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Smog Check Executive Summary Report
January 2022

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 893,143 81,562 9.13%
All Tests 970,399 93,559 9.64%

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 105,056 230,846 92,736 203,367
Non-Directed 148,223 255,468 135,030 234,869
Total 253,279 486,314 227,766 438,236

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 214 78 68 26
Non-Directed 125,227 20,801 116,781 19,457
Total 125,441 20,879 116,849 19,483

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 384 86 22.40% 16.41% 8.59% 11.46% 4.17% NA
1977 460 98 21.30% 14.35% 5.22% 10.87% 4.57% NA
1978 529 116 21.93% 14.37% 3.97% 9.26% 3.59% NA
1979 636 121 19.03% 13.21% 4.25% 8.33% 5.03% NA
1980 344 65 18.90% 11.92% 6.10% 10.17% 5.52% NA
1981 391 71 18.16% 14.32% 5.37% 6.14% 4.35% NA
1982 408 84 20.59% 14.71% 6.86% 8.58% 4.41% NA
1983 455 81 17.80% 14.51% 4.18% 7.03% 4.40% NA
1984 886 207 23.36% 18.06% 7.90% 9.59% 4.51% NA
1985 1,160 284 24.48% 19.05% 7.24% 10.17% 5.43% NA
1986 1,491 328 22.00% 16.36% 5.57% 8.45% 4.76% NA
1987 1,824 365 20.01% 15.13% 5.81% 8.00% 3.56% NA
1988 2,047 406 19.83% 14.51% 4.25% 8.26% 3.13% NA
1989 2,747 564 20.53% 13.83% 3.86% 8.96% 3.39% NA
1990 3,106 626 20.15% 13.10% 3.80% 8.79% 3.57% NA
1991 3,502 690 19.70% 13.54% 3.17% 8.42% 3.20% NA
1992 3,514 698 19.86% 13.57% 4.21% 8.62% 2.76% NA
1993 4,354 930 21.36% 15.02% 3.03% 8.54% 3.28% NA
1994 5,398 1,148 21.27% 14.86% 3.08% 8.86% 3.58% NA
1995 6,657 1,390 20.88% 14.38% 2.49% 8.56% 3.77% NA
1996 7,691 1,473 19.15% 9.75% 1.25% 10.14% 3.11% 10.13%
1997 10,123 1,931 19.08% 8.64% 1.31% 11.03% 3.19% 11.02%
1998 14,709 2,518 17.12% 6.69% 1.22% 10.92% 2.67% 10.89%
1999 16,535 2,746 16.61% 5.81% 0.98% 11.24% 2.88% 11.24%
2000 393 65 16.54% 6.87% 2.80% 9.92% 3.82% 9.92%
2001 239 35 14.64% 6.28% 2.09% 8.79% 3.77% 8.79%
2002 319 46 14.42% 5.64% 2.51% 10.34% 2.82% 10.34%
2003 318 50 15.72% 4.09% 0.94% 11.95% 2.52% 11.95%
2004 397 55 13.85% 4.28% 2.77% 10.83% 4.03% 10.83%
2005 323 62 19.20% 7.43% 3.72% 14.24% 3.72% 14.24%
2006 452 55 12.17% 5.97% 0.66% 6.86% 3.10% 6.86%
2007 366 63 17.21% 7.92% 2.19% 10.11% 3.28% 10.11%
2008 312 25 8.01% 2.24% 0.32% 5.77% 1.28% 5.77%
2009 90 11 12.22% 3.33% 1.11% 7.78% 1.11% 7.78%
2010 87 10 11.49% 3.45% 1.15% 11.49% 3.45% 11.49%
2011 129 18 13.95% 1.55% 0.00% 11.63% 2.33% 11.63%
2012 272 9 3.31% 0.37% 0.00% 3.31% 0.37% 3.31%
2013 175 13 7.43% 1.14% 0.00% 5.71% 1.71% 5.71%
2014 251 6 2.39% 0.80% 0.40% 1.59% 0.40% 1.59%
2015 71 3 4.23% 1.41% 1.41% 4.23% 0.00% 4.23%
2016 70 4 5.71% 1.43% 0.00% 4.29% 1.43% 4.29%
2017 77 3 3.90% 1.30% 1.30% 3.90% 1.30% 3.90%
2018 42 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2019 64 1 1.56% 0.00% 0.00% 1.56% 0.00% 1.56%
2020 106 1 0.94% 0.94% 0.94% 0.00% 0.94% 0.00%
2021 75 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
2022 29 0 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
All Model Years 94,008 17,561 18.68% 10.24% 2.35% 9.82% 3.20% 6.09%

