3 Tips Involving Car Smog Inspections

If you need to pass smog checks in your state in order for your vehicle to remain street legal, it is important that you learn as much as you can about it. This way, you will be better able to give your car the repair that it needs and will maintain it to the best of your ability. Smog checks are put into place so that your car is not creating too much pollution through emissions as you drive. In order to know the ins and outs of smog checks, read on and follow these tips. 

#1: Learn The Law And Protocol For Smog Checks In Your State

Every state has laws laid out that you should know so that you can stay on top of your smog check. For instance, you will usually have to receive another inspection every few years based on the year of your vehicle. You need to take your car to a DMV approved smog inspection station that can serve you. Shop around for the cost of a smog inspection to know exactly how much it will cost you. In most cases, a smog inspection will cost you somewhere between approximately $30 and $70.

#2: Get Rid Of Any Codes That Might Be Coming Up

While there are a number of reasons that a vehicle will not pass a smog inspection, they fail by default when certain codes are triggered in your vehicle computer. For example, the check engine light being on is a sure fire way to fail the smog inspection -- even if your vehicle is in excellent shape and not creating noxious emissions. Check engine lights come on for a number of reasons, so you should start by disconnecting your battery and reconnecting it to see if the check engine light comes back on. You will need to drive your vehicle for a little while to allow it to cycle through its processes first. If the light comes back on, or if you have other computer codes, you need to take your car to a shop to figure out what is wrong.

#3: Know Some Major Reasons That Your Car Will Fail

Aside from computer codes, there are a number of reasons that your vehicle will fail the smog inspection. A dirty engine is a prime factor and an oil change might be in order to fix this. You might also need to get a tuneup. By taking your vehicle to a smog inspection station, they will let you know exactly what is wrong and can either fix it on the spot for you and reinspect the vehicle or allow you to take it to another shop that you choose.

 Follow these three tips so that you can get your vehicle smog inspected and keep it street legal.