I figure it will be good for our readers to file away, and it’s good information to know. It’s funny how seven out of the nine states requiring emissions testing have only instituted it in high-population areas, but California has instituted it in most of (if not all) its counties, and Connecticut's emissions laws include the entire state. This makes it a royal pain to research, look up, and travel to a smog appointment if you live in a very rural area (which, let’s face it, most diesel owners live rurally). We should also note that no diesel-specific smog stations are set up yet in California (and may never be). We’ll have a whole slew of loopholes in the new CA emissions testing system in the June issue.
State: Arizona
County(s): Maricopa
Vehicles Tested: Any model year, 8,501-pound GVWR and greater
Test Type(s): Smoke opacity. The vehicle makes three, wide-open-throttle, non-loaded runs with the transmission in neutral
State: California
County(s): *All
Vehicles Tested: 1998 and newer with 14,000-pound GVWR or less
Test Type(s): Visual inspection for emissions equipment tampering, on-board diagnostics (OBD-II) check, smoke opacity test (snap-idle procedure with no load on engine)
State: Colorado
County(s): Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Broomfield, Denver, Douglas, and Jefferson
Vehicles Tested: All model years with 14,000-pound GVWR or less. New vehicles are exempt for first 4 model years
Test Type(s): Visual inspection for emissions equipment tampering, on-board diagnostics (OBD-II) check if applicable, smoke opacity test
State: Connecticut
County(s): All
Vehicles Tested: All model years more than 4 years old and with 10,000-pound GVWR or less
Test Type(s): Smoke opacity (snap-idle procedure with no load on engine)
State: Nevada
County(s): Clark and Washoe
Vehicles Tested: All model years with 14,000-pound GVWR or less
Test Type(s): Visual inspection for emissions equipment tampering, and smoke opacity test on a dynomometer.
State: New York
County(s): Nassau, Rockland, Suffolk, and Westchester (New York City metropolitan area)
Vehicles Tested: All model years with more than 8,501-pound GVWR
Test Type(s): Visual inspection for emissions equipment tampering, on-board diagnostics (OBD-II) check if applicable, smoke opacity test
State: Tennessee
County(s): Davidson, Hamilton, Rutherford, Sumner, Williamson, and Wilson
Vehicles Tested: All model years with GVWR up to 10,500 pounds
Test Type(s): Smoke opacity, and on-board diagnostics (OBD-II) check if applicable
State: Utah
County(s): Davis, Salt Lake, Utah, and Weber
Vehicles Tested: All model years with 14,000-pound GVWR or less
Test Type(s): Visual inspection for emissions equipment tampering, and smoke opacity test
State: Wisconsin
County(s): Kenosha, Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Racine, Sheboygan, Washington, and Waukesha
Vehicles Tested: 2007 and newer models between 8,501-pound and 14,000-pound GVWR (dedicated farm vehicles are exempt)
Test Type(s): On-board diagnostics (OBD-II) check