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 4 2 50.00% 25.00% 25.00% 25.00% 0.00% 0.00%
1998 177 22 12.43% 9.04% 4.52% 7.34% 3.95% 1.69%
1999 780 94 12.05% 9.62% 1.92% 8.85% 6.28% 0.77%
2000 27,760 4,324 15.58% 14.00% 2.67% 13.79% 10.43% 0.21%
2001 25,100 4,049 16.13% 14.50% 2.89% 14.24% 10.54% 0.26%
2002 37,255 4,680 12.56% 11.08% 2.40% 10.87% 7.78% 0.20%
2003 31,695 4,274 13.48% 11.66% 2.57% 11.41% 7.96% 0.25%
2004 50,181 5,473 10.91% 9.50% 1.94% 9.29% 6.62% 0.21%
2005 38,375 4,392 11.44% 9.79% 2.09% 9.61% 6.72% 0.18%
2006 62,500 5,512 8.82% 7.51% 1.56% 7.40% 5.16% 0.12%
2007 44,204 4,082 9.23% 7.70% 1.61% 7.55% 5.16% 0.15%
2008 56,904 3,848 6.76% 5.96% 1.03% 5.86% 4.13% 0.10%
2009 23,329 1,792 7.68% 6.87% 1.05% 6.78% 4.81% 0.09%
2010 49,201 3,057 6.21% 5.77% 0.62% 5.69% 2.94% 0.08%
2011 33,135 2,727 8.23% 7.66% 0.73% 7.60% 3.55% 0.06%
2012 76,272 4,084 5.35% 4.93% 0.52% 4.89% 2.56% 0.05%
2013 40,726 3,002 7.37% 6.89% 0.64% 6.84% 3.23% 0.04%
2014 93,042 3,818 4.10% 3.77% 0.39% 3.75% 1.80% 0.03%
2015 18,099 968 5.35% 5.02% 0.38% 4.99% 2.52% 0.03%
2016 18,326 827 4.51% 4.25% 0.29% 4.23% 2.39% 0.02%
2017 18,783 815 4.34% 4.03% 0.32% 3.99% 2.62% 0.04%
2018 25,514 1,020 4.00% 3.81% 0.21% 3.80% 2.97% 0.01%
2019 13,770 570 4.14% 3.99% 0.17% 3.98% 3.24% 0.01%
2020 7,708 248 3.22% 3.07% 0.14% 3.06% 2.49% 0.01%
2021 4,727 185 3.91% 3.70% 0.19% 3.70% 2.98% 0.00%
2022 1,561 131 8.39% 8.20% 0.19% 8.20% 7.37% 0.00%
Other 7 5 71.43% 28.57% 0.00% 28.57% 14.29% 0.00%
All Model Years 799,135 64,001 8.01% 7.13% 1.17% 7.03% 4.57% 0.10%

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 9,624 10.24%
All Visual 9,344 1.17% 3,010 3.20%
All Functional 57,017 7.13% 9,236 9.82%
OBDII 56,180 7.03% 5,727 6.09%
Overall 64,001 8.01% 17,561 18.68%

Initial Test Failures by Program Area

Program Area OIS BAR-97
Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate
Enhanced 691,721 55,648 8.04% 72,244 13,849 19.17%
Partial 38,095 2,965 7.78% 5,736 1,217 21.22%
Basic 63,787 4,959 7.77% 11,571 1,568 13.55%
Change of Ownership 5,532 429 7.75% 869 195 22.44%
Unknown 0 0 0.00% 3,588 732 20.40%
All Program Areas 799,135 64,001 8.01% 94,008 17,561 18.68%

Initial Test Failures by Station Type

Station Type OIS BAR-97
Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate Initial Tests Failed Failure Rate
STAR Test-Only 431,167 36,714 8.52% 55,147 10,133 18.37%
STAR Test-Only (Suspended) 1,009 100 9.91% 51 10 19.61%
Non-STAR Test-Only 19,256 1,145 5.95% 1,623 193 11.89%
STAR Test-and-Repair 224,620 18,210 8.11% 28,659 6,006 20.96%
STAR Test-and-Repair (Suspended) 195 13 6.67% 28 4 14.29%
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 117,914 6,852 5.81% 7,527 1,030 13.68%
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 2,170 112 5.16% 9 0 0.00%
Business Fleet 297 29 9.76% 0 0 0.00%
Permanent Fleet Registered 40 1 2.50% 0 0 0.00%
Referee 869 739 85.04% 75 27 36.00%
Government Fleet 1,598 86 5.38% 889 158 17.77%
All Stations 799,135 64,001 8.01% 94,008 17,561 18.68%

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 806,024 90.25% 87,119 9.75%
All Tests 870,606 89.72% 99,793 10.28%

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 438,236 90.11% 48,078 9.89%
Non-STAR Test-Only 19,483 93.31% 1,396 6.69%
STAR Test-and-Repair 227,766 89.93% 25,513 10.07%
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 116,849 93.15% 8,592 6.85%
All Stations 802,334 90.57% 83,579 9.43%

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 28,689 $60.45 223,818 $51.70 252,507 $52.69
STAR Test-Only 55,027 $53.84 430,435 $51.74 485,462 $51.98
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 7,517 $59.23 116,479 $60.37 123,996 $60.30
Non-STAR Test-Only 1,593 $44.91 19,243 $45.86 20,836 $45.79
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 9 $73.89 2,156 $67.24 2,165 $67.27
Total 92,835 $56.16 792,131 $52.89 884,966 $53.24

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.

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 1 $72.75 10,642 $53.53 28,688 $60.45 213,176 $51.60
STAR Test-Only 116 $56.20 14,761 $46.82 54,911 $53.83 415,674 $51.91
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 0 $0.00 74,783 $66.85 7,517 $59.23 41,696 $48.75
Non-STAR Test-Only 16 $35.00 6,727 $46.21 1,577 $45.01 12,516 $45.67
Test-and-Repair/Dealer 0 $0.00 2,000 $66.47 9 $73.89 156 $77.09
Total 133 $53.78 108,913 $61.55 92,702 $56.17 683,218 $51.52

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) $1-100 338 $58.67 2,120 $622.82
$101-250 441 $170.02
$251-500 484 $370.69
$501-650 190 $574.99
Over $650 667 $1,404.66
Non-STAR Repairs (Test-and-Repair) $1-100 117 $61.57 658 $589.38
$101-250 177 $172.71
$251-500 140 $346.77
$501-650 46 $587.59
Over $650 178 $1,541.91
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 1 $79.99 218 $1,225.11
$101-250 13 $182.17
$251-500 22 $389.71
$501-650 23 $585.76
Over $650 159 $1,525.66
Total Repairs $1-100 456 $59.46 2,996 $659.30
$101-250 631 $171.03
$251-500 646 $366.16
$501-650 259 $578.18
Over $650 1004 $1,448.15

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 105 45 1,824 76 2,050
STAR Test-Only 21 1 1,741 33 1,796
STAR Sub-Total 126 46 3,565 109 3,846
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 468 48 1,949 219 2,684
Non-STAR Test-Only 26 8 213 34 281
Non-STAR Sub-Total 494 56 2,162 253 2,965
Basic Area Dealer 55 0 0 0 55
Business Fleet 0 0 3 0 3
Permanent Fleet Registered 3 2 49 4 58
Referee 5 0 30 0 35
Government Fleet 43 5 296 13 357
Repair Only 2 0 39 1 42
Unknown Type 0 2 9 1 12
Other Station Sub-Total 108 9 426 19 562
All Stations 728 111 6,153 381 7,373

Stations Conducting Test by Equipment Type

Station Type Equipment Type
BAR-97 Only OIS Only BAR-97 and OIS
STAR Test-and-Repair 2 225 1,736
STAR Test-Only 3 92 1,618
STAR Sub-Total 5 317 3,354
Non-STAR Test-and-Repair 1 1,682 340
Non-STAR Test-Only 0 98 59
Non-STAR Sub-Total 1 1,780 399
Permanent Fleet Registered 0 21 0
Business Fleet 0 2 0
Basic Area Dealer 0 43 3
Unknown Type 0 2 7
Government Fleet 6 119 29
Referee 0 4 23
Other Station Sub-Total 6 191 62
All Stations 12 2,288 3,815

Referee Inspections

Inspection Type Total Completed
CAT BAR Label 843
Smog Inspection/Repair Disputes 537
Law Enforcement Citations 409
BAR Referrals 316
Repair Cost Waiver + Parts Locator Service 136
Engine Change/Replacement 119
Specially Constructed Vehicle/Kit Car 50
Grey Market 28
Clean Gas 15
OBD Monitor Issues 4
All Inspections 2,457

Referee Certificates Issued

Certificate Type OIS BAR-97
Certificate of Compliance 251 76
Certificate of Non Compliance 0 0
Repair Cost Waiver 31 5
Limited Parts Exemption 6 0
Exempt Vehicle 4 18
Exempted by Directive 12 0
Permanently Exempt Vehicle 0 0
Temporarily Exempt Vehicle 0 0
All Certificates Issued 304 99

Technicians

License Type Licenses
EO (Inspect Only) 4,196
EO + EI (Inspect and Repair) 4,556
All License Types 8,752

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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