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  1. Home

Smog Check Executive Summary Report
September 2020

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 878,223 88,484 10.08%
All Tests 962,338 101,456 10.54%

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 102,988 215,798 88,829 186,731
Non-Directed 149,777 251,810 135,366 229,084
Total 252,765 467,608 224,195 415,815

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 426 90 186 40
Non-Directed 130,992 20,401 121,483 18,781
Total 131,418 20,491 121,669 18,821

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 394 91 23.10% 18.27% 8.38% 9.90% 3.81% NA
1977 571 130 22.77% 15.41% 8.23% 11.03% 5.25% NA
1978 671 180 26.83% 17.59% 7.60% 11.48% 5.66% NA
1979 757 183 24.17% 19.02% 6.74% 9.51% 5.55% NA
1980 379 87 22.96% 15.30% 7.65% 9.76% 5.80% NA
1981 481 131 27.23% 20.58% 7.69% 12.06% 6.65% NA
1982 513 133 25.93% 20.08% 6.82% 10.53% 4.29% NA
1983 612 145 23.69% 17.48% 7.35% 9.80% 5.72% NA
1984 948 229 24.16% 18.35% 7.28% 9.49% 4.85% NA
1985 1,406 350 24.89% 18.63% 6.33% 10.10% 6.61% NA
1986 1,933 427 22.09% 15.05% 5.23% 11.02% 4.97% NA
1987 2,100 530 25.24% 19.14% 7.29% 10.38% 5.10% NA
1988 2,408 551 22.88% 16.24% 5.23% 10.51% 4.44% NA
1989 3,404 769 22.59% 15.92% 4.02% 10.19% 4.55% NA
1990 3,664 750 20.47% 13.62% 4.12% 9.80% 3.71% NA
1991 4,534 966 21.31% 14.23% 3.64% 9.66% 3.18% NA
1992 4,397 944 21.47% 14.76% 3.84% 9.53% 3.73% NA
1993 5,327 1,242 23.32% 16.05% 3.49% 10.42% 3.53% NA
1994 7,347 1,672 22.76% 15.15% 3.32% 9.91% 4.03% NA
1995 8,317 1,821 21.89% 14.36% 2.81% 9.65% 3.81% NA
1996 10,180 2,007 19.72% 9.21% 1.30% 11.42% 3.19% 11.40%
1997 12,462 2,588 20.77% 8.95% 1.55% 12.94% 3.27% 12.94%
1998 19,650 3,477 17.69% 6.62% 1.07% 11.37% 2.79% 11.37%
1999 19,035 3,207 16.85% 5.25% 1.02% 11.84% 3.03% 11.83%
2000 464 84 18.10% 10.34% 4.09% 9.91% 3.66% 9.91%
2001 286 49 17.13% 4.55% 1.05% 14.34% 2.80% 14.34%
2002 406 69 17.00% 5.42% 1.97% 11.82% 3.45% 11.82%
2003 341 54 15.84% 4.11% 1.17% 12.61% 2.93% 12.61%
2004 461 45 9.76% 3.69% 0.87% 6.94% 2.17% 6.94%
2005 310 47 15.16% 6.13% 3.23% 11.61% 1.61% 11.61%
2006 438 34 7.76% 2.74% 1.14% 5.48% 2.05% 5.48%
2007 274 39 14.23% 7.30% 1.46% 8.03% 2.55% 8.03%
2008 348 24 6.90% 3.16% 1.44% 4.60% 0.00% 4.60%
2009 63 9 14.29% 0.00% 0.00% 14.29% 0.00% 14.29%
2010 100 13 13.00% 4.00% 2.00% 12.00% 0.00% 12.00%
2011 127 11 8.66% 2.36% 1.57% 7.87% 0.00% 7.87%
2012 334 12 3.59% 1.20% 0.60% 2.69% 0.00% 2.69%
2013 49 2 4.08% 0.00% 0.00% 4.08% 0.00% 4.08%
2014 67 2 2.99% 0.00% 0.00% 2.99% 0.00% 2.99%
2015 74 2 2.70% 1.35% 1.35% 1.35% 1.35% 1.35%
2016 77 2 2.60% 1.30% 0.00% 1.30% 0.00% 1.30%
2017 57 1 1.75% 0.00% 0.00% 1.75% 0.00% 1.75%
2018 55 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2019 105 1 0.95% 0.00% 0.00% 0.95% 0.00% 0.95%
2020 462 2 0.43% 0.43% 0.43% 0.22% 0.00% 0.22%
Other 2 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
All Model Years 116,390 23,112 19.86% 10.61% 2.54% 10.86% 3.46% 6.54%

