If your car fails its required smog inspection, do not panic. We here at Dhillon Motorsports, formerly known as Smog Man San Jose, CA, can help. As you know already, California is strict when it comes to vehicle emissions, which is why you get that dreaded smog test required notice in registration renewal every couple of years. If you bring your vehicle to a test and repair station rather than a test-only station, you already have the upper hand should the vehicle fail the check.
Reasons Why Your Vehicle Failed
Your car's exhaust is made up of several components including the catalytic converter, EGR system, evaporative emissions charcoal canister, fuel cap, oxygen sensor, PCM, and purge control valve. If any of these parts are compromised, your vehicle will fail its smog check. The most common issues we see when a car doesn't pass the test include
- Improper air/fuel mixture due to malfunctioning fuel injectors or an oxygen sensor
- Old spark plugs that are worn
- Failing EVAP or Evaporative Emission Control System that leaks gas vapors
- A loose fitted or leaking gasoline cap
- The check engine illuminating for no apparent reason
- A clogged air filter
- Catalytic converter breakdown
Hopefully, your car didn't fail its smog check because of the latter. Repairing or replacing the catalytic converter can be a costly fix. Nonetheless, a smog and repair station such as ours can isolate the cause of the smog inspection failure and repair it for you, which leads us to…
What You Can Do to Negate the Failure
Let's start with you cannot do. You cannot ignore that your car didn't pass its smog check. The DMV will not register your vehicle if it fails its emissions test, so don't try to get the renewal or drive unregistered. Should your car fail its test at our station, as mentioned above, we will run a diagnostic report to find out why the vehicle failed. It might be something as simple as replacing your old gas cap with a new one or something as complicated as your catalytic converter.
Either way, you must have the repairs performed so your car will pass the smog check upon retest. Your only other option is to file for an exemption from the emissions test with the state, but your vehicle must meet specific requirements to qualify. Dhillon Motorsports, formerly known as Smog Man San Jose helps customers in San Jose, CA, with their emissions needs. Call us at 408-999-0699 or bring your car into our shop for its next smog test.
Call Dhillon Motorsports for an appointment today!