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Smog Check Executive Summary Report
April 2025

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 965,161 84,079 8.71%
All Tests 1,048,077 97,105 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 90,492 224,351 79,147 197,525
Non-Directed 165,197 317,141 151,469 293,136
Total 255,689 541,492 230,616 490,661

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 146 0 1 0
Non-Directed 127,643 34,035 119,532 31,786
Total 127,789 34,035 119,533 31,786

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 357 69 19.33% 13.17% 4.48% 10.08% 3.92% NA
1977 384 71 18.49% 11.98% 5.47% 7.29% 4.95% NA
1978 481 83 17.26% 9.56% 3.95% 8.52% 6.65% NA
1979 527 103 19.54% 13.66% 5.88% 9.11% 4.36% NA
1980 275 51 18.55% 11.64% 7.27% 9.82% 3.64% NA
1981 322 62 19.25% 16.46% 7.76% 7.14% 4.66% NA
1982 319 70 21.94% 16.61% 6.90% 8.15% 5.02% NA
1983 423 89 21.04% 16.78% 4.49% 7.57% 3.78% NA
1984 737 149 20.22% 16.01% 6.38% 7.33% 3.39% NA
1985 982 208 21.18% 15.38% 5.30% 9.37% 4.68% NA
1986 1,220 235 19.26% 14.34% 4.92% 9.02% 4.34% NA
1987 1,447 295 20.39% 15.41% 5.18% 7.74% 3.87% NA
1988 1,667 361 21.66% 17.22% 5.58% 8.16% 3.66% NA
1989 2,089 415 19.87% 14.12% 5.07% 8.57% 3.30% NA
1990 2,496 478 19.15% 12.46% 3.73% 8.89% 3.29% NA
1991 2,818 519 18.42% 12.46% 3.66% 8.06% 2.56% NA
1992 2,677 484 18.08% 12.07% 3.14% 8.11% 2.84% NA
1993 2,989 660 22.08% 16.83% 4.18% 8.06% 3.45% NA
1994 3,857 823 21.34% 14.73% 3.03% 9.02% 3.53% NA
1995 5,460 1,113 20.38% 14.49% 2.64% 7.88% 3.04% NA
1996 4,808 928 19.30% 10.13% 1.27% 10.38% 3.31% 10.38%
1997 8,866 1,706 19.24% 9.27% 1.32% 11.02% 3.16% 11.00%
1998 8,982 1,733 19.29% 8.70% 1.49% 11.40% 3.28% 11.40%
1999 15,061 2,375 15.77% 5.95% 1.00% 10.00% 2.72% 9.99%
2000 250 20 8.00% 5.60% 3.20% 2.00% 1.60% 2.00%
2001 221 13 5.88% 2.26% 1.36% 1.81% 3.62% 1.81%
2002 228 13 5.70% 4.39% 1.75% 1.32% 0.88% 1.32%
2003 283 19 6.71% 4.59% 1.06% 1.41% 1.41% 1.41%
2004 288 17 5.90% 4.86% 1.39% 0.69% 0.35% 0.70%
2005 287 11 3.83% 2.79% 1.74% 0.35% 1.05% 0.35%
2006 328 19 5.79% 3.35% 1.83% 1.52% 2.13% 1.52%
2007 295 17 5.76% 4.07% 2.03% 0.00% 1.69% 0.00%
2008 228 18 7.89% 6.14% 3.07% 1.32% 0.88% 1.32%
2009 108 7 6.48% 4.63% 1.85% 0.93% 0.93% 0.93%
2010 69 2 2.90% 1.45% 1.45% 1.45% 1.45% 1.45%
2011 149 3 2.01% 0.00% 0.00% 1.34% 0.67% 1.34%
2012 135 2 1.48% 0.00% 0.00% 1.48% 0.00% 1.48%
2013 303 5 1.65% 0.99% 0.66% 0.00% 0.99% 0.00%
2014 187 2 1.07% 0.53% 0.00% 0.53% 0.53% 0.53%
2015 356 2 0.56% 0.56% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2016 218 1 0.46% 0.00% 0.00% 0.46% 0.00% 0.46%
2017 521 4 0.77% 0.19% 0.00% 0.38% 0.19% 0.38%
2018 67 1 1.49% 1.49% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2019 69 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2020 53 2 3.77% 1.89% 1.89% 1.89% 0.00% 1.89%
2021 71 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2022 58 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2023 49 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2024 138 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2025 55 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2026 1 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
All Model Years 74,259 13,258 17.85% 10.26% 2.41% 8.99% 3.07% 9.46%

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 1 50.00% 0.00% 50.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
1997 2 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 33.33%
1998 147 13 8.84% 8.84% 0.68% 8.22% 4.11% 1.26%
1999 574 69 12.02% 10.10% 2.79% 9.23% 6.79% 0.94%
2000 15,649 2,644 16.90% 14.94% 3.48% 14.67% 10.92% 0.56%
2001 24,683 3,890 15.76% 14.01% 3.07% 13.70% 10.21% 0.51%
2002 19,914 3,002 15.07% 13.26% 3.36% 13.00% 8.88% 0.49%
2003 33,073 4,364 13.20% 11.40% 2.92% 11.18% 7.73% 0.40%
2004 27,008 3,688 13.66% 11.87% 2.93% 11.64% 7.87% 0.39%
2005 42,456 4,752 11.19% 9.72% 2.37% 9.51% 6.60% 0.32%
2006 31,457 3,579 11.38% 9.75% 2.60% 9.55% 6.55% 0.33%
2007 51,849 4,653 8.97% 7.72% 1.84% 7.58% 5.12% 0.22%
2008 31,420 3,153 10.04% 8.75% 1.92% 8.62% 5.78% 0.22%
2009 32,850 2,540 7.73% 6.86% 1.27% 6.73% 4.90% 0.18%
2010 25,971 2,460 9.47% 8.66% 1.29% 8.57% 3.98% 0.15%
2011 47,657 3,761 7.89% 7.23% 0.98% 7.17% 3.38% 0.09%
2012 32,458 3,137 9.66% 8.79% 1.25% 8.73% 3.67% 0.11%
2013 80,906 5,049 6.24% 5.48% 0.98% 5.43% 2.49% 0.07%
2014 35,290 2,668 7.56% 6.76% 1.06% 6.71% 2.91% 0.09%
2015 106,030 5,283 4.98% 4.41% 0.73% 4.37% 2.13% 0.06%
2016 34,076 2,317 6.80% 6.24% 0.80% 6.19% 2.85% 0.07%
2017 116,814 4,788 4.10% 3.67% 0.53% 3.65% 1.91% 0.03%
2018 17,076 866 5.07% 4.82% 0.39% 4.77% 2.68% 0.06%
2019 16,697 978 5.86% 5.64% 0.31% 5.59% 3.65% 0.05%
2020 13,709 719 5.24% 5.04% 0.28% 5.03% 3.61% 0.02%
2021 18,544 904 4.87% 4.66% 0.24% 4.64% 3.47% 0.02%
2022 12,856 543 4.22% 4.11% 0.13% 4.10% 3.08% 0.01%
2023 11,499 490 4.26% 4.13% 0.15% 4.13% 3.28% 0.00%
2024 7,656 343 4.48% 4.39% 0.12% 4.39% 3.53% 0.01%
2025 2,573 164 6.37% 6.30% 0.08% 6.38% 5.24% 0.00%
2026 2 1 50.00% 50.00% 0.00% 100.00% 100.00% 0.00%
Other 4 2 50.00% 25.00% 33.33% 25.00% 25.00% 0.00%
All Model Years 890,902 70,821 7.95% 7.07% 1.33% 6.97% 4.20% 0.16%

