Here in California, we’ve come to realize that if the state can do something shocking in regard to emissions testing, it will. So while most of the state plans and programs are enraging, they are not usually surprising. Until now.

You can imagine my surprise when, while driving to Subway for breakfast, I ran into a smog inspection station on the side of the road. Not a smog inspection facility in a building, but a mobile smog inspection dyno sitting in a lane of traffic. Yep, California’s Bureau of Automotive Repair was set up for complete 2-minute emissions testing right on the city street. Of course I had to investigate. The fact that I was driving a borrowed truck and had no idea what they were doing or what the penalty could be for con-compliance was of little concern at the time. I mean, what could they do? Take the truck? It’s not my truck.

As I pulled toward the inspection station, I realized they were not stopping all cars, and that I needed to make sure I got picked. A Dodge V10 makes pretty good noise when you downshift hard and let it burble through the Magnaflow exhaust. I was waved into the testing lane. 

There I found out that the BAR was testing random vehicles, newer than 1975, in order to test whether the current California emissions testing program is in fact working or is it corrupted. According to the BAR reps on hand, and the flyer they handed out, the BAR hoped to find out whether cars on the road that had recently passed inspection at a normal facility were in fact in compliance. Or, were testing facilities faking tests, passing non-compliant vehicles for cash, or just ineffective? It explained that testing and policing the current inspection program was for the greater good for air quality in California. They failed to acknowledge the fact that they were testing the system with the same equipment used at smog stations all around California. Another fine example of our tax dollars at work. Great job guys!

In typical State of California fashion, they’ll spend millions trying to figure out if their program is working. So when does the test, that tests the test, start?

As a side note, it was interesting that the police officers on site tried to stop me from taking these photos and from asking questions. They told me it was a “goverment program.” So that’s a reason that it’s a big secret? Not.