A disclaimer... this is what I think I heard. Call the gentlemen yourself if you have any questions. Glenn welcomes calls, but I'm not sure about Mr. Chavez.
Spoke with Glenn Williams (916-574-7452) and he is still his old friendly self. He explained that the exemption on sub 812cc engines was ONLY for the annual or semi annual emissions inspections on cars already in California. He said this information is on the state website under the Smog Check Inspection Manual. That cleared that up. He also indicated that if a smart car had 7500 miles on it, it should be exempted from any initial emissions inspections, but if less than 7500, it would require an inspection. He suggested I call the California Air Resource Board. I did that and spoke with the Supervisor, Mr. Ralph Chavez (800-242-4450). Spent about 15 minutes each on the phone with both of them.
Mr. Chavez said that an emission inspection was required on all European smart cars (2002, 03, 04, 05, 06) and that there were only two certified Gray Market Emission Testing Agents in the state. Only they can issue the certificate that says the car meets California guidelines. One is G&K, but he was not sure of the other one. He said that very few people use the service because it involves not only testing the cars, but retrofitting them as well so they pass the test. He said it was $10,000 to $12,000 for that process. I explained to him that these cars had already been retrofitted as part of the Federal EPA requirement and that only the emission test had to be performed. I explained that the charge was $1250 for the emission test. He said that was impossible, it had to be more than that. I tried explaining again, but got nowhere. We agreed to disagree.
So...
1) You still need an initial emissions test if the smart has less than 7500 miles
2) G&K is probably your best bet on the cost, but there is another one in CA.
3) Once registered in CA, you should be exempt from annual emissions check
Hope this is helpful.
Ron Gaus, asmartcar.com, St. Louis
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