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 5 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
1998 198 24 12.12% 11.11% 2.53% 10.61% 5.05% 0.51%
1999 732 89 12.16% 10.79% 2.19% 10.52% 7.65% 0.27%
2000 36,989 6,057 16.38% 14.65% 2.92% 14.38% 10.50% 0.27%
2001 28,429 4,670 16.43% 14.64% 3.21% 14.37% 9.89% 0.27%
2002 48,581 6,465 13.31% 11.84% 2.32% 11.65% 8.17% 0.19%
2003 35,848 4,805 13.40% 11.79% 2.49% 11.56% 7.98% 0.23%
2004 63,666 6,787 10.66% 9.47% 1.83% 9.26% 6.51% 0.21%
2005 38,047 4,290 11.28% 9.94% 2.06% 9.74% 6.72% 0.20%
2006 72,756 6,323 8.69% 7.63% 1.41% 7.49% 5.31% 0.13%
2007 42,596 3,545 8.32% 7.25% 1.36% 7.13% 4.88% 0.13%
2008 66,511 4,294 6.46% 5.75% 0.91% 5.64% 4.05% 0.12%
2009 24,266 1,650 6.80% 6.10% 0.92% 5.99% 4.25% 0.11%
2010 60,326 3,444 5.71% 5.35% 0.48% 5.29% 2.82% 0.06%
2011 25,628 1,861 7.26% 6.79% 0.64% 6.73% 3.14% 0.06%
2012 92,385 5,462 5.91% 5.56% 0.45% 5.51% 2.94% 0.04%
2013 17,345 1,058 6.10% 5.73% 0.48% 5.69% 2.64% 0.04%
2014 18,235 952 5.22% 4.93% 0.39% 4.91% 2.41% 0.02%
2015 19,968 941 4.71% 4.44% 0.34% 4.43% 2.34% 0.02%
2016 22,236 796 3.58% 3.35% 0.25% 3.33% 2.16% 0.02%
2017 15,964 608 3.81% 3.61% 0.21% 3.59% 2.74% 0.02%
2018 12,735 477 3.75% 3.60% 0.19% 3.59% 2.77% 0.02%
2019 13,072 486 3.72% 3.62% 0.13% 3.60% 2.95% 0.02%
2020 5,190 273 5.26% 5.13% 0.19% 5.11% 4.47% 0.02%
2021 119 13 10.92% 10.92% 0.00% 10.92% 7.56% 0.00%
Other 5 2 40.00% 20.00% 0.00% 20.00% 20.00% 0.00%
All Model Years 761,833 65,372 8.58% 7.72% 1.27% 7.60% 5.05% 0.12%

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 12,351 10.61%
All Visual 9,642 1.27% 4,023 3.46%
All Functional 58,830 7.72% 12,645 10.86%
OBDII 57,892 7.60% 7,616 6.54%
Overall 65,372 8.58% 23,112 19.86%

Initial Test Failures by Program Area

Program Area OIS BAR-97
Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate
Enhanced 655,659 57,046 8.70% 89,708 18,271 20.37%
Partial 37,360 3,060 8.19% 7,178 1,685 23.47%
Basic 62,065 4,752 7.66% 14,350 2,009 14.00%
Change of Ownership 6,749 514 7.62% 1,191 291 24.43%
Unknown 0 0 0.00% 3,963 856 21.60%
All Program Areas 761,833 65,372 8.58% 116,390 23,112 19.86%

Initial Test Failures by Station Type

Station Type OIS BAR-97
Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate
STAR Test-Only 399,334 37,140 9.30% 68,274 13,246 19.40%
STAR Test-Only (Suspended) 546 51 9.34% 84 15 17.86%
Non-STAR Test-Only 18,357 1,262 6.87% 2,134 321 15.04%
STAR Test-and-Repair 217,712 19,306 8.87% 35,053 7,850 22.39%
STAR Test-and-Repair (Suspended) 173 20 11.56% 10 2 20.00%
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 121,138 7,151 5.90% 10,280 1,521 14.80%
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 2,445 131 5.36% 7 0 0.00%
Business Fleet 461 22 4.77% 0 0 0.00%
Permanent Fleet Registered 79 2 2.53% 0 0 0.00%
Referee 351 214 60.97% 160 91 56.87%
Government Fleet 1,237 73 5.90% 388 66 17.01%
All Stations 761,833 65,372 8.58% 116,390 23,112 19.86%

