Vehicle Safety Inspection

[HillbillyTom]

If your state doesn't do them, you're missing a great PITA. Every 2 years here in 'ol MO you're required to have a safety inspection to re-new your plates. Every 2 years I spend days trying to find one of the "Official Vehicle Inspection Stations" that will inspect my truck. Several garages around apply for and get inspection licenses, then they start practicing their reasons why they can't inspect your vehicle today, or tomorrow either for that matter. Getting the vehicle to pass is seldom a problem, just getting one of the places to take 15 mins. to do what they volentarily(sp?) filled out all the paper work, and paid the fee, for the license to do. Even the Wal Mart tells me, "our inspecter goes home at 4:00 and doesn't have time to do another one today", it was 3:15. The normal excuses run from "there's 8 people in front of you, it'll be a couple of hours if you want to wait" with only 2 other people in the place, to "I can't take the time to do inspections because I don't make any money at it". All they do is check the lights, horn, wiggle a front wheel, and look at a front brake, 10 minutes max. Been to 3 different places, one of them 3 times, no luck.
As you all know it's almost the end of the month and thanks to the weather I didn't get started on my quest for an inspection sticker until this week and with the usual balking of the vehicle inspection stations to inspect my vehicle, the stress is high. If I don't get the plates renewed by Friday I have to pay a penalty and the police come in like a cloud of mosquitos looking for blood in the way of "failure to register" tickets.

Ok, I'm done now. Frustration somewhat vented. I'll try again tomorrow, still have 2 days.

 

[BlueHaya]

We do ours every year. Only new cars come with 2 year inspections in Texas. I really never have a problem with getting one done..alot of shops around that do them. I usually wait a day or 2 after my runs out so I get an extra month.

 

[semi]

hope that helps

 

[TXBusa05LE]

I hit up an oil change place when they have no customers...

 

[BusaWhipped]

Its usually easier if you don't wait until the last couple of days before its due to get it done. My regular mechanic does inspections. I have him do the inspection when he has the vehicle for an oil change near renewal time.

 

[HillbillyTom]

Its usually easier if you don't wait until the last couple of days before its due to get it done.  My regular mechanic does inspections.  I have him do the inspection when he has the vehicle for an oil change near renewal time.

Yeah, I know. Things got ahead of me this time.

I do everything except major work (timing belts, oil pump, etc..) myself, so no regular mechanic. I'll start looking a little earlier tomorrow and should be able to get it done.
Just seems that a place that applies for and recieves a license to do a state required inspection should be required to do that inspection. If they don't want to do them, they shouldn't hang out the shingle then tell people "we ain't got time to fool with it".
Guess I got spoiled by the bike. All inspections (as you know) are done in April only. I've many times seen the guy at the LBS with 4 bikes lined up going from one to the other checking them out and putting stickers on (and sometimes rejecting one). One trip and the longest you wait is "get in line there", whether it's the first day of the month or the last.
Ah it'll be alright, started in the first week of the month last time and didn't succeed till the very end either.

 

[99'busa]

We ain't got none so Indiana I guess is good for more than racing and football

 

 

 

[99'busa]

O Ya, we got corn

 

[TIMMYDUCK]

We have that here in VT too.

20 bucks every year or the police get to write you a 100 ticket for not having it .

 

[motogp08]

We ain't got none so Indiana I guess is good for more than racing and football

 

 

 

[motogp08]

We don't have 'em in KS either...

 

[Kento-Moto]

Hawaii has em. pain in the buttocks!

 

[MFFJM2]

Maryland vehicle inspections only happen once, after you buy a used or new vehicle and before it can be registered, at $52.50, pass or fail for motorcycles. If your bike isn't completely OEM in lights (brake, turn signals, reflectors) you're going to fail. Must have a rear fender, huggers won't work. Must have rear view mirrors equal or greater than 7 inches square. Windscreens must be transