[Noah930]

I agree with POP that it's become a money grab, more than anything else. Maybe not necessarily just for the government, but for the entire smog testing industry that has sprung up as a result.

Last time I got a smog check, I noted the long amount of engine idling and revving necessary to do the test (about half-an-hour's worth of hydrocarbons). I wondered how many pollutants collectively are released into the atmosphere from all the testing that goes on....for no real "work" done by the car. We're not transported anywhere while these cars are all getting smogged every 2 years. We're just burning fossil fuels for fun. In contrast, how many cars are actually nabbed and taken off the road or repaired to clean-air standards? Granted, we all keep cars in better/cleaner condition because we know that they're going to get tested. But each time I go to the smog station I'll see 3 or 4 cars get tested and not a single one ever fails. It made me wonder if actual smog testing (not to be confused with smog standards met by the manufacturers) has a net gain or loss with regards to clean air.