.57% 4.88% 0.02%
2024 333 45 13.51% 13.51% 0.00% 13.51% 12.01% 0.00%
Other 4 1 25.00% 0.00% 33.33% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
All Model Years 798,577 62,503 7.83% 6.97% 1.30% 6.87% 4.22% 0.15%

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 8,259 10.09%
All Visual 10,414 1.30% 2,582 3.15%
All Functional 55,626 6.97% 7,491 9.15%
OBDII 54,851 6.87% 4,417 9.60%
Overall 62,503 7.83% 14,767 18.04%

Initial Test Failures by Program Area

Program Area OIS BAR-97
Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate
Enhanced 691,172 54,062 7.82% 68,081 12,578 18.48%
Partial 38,371 3,091 8.06% 3,983 766 19.23%
Basic 64,173 4,951 7.72% 9,276 1,308 14.10%
Change of Ownership 4,861 399 8.21% 524 115 21.95%
All Program Areas 798,577 62,503 7.83% 81,864 14,767 18.04%

Initial Test Failures by Station Type

Station Type OIS BAR-97
Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate
STAR Test-Only 450,031 36,877 8.19% 49,453 8,801 17.80%
Non-STAR Test-Only 22,150 1,440 6.50% 1,886 222 11.77%
STAR Test-and-Repair 213,943 17,635 8.24% 23,702 4,778 20.16%
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 108,920 6,292 5.78% 6,455 888 13.76%
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 1,833 94 5.13% 28 0 0.00%
Business Fleet 296 5 1.69% 0 0 0.00%
Permanent Fleet Registered 13 0 0.00% 0 0 0.00%
Referee 240 116 48.33% 58 31 53.45%
Government Fleet 1,151 44 3.82% 282 47 16.67%
All Stations 798,577 62,503 7.83% 81,864 14,767 18.04%

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 Tests 797,905 90.63% 82,536 9.37%
All Tests 861,777 90.07% 94,991 9.93%

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 452,330 90.56% 47,154 9.44%
Non-STAR Test-Only 22,302 92.79% 1,734 7.21%
STAR Test-and-Repair 213,762 89.95% 23,883 10.05%
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 107,304 93.00% 8,071 7.00%
Total 795,698 90.78% 80,842 9.22%

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 23,702 $70.53 213,943 $59.65 237,645 $65.09
STAR Test-Only 49,453 $60.05 450,031 $55.13 499,484 $57.59
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 6,455 $65.93 108,920 $70.04 115,375 $67.99
Non-STAR Test-Only 1,886 $56.17 22,150 $50.07 24,036 $53.12
Total 81,496 $65.13 795,044 $61.24 876,540 $63.18

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 $0.00 261 $64.62 23,702 $70.53 213,682 $59.63
STAR Test-Only 0 $0.00 376 $54.19 49,453 $60.05 449,655 $55.14
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 0 $0.00 38,094 $73.52 6,455 $65.91 70,826 $67.65
Non-STAR Test-Only 0 $0.00 5,994 $52.54 1,886 $56.07 16,156 $48.32
Total 0 $0.00 44,725 $71.10 81,496 $65.14 750,319 $59.51

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) $1-100 541 $54.40 3,259 $628.70
$101-250 680 $173.64
$251-500 688 $363.71
$501-650 296 $578.26
Over $650 1054 $1,404.20
Non-STAR Repairs (Test-and-Repair) $1-100 123 $55.62 721 $661.60
$101-250 169 $173.17
$251-500 175 $360.39
$501-650 56 $584.21
Over $650 198 $1,743.05
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 $0.00 340 $1,189.39
$101-250 27 $213.22
$251-500 46 $398.86
$501-650 26 $572.54
Over $650 241 $1,516.19
Total Repairs $1-100 664 $54.63 4,320 $678.32
$101-250 876 $174.77
$251-500 909 $364.85
$501-650 378 $578.75
Over $650 1493 $1,467.21

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 106 37 1,698 77 1,918
STAR Test-Only 22 2 1,685 34 1,743
STAR Sub-Total 128 39 3,383 111 3,661
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 454 54 1,859 202 2,569
Non-STAR Test-Only 32 7 305 40 384
Non-STAR Sub-Total 486 61 2,164 242 2,953
Basic Area Dealer 49 0 0 0 49
Business Fleet 0 0 3 0 3
Permanent Fleet Registered 0 0 12 1 13
Referee 5 0 30 0 35
Government Fleet 44 5 299 13 361
Repair Only 1 0 31 1 33
Other Station Sub-Total 99 5 375 15 494
All Stations 713 105 5,922 368 7,108

Stations Conducting Test by Equipment Type

Station Type Equipment Type
BAR-97 Only OIS Only BAR-97 and OIS
STAR Test-and-Repair 2 231 1,606
STAR Test-Only 1 120 1,566
STAR Sub-Total 3 351 3,172
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 0 1,556 299
Non-STAR Test-Only 0 138 83
Non-STAR Sub-Total 0 1,694 382
Permanent Fleet Registered 0 4 0
Business Fleet 0 2 0
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 0 38 6
Government Fleet 9 122 23
Referee 0 4 29
Other Station Sub-Total 9 170 58
All Stations 12 2,215 3,612

Referee Inspections

Inspection Type Total Completed
Law Enforcement Citations 639
Smog Inspection/Repair Disputes 590
CAT BAR Label 281
BAR Referrals 213
Repair Cost Waiver + Parts Locator Service 161
Engine Change/Replacement 107
Clean Gas 46
Grey Market 21
Specially Constructed Vehicle/Kit Car 20
OBD Monitor Issues 5
All Inspections 2,083

Referee Certificates Issued

Certificate Type OIS BAR-97
Certificate of Compliance 237 60
Certificate of Non Compliance 0 0
Repair Cost Waiver 37 9
Limited Parts Exemption 5 1
Exempt Vehicle 2 10
Exempted by Directive 18 0
All Certificates Issued 299 80

Technicians

License Type Licenses
EO (Inspect Only) 4,475
EO + EI (Inspect and Repair) 4,053
GU (Government) 213
All License Types 8,741

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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