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 7,618 10.26%
All Visual 11,836 1.33% 2,277 3.07%
All Functional 62,964 7.07% 6,673 8.99%
OBDII 62,110 6.97% 4,041 9.46%
Overall 70,821 7.95% 13,258 17.85%

Initial Test Failures by Program Area

Program Area OIS BAR-97
Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate
Enhanced 770,285 61,324 7.96% 61,741 11,212 18.16%
Partial Enhanced 44,513 3,668 8.24% 3,619 731 20.20%
Basic 70,355 5,407 7.69% 8,399 1,198 14.26%
Change of Ownership 5,749 422 7.34% 500 117 23.40%
All Program Areas 890,902 70,821 7.95% 74,259 13,258 17.85%

Initial Test Failures by Station Type

Station Type OIS BAR-97
Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate
STAR Test-Only 496,778 41,611 8.38% 44,714 7,886 17.64%
Non-STAR Test-Only 32,417 1,986 6.13% 1,645 171 10.40%
STAR Test-and-Repair 234,022 19,749 8.44% 21,667 4,292 19.81%
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 122,490 6,958 5.68% 5,299 685 12.93%
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 1,971 104 5.28% 28 3 10.71%
Business Fleet 370 5 1.35% 0 0 0.00%
Permanent Fleet Registered 4 0 0.00% 0 0 0.00%
Referee 404 294 72.77% 146 80 54.79%
Government Fleet 2,446 114 4.66% 760 141 18.55%
All Stations 890,902 70,821 7.95% 74,259 13,258 17.85%

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 875,023 90.66% 90,138 9.34%
All Tests 944,401 90.11% 103,676 9.89%

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-and-Repair 230,616 90.19% 25,073 9.81%
STAR Test-Only 490,661 90.61% 50,831 9.39%
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 119,533 93.54% 8,256 6.46%
Non-STAR Test-Only 31,786 93.32% 2,276 6.68%
Total 872,596 90.99% 86,436 9.01%

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 21,667 $75.66 234,022 $62.30 255,689 $68.98
STAR Test-Only 44,714 $64.27 496,778 $56.71 541,492 $60.49
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 5,299 $69.73 122,490 $73.92 127,789 $71.83
Non-STAR Test-Only 1,645 $60.65 32,417 $52.19 34,062 $56.42
Total 73,325 $69.60 885,707 $63.89 959,032 $66.74

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 $0.00 385 $50.74 21,667 $75.66 233,637 $62.35
STAR Test-Only 0 $0.00 1,779 $54.59 44,714 $64.25 494,999 $56.72
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 0 $0.00 50,516 $77.83 5,299 $69.73 71,974 $70.58
Non-STAR Test-Only 0 $0.00 12,664 $54.47 1,645 $60.98 19,753 $49.35
Total 0 $0.00 65,344 $74.02 73,325 $69.60 820,363 $61.69

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) $1-100 452 $54.98 3,130 $684.50
$101-250 671 $175.92
$251-500 620 $367.98
$501-650 291 $575.66
Over $650 1096 $1,463.43
Non-STAR Repairs (Test-and-Repair) $1-100 122 $55.07 717 $677.44
$101-250 216 $174.46
$251-500 140 $364.42
$501-650 44 $584.75
Over $650 195 $1,869.63
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 $0.00 531 $1,419.84
$101-250 23 $222.89
$251-500 50 $362.27
$501-650 34 $593.41
Over $650 424 $1,675.75
Total Repairs $1-100 574 $55.00 4,378 $772.53
$101-250 910 $176.76
$251-500 810 $367.01
$501-650 369 $578.38
Over $650 1715 $1,562.11

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 112 32 1,626 79 1,849
STAR Test-Only 19 4 1,684 39 1,746
STAR Sub-Total 131 36 3,310 118 3,595
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 434 49 1,719 187 2,389
Non-STAR Test-Only 38 9 321 37 405
Non-STAR Sub-Total 472 58 2,040 224 2,794
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 50 0 0 0 50
Business Fleet 0 0 3 0 3
Permanent Fleet Registered 0 0 12 1 13
Referee 5 0 29 1 35
Government Fleet 44 5 303 13 365
Repair Only 1 0 23 1 25
Other Station Sub-Total 100 5 370 16 491
All Stations 703 99 5,720 358 6,880

