Emissions Testing

[radin2son]

In Arizona (at least in Tucson and Phoenix), emissions testing is required but waived for the first 5 years. I took our's in yesterday to the contract emissions testing site. This involves checking the gas cap, opening the hood, finding the catalytic converter and doing a tailpipeoscopy. They had never seen a NV so it took longer than usual. It passed, no surprise.

 

 

Unrelated, Those are great photos just posted in the gallery. I thought they were a promo for the 2018 NVP.

Edited September 19, 2017 by radin2son

[andy_george]

Not surprising, like you say, but nice of you to let us know.

 

Is a "tailpipeoscopy" a real thing, lol!?? Is that that real term they use for the exhaust sniffer?!

Edited September 19, 2017 by andy_george

[radin2son]

It's a sniffer.

 

It seems redundant with all the sensors on modern vehicles to require testing.

[Mark Rogers]

Where I live, they just plug into the OBD2 port and run the engine for a few seconds.  If the car's computer says everything's good, it passes.  What the test lacks in trustworthiness, it makes up for in simplicity.   :)

 

My county also says that cars made prior to 1981 don't need to be tested.  For custom or heavily modified cars, the DMV uses the model year the body most closely resembles as the production year of the vehicle.  So, if you modify the body of a brand new car so that it matches a pre-1981 design, it's exempt from emissions testing.  Not sure you'd ever want to do that, but it's an interesting loophole.

Edited September 20, 2017 by Mark Rogers

[ASD Dad]

I used to live somewhere with very strict testing.  I used to drive on the street with my old track cars and I would need to lean it way out and fiddle with things to get it to pass.  9/10 times it worked so I was happy.

 

New place we live has zero testing.  I could drive with open headers if I wanted.  I honestly wouldnt mind something in the middle like the OBD testing.  There are many cars around here that just should not be on the road due to how bad they are running.

[radin2son]

Testing is only required in Tucson and Phoenix, and all cars from 1967 on must be tested. If repairs are done and it still fails, you can get a one year waiver. Taken off the road or sold to someone else?

 

They do have obd test lanes, but the regular lane I was in was faster until I slowed it down.

 

Commercial fleets use a different system which probably accounts for NV unfamiliarity at the test site I went to yesterday.

 

There were many warning signs not to bribe the testers...