The problem with US Emissions testing
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14.05.12 – 417 2819:20Опубликовано 18 ноября 2025, 19:18
The bill had everything going for it: powerful backers, common sense, and Jay Leno’s star power. But in just a few months, Leno’s Law—the best attempt to fix emissions testing for old cars in a long time—was dead. This is how it happened, and where we go from here.
There are 28 states in America that require regular emissions testing for used cars. Fail the test and the car can’t be registered, even if it’s running fine otherwise. Most states use a rolling cutoff of 20 or 30 years before a car is exempt, but in California, a biennial smog test is required for every car made after 1975.
That fixed cutoff means there’s a huge swath of 70s, 80s, and 90s cars that are getting harder to keep on the road—and harder for shops to even emissions test without the aid of on-board computers. At the same time, these cars are a tiny percentage of the total number of vehicles on the road, and very few are daily driven. Surely it’s time to update the law, right?
That’s what Jay Leno thought when he threw his support behind a bill introduced in the California State Senate to exempt cars from smog checks once they hit 35 years old. The bill also attracted support from SEMA and other lobbying groups. It just made sense—anyone driving a 35 year old car is doing so because they either love it or can’t afford something newer. Why keep putting them through the wringer when the impact on overall emissions is basically nonexistent?
Despite the promising start, the bill quickly ran into critics who claimed it was too lenient and would cost the state more money in the long run to enforce and monitor properly. Amendments were piled on to appease them, like requiring collector license plates, collector insurance policies, and delaying implementation for years—but those in turn frustrated supporters. The simple fix was no longer simple. And in just a few months, the bill was quietly shelved without ever getting a public vote.
So what now? There are some lessons for the next time the car community has a shot at this—we need to come correct with clearer rules, harder data, shared buy-in, and better branding. It’s an uphill battle, but it is indeed possible.
Produced by → instagram.com/joeyrassool
Hosted by → instagram.com/kylecheromcha
Previous episode → youtube.com/watch?v=D4BAgYQ32R...
The Drive is the chronicle of car culture. We write stories you actually want to read. → thedrive.com
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Instagram → instagram.com/thedrive
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0:00 "Unnecessary and burdensome"
2:02 How emissions testing works
3:37 Why old cars fail
6:55 Enter Leno's Law
9:40 The trouble begins
12:44 The next battle awaits
There are 28 states in America that require regular emissions testing for used cars. Fail the test and the car can’t be registered, even if it’s running fine otherwise. Most states use a rolling cutoff of 20 or 30 years before a car is exempt, but in California, a biennial smog test is required for every car made after 1975.
That fixed cutoff means there’s a huge swath of 70s, 80s, and 90s cars that are getting harder to keep on the road—and harder for shops to even emissions test without the aid of on-board computers. At the same time, these cars are a tiny percentage of the total number of vehicles on the road, and very few are daily driven. Surely it’s time to update the law, right?
That’s what Jay Leno thought when he threw his support behind a bill introduced in the California State Senate to exempt cars from smog checks once they hit 35 years old. The bill also attracted support from SEMA and other lobbying groups. It just made sense—anyone driving a 35 year old car is doing so because they either love it or can’t afford something newer. Why keep putting them through the wringer when the impact on overall emissions is basically nonexistent?
Despite the promising start, the bill quickly ran into critics who claimed it was too lenient and would cost the state more money in the long run to enforce and monitor properly. Amendments were piled on to appease them, like requiring collector license plates, collector insurance policies, and delaying implementation for years—but those in turn frustrated supporters. The simple fix was no longer simple. And in just a few months, the bill was quietly shelved without ever getting a public vote.
So what now? There are some lessons for the next time the car community has a shot at this—we need to come correct with clearer rules, harder data, shared buy-in, and better branding. It’s an uphill battle, but it is indeed possible.
Produced by → instagram.com/joeyrassool
Hosted by → instagram.com/kylecheromcha
Previous episode → youtube.com/watch?v=D4BAgYQ32R...
The Drive is the chronicle of car culture. We write stories you actually want to read. → thedrive.com
FOLLOW US!
Instagram → instagram.com/thedrive
Facebook → facebook.com/thedrive
TikTok → tiktok.com/@thedrive_official
WORK WITH US → youtube@thedrive.com
0:00 "Unnecessary and burdensome"
2:02 How emissions testing works
3:37 Why old cars fail
6:55 Enter Leno's Law
9:40 The trouble begins
12:44 The next battle awaits
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