Stations Conducting Test by Equipment Type

Station Type Equipment Type
BAR-97 Only OIS Only BAR-97 and OIS
STAR Test-and-Repair 2 259 1,510
STAR Test-Only 1 154 1,517
STAR Sub-Total 3 413 3,027
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 1 1,583 253
Non-STAR Test-Only 0 186 77
Non-STAR Sub-Total 1 1,769 330
Permanent Fleet Registered 0 4 0
Business Fleet 0 2 0
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 0 40 4
Government Fleet 4 149 29
Referee 0 3 30
Other Station Sub-Total 4 198 63
All Stations 8 2,380 3,420

Referee Inspections

Inspection Type Total Completed
BAR Referrals 534
Smog Inspection/Repair Disputes 468
Law Enforcement Citations 428
Clean Gas 224
Repair Cost Waiver + Parts Locator Service 140
Engine Change/Replacement 77
CAT BAR Label 68
OBD Monitor Issues 32
Specially Constructed Vehicle/Kit Car 19
Grey Market 18
All Inspections 2,008

Referee Certificates Issued

Certificate Type OIS BAR-97
Certificate of Compliance 220 160
Repair Cost Waiver 50 6
Limited Parts Exemption 15 1
Exempt Vehicle 2 8
Exempted by Directive 5 0
Hardship Extensions 0 1
All Certificates Issued 292 176

Technicians

Technician License Type Technicians Conducting Tests Total Licensed Technicians
EO (Inspect Only) 4,689 7,411
EO+EI (Inspect and Repair) 3,881 5,070
All License Types 8,570 12,481

FPR Score Distribution

License Type FPR Score < 0.10 FPR Score ≥ 0.10 and < 0.40 FPR Score ≥ 0.40 No Score Total
Stations 242 1,095 3,604 1,448 6,389
Inspectors 299 1,623 5,433 5,126 12,481

Station FPR Score Distribution

Inspector FPR Score Distribution

Smog Check Requirements by Vehicle Type

Fuel Type Model-Year GVWR1 OBD II Equipped? Smog Check Required
All2 (except Diesel) Four model-years and newer3 All ‐ None
Fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth model-years4 All ‐ None
1975 and earlier All ‐ None
Gasoline and Flex Fuel
(Methanol or Ethanol)
1976-1999 All ‐ BAR-97
2000 and newer 14,000 and less Yes5 BAR-OIS
No BAR-97
Over 14,000 ‐ BAR-97
Hybrid 2000 and newer 14,000 and less Yes BAR-OIS
Dedicated Propane and Natural Gas
(CNG, LNG, or LPG)
1976-1999 14,000 and less ‐ BAR-97
Over 14,000 ‐ None
2000 and newer 14,000 and less Yes BAR-OIS
No BAR-97
Over 14,000 ‐ None
Diesel 1976-1997 All ‐ None
1998 and newer 14,000 and less Yes BAR-OIS
Over 14,000 ‐ None6
Full Electric Powered All All ‐ None
Motorcycle All All ‐ None
Other Vehicles: Two Cylinder Engine,
Two-stroke Engine,
Off-highway Registered
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 2020 model-year vehicle will be first subject to a change-of-ownership Smog Check in 2024 (2020+4=2024).
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 2020 model-year vehicle will be first subject to a biennial Smog Check in 2028 (2020+8=2028).
5 BAR has identified 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 CARB’s Clean Truck Check Program replaces the Periodic Smoke Inspection Program (PSIP) effective October 1, 2024. Vehicles with 2012 and older model year engines are required to undergo an opacity test and a vehicle emissions control equipment inspection. Vehicles with 2013 and newer model year engines are required to undergo OBD testing. See CARB’s Clean Truck Check webpage for details.

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