A car inspection is a process vehicle owners must complete to ensure that their vehicle follows safety and emissions standards.
An untold number of vehicles won’t pass an emissions test or smog check in their state. That’s one reason why most states have implemented mandatory inspections.
State car inspections also check for a number of safety issues. So, what exactly is a car inspection, and what happens if your car fails a state car inspection? Here’s the low-down on vehicle inspections by car insurance
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What is a car inspection?
A car inspection is a procedure in which a vehicle owner must have their car checked for state emissions and safety standards. This is a necessary part of vehicle ownership that is most often required when transferring a title
. To help prevent car accidents, most states require a state safety inspection at some point. Although each state determines which parts of a car must comply with their criteria, it’s mostly components that affect your ability to travel safely on the road.
What does a car inspection consist of?
State safety inspection checks often include:
A VIN and license place check
Exhaust system inspection
Steering and suspension inspection
Horn, mirror, and light operation check
Tire condition inspection
Body and undercarriage check
Safety equipment inspection
Some states require that your car passes a smog check, too. In fact, more states require emissions inspections than safety inspections. This is to improve air quality and reduce environmental pollution from tailpipe emissions. Emissions tests typically include:
An On-Board Diagnostic (OBD) Test to analyze emissions component information, read diagnostic trouble codes, and ensure the OBD system is functioning properly in a readiness test.
A sniffer test where actual tailpipe emissions are measured.
An opacity test that measures the darkness of its tailpipe ‘smoke’.
MORE: How to get a used car inspection
What happens if your car fails inspection?
If you’ve had your car tested and it failed, you’ll need to have repairs performed to bring it back into compliance. Unless your car is under warranty, those repairs will be at your own expense. Keep in mind that certain emissions components like the catalytic converter typically have a longer warranty period than your new vehicle limited warranty.
Common emissions test failures include parts like the oxygen sensors that regulate the air-fuel mixture, a faulty exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) valve, an engine misfire due to lack of maintenance, a failing catalytic converter, and emissions controls including a loose or leaking gas cap.
FAQs
What do you need for a car inspection?
Generally, you should bring your driver's license, proof of insurance
, the title, and sometimes, a bill of sale or VIN inspection form. Is a smog check required?
Whether or not a smog check is mandatory for your car depends on where you live. Not only are there differences between states, but many cities and counties within the same state have different smog check requirements.
Is a safety inspection mandatory?
For nearly all the states, a vehicle safety inspection is required to register your vehicle initially. For some, annual or bi-annual inspections are required to renew your car registration
in the state. Currently, only a handful of states don’t require vehicle safety inspections, including Alaska, Arkansas, Iowa, Minnesota, South Carolina, and South Dakota. Six states only require inspections on out-of-state vehicles: Florida, Kansas, Kentucky, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Wyoming.
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