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 784,241 89.30% 93,982 10.70%
All Tests 854,728 88.82% 107,610 11.18%

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 415,815 88.92% 51,793 11.08%
Non-STAR Test-Only 18,821 91.85% 1,670 8.15%
STAR Test-and-Repair 224,195 88.70% 28,570 11.30%
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 121,669 92.58% 9,749 7.42%
All Stations 780,500 89.48% 91,782 10.52%

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 35,063 $57.19 217,024 $49.64 252,087 $50.69
STAR Test-Only 67,969 $50.70 397,762 $48.81 465,731 $49.09
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 10,247 $55.78 120,463 $59.10 130,710 $58.84
Non-STAR Test-Only 2,132 $43.29 18,222 $46.29 20,354 $45.98
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 7 $71.28 2,405 $63.85 2,412 $63.87
Total 115,418 $52.99 755,876 $50.68 871,294 $50.98

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 $80.38 8,403 $51.82 35,061 $57.19 208,621 $49.55
STAR Test-Only 0 $0.00 7,882 $47.54 67,969 $50.70 389,880 $48.84
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 0 $0.00 76,218 $64.81 10,247 $55.78 44,245 $49.27
Non-STAR Test-Only 77 $41.86 7,158 $43.06 2,055 $43.34 11,064 $48.39
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 0 $0.00 2,264 $63.53 7 $71.28 141 $68.87
Total 79 $42.83 101,925 $60.85 115,339 $53.00 653,951 $49.09

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) $1-100 921 $50.66 4,399 $475.75
$101-250 987 $172.08
$251-500 1059 $367.71
$501-650 408 $577.71
Over $650 1024 $1,221.89
Non-STAR Repairs (Test-and-Repair) $1-100 262 $49.87 1,120 $486.23
$101-250 299 $169.25
$251-500 234 $359.85
$501-650 84 $575.52
Over $650 241 $1,445.46
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 $0.00 125 $845.03
$101-250 4 $208.03
$251-500 24 $376.29
$501-650 25 $587.62
Over $650 72 $1,126.04
Total Repairs $1-100 1183 $50.48 5,644 $486.01
$101-250 1290 $171.53
$251-500 1317 $366.47
$501-650 517 $577.84
Over $650 1337 $1,257.03

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 49 1,879 71 2,105
STAR Test-Only 18 2 1,727 35 1,782
STAR Sub-Total 124 51 3,606 106 3,887
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 483 44 2,048 238 2,813
Non-STAR Test-Only 25 5 306 32 368
Non-STAR Sub-Total 508 49 2,354 270 3,181
Basic Area Dealer 58 0 0 0 58
Business Fleet 0 0 4 0 4
Permanent Fleet Registered 3 2 48 4 57
Referee 5 0 30 0 35
Government Fleet 41 5 302 13 361
Repair-Only 2 0 43 1 46
Unknown Type 0 0 10 0 10
Other Station Sub-Total 109 7 437 18 571
All Stations 741 107 6,397 394 7,639

Stations Conducting Test by Equipment Type

Station Type Equipment Type
BAR-97 Only OIS Only BAR-97 and OIS
STAR Test-and-Repair 2 166 1,856
STAR Test-Only 0 75 1,646
STAR Sub-Total 2 241 3,502
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 0 1,763 407
Non-STAR Test-Only 2 104 78
Non-STAR Sub-Total 2 1,867 485
Permanent Fleet Registered 0 17 0
Business Fleet 0 2 0
Basic Area Dealer 0 49 4
Unknown Type 0 0 6
Government Fleet 7 144 31
Referee 0 1 22
Other Station Sub-Total 7 213 63
All Stations 11 2,321 4,050

Referee Certificates Issued

Certificate Type OIS BAR-97
Certificate of Compliance 257 155
Certificate of Non Compliance 0 0
Parts Cost 29 3
Hardship Extensions 0 0
Exempt Vehicle 1 23
Exempted by Directive 5 1
Parts Exemption 6 0
Unknown Outcome 0 0
Permanently Exempt Vehicle 0 0
Temporarily Exempt Vehicle 0 0
All Certificates Issued 298 182

Technicians

License Type Licenses
EO (Inspect Only) 4,052
EO + EI (Inspect and Repair) 4,909
All License Types 8,961

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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