The New California Star Smog Check Program, Coming To A Smog Station Near You

Attention California motorists! Some big changes are scheduled to take place concerning the California smog check program at the beginning of 2013

. Basically, if your vehicle is a model year 1999 or older, things will be a little more challenging. On the other hand, if your vehicle is a model year 2000 or newer, things are going to get easier for you. Whatever side of the fence you end up on, Main Street Shell Service in Santa Maria is here to help.

Lets take a quick look back at how the California smog check program got to this point. Way back in the late 90s, 1998 to be exact, state officials established test only stations that had special authorization to perform smog tests on directed vehicles, which were cars or trucks considered most likely to be high smog emitters. These stations however, were not authorized to perform any smog related repairs on these vehicles. This meant that if a directed vehicle failed a smog inspection, it would need to be taken to another facility for repairs before returning to the test only station for a re-test. This separation of inspection and repair was put in place to eliminate any funny business. According to the Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR), if the testing station had no stake in the potential repairs, it would be less likely to perform improper inspections.

Lets fast forward to the year 2007. California decides to implement another update to the smog check program by allowing a select number of facilities to earn Gold Shield certifications. This was a difficult certification to obtain as Gold Shield stations were authorized to test, repair, and certify directed vehicles. In the case that a consumer owned a vehicle which had been categorized as a gross polluter, a Gold Shield station was a great thing. This option allowed the consumer to take care of the entire repair and testing process at one location.

Unfortunately, a study in 2009 found some major discrepancies occurring under the Gold Shield program. According to the report, which focused on vehicles from model years 1976 to 1995, almost half of the vehicles which had been certified after failing initial smog inspections, were found to still be in a failing condition when tested by BAR officials only 6 months later. These findings were very disturbing since they suggested that a significant number of smog stations had been purposely performing improper smog tests. These dishonest testing procedures directly contributed to Californias failure to meet federal EPA requirements. The Gold Shield program had proved to be ineffective and new measures would need to be implemented.

The brand new STAR program, scheduled to begin in January 2013, is an incentive based program aimed at restoring the quality and integrity of the California smog testing system. It is also another attempt by the state to keep smog testing in the hands of private businesses and out of the hands of the federal government. Whether or not a smog check facility is eligible to obtain STAR certification depends on a number of metrics. Essentially, the BAR must determine that a station has an acceptable FPR (Fail/Pass Rate) score before awarding a STAR certification.

As of January 2013, all California motorists that own a vehicle which has been classified as a likely high smog emitter will be required to go to an authorized STAR location. Under the STAR program, the majority of directed vehicles are those that fall into the range of model years 1976 to 1999. If you own a vehicle that is from model year 2000 or newer, you wont have to worry about visiting a STAR location and in fact, smog testing will actually become easier and faster. At some point during 2013, it is expected that the tailpipe portion of the smog inspection will no longer be required for newer vehicles. Instead, pertinent information will be obtained from the vehicles onboard computer system.

Main Street Shell Service would like to take this opportunity to announce that we have already received our STAR certification and we look forward to seeing you in 2013. Whether or not you are required to visit a STAR location, we can help you, whatever your situation may be. Our skilled and experienced technicians take pride in the fact that our facility continues to receive excellent performance scores from the BAR which is a strong indication of quality and integrity. We perform smog testing 6 days a week, Monday through Saturday. Give us a call or just stop by and let us know how we can help.

by: Link Expert

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