Illegal smog check stations in California

What an illegal smog check is

A smog check is supposed to test your car. An illegal smog check tests something else and sends DMV a pass with your car's VIN on it. The car never really passed. The station gets paid, often extra, and the dirty car stays on the road.

BAR, the Bureau of Automotive Repair, licenses every smog station and inspector in California. It catches most cheaters through the data every test sends in. Since 2015 the test machines record the car's computer data, so BAR can see when the data does not match the car.

Clean plugging is by far the most common scheme now. Of the 113 stations below, 110 lost their license for clean plugging.

Why it is dangerous

Every fake pass keeps a car on the road that should have been fixed. BAR checks cars at random on the roadside to see how well the program works. In its July 2026 report, about 14 percent of cars from model year 2000 and newer failed the roadside test. Only about 7 percent failed at smog stations.

BAR and the Air Resources Board say about 44 more tons a day of smog forming gases could have been cut in 2025 if every station tested like the best ones. BAR says that equals taking over 7 million cars off the road each day. Not all of that gap is fraud. BAR puts fraud at about 5 percent of it. The rest comes from repairs before the test, readiness rules and the age of the cars.

Those gases make ozone smog, the haze the program was built to cut. Of the stations caught since 2025, 62 were in San Bernardino and Los Angeles counties alone.

Why a fake pass hurts you, not just the air

• The problem is still there. A car that needs a fake pass has a real fault. It will fail at the next real test, often when you sell it or two years later.
• Your certificate can be stopped. BAR can block a certificate it thinks is fake and send the car to a Referee for a real test. Over 32,000 cars were blocked this way by 2023.
• You can be fined. State law lets the state go after car owners who pay for a fake pass, with a civil penalty of up to $5,000.
• Buyers get stuck. If you buy a used car that passed at a cheating station, the repair bill lands on you. Check the car's smog history before you buy. Our history lookup guide shows how.

Smog stations caught lately

These 113 stations lost their California smog license after BAR proved fraud. Each one has a final decision posted by BAR, and each license shows as revoked. The newest decision is from October 2026. The license number links to BAR's own decision.

BAR has filed accusations against more stations that are still waiting for a decision. We do not name them here, because an accusation is not proof. You can see every open case on BAR's enforcement page.

A revoked license cannot come back under state law. If you see one of these names on a sign today, ask for the station's license number and check it. A new owner may hold a new license at the same address.

Bigger criminal cases

Most smog fraud ends with a lost license. Some cases go to court.

• The OBDNator ring. In April 2024 federal prosecutors in Sacramento charged 12 people with selling and using a device that fooled smog machines by playing back a clean car's data. Prosecutors say it sold for up to $18,000 and was used at stations around the state from 2015 to 2024. These are charges only. The trial is set for February 2027.
• Smogz R Us, South Los Angeles. A 2016 federal case over more than 1,300 fake smog checks. Defendants pleaded guilty and were sentenced in 2017.
• A Los Angeles inspector's license. In a 2011 state case, BAR records showed one inspector license used to certify more than 15,000 cars from 2007 to 2010. He pleaded no contest to felonies.
• Santa Clara County stings. In 2009 undercover cars led to arrest warrants for 12 technicians at 7 shops for clean piping.

BAR notes that fewer cases in a year does not mean less fraud. It means fewer cases finished.

Warning signs at a smog station

• A guaranteed pass. No honest station can promise your car will pass before testing it.
• An extra fee to pass. In the OBDNator case, prosecutors said a fake pass cost $120 to $300. The state average for a real test was $69.66 in September 2026.
• They do not need the car. Any offer to pass a car that is not there is fraud.
• Your car never gets hooked up. A real test plugs into your car's port under the dash, or puts a probe in your tailpipe.
• Check engine light on, still passed. A lit check engine light is an automatic fail for 2000 and newer cars.
• Cash only, no printed report. You should get a Vehicle Inspection Report every time.

Read what a real test looks like in our guide to what happens during a smog check.

How to check a station before you go

1. Find the station on Smog Guide. Every station we list holds an active state smog license. Start at smog check near me.
2. Look at its license number on its page and check it on the state site at search.dca.ca.gov.
3. If BAR lists a station as on probation or facing an accusation, our station page says so, with a link to BAR.
4. After the test, look up your car on BAR's inspection history page the next day to see what was sent to DMV.

Penalties

Federal charges can apply too. In the OBDNator case, false statements under the Clean Air Act carry up to 2 years per count, and conspiracy up to 5 years.

How to report an illegal smog station

You can report a station to BAR online at bar.ca.gov/file-a-complaint. You can also send an anonymous tip, or call (800) 952-5210. BAR says it contacts you within 7 to 10 business days when you leave your name.

Give the station name, address and license number, the date, your car's plate or VIN, and what you saw. Keep your receipt and your Vehicle Inspection Report.

Legal ways out when your car will not pass

Most people who look for a fake pass have a car that needs a costly repair. The state has real help for that.

• Repair money. CAP pays up to $1,450 toward smog repairs for eligible owners. See CAP repair assistance.
• Sell the car to the state. The retirement program pays $1,350 to $2,000. See vehicle retirement.
• A waiver. After $650 of real emissions repairs, the Referee may grant a one time waiver. See waivers and the Referee.
• Find the real fault. Our failed smog check guide walks through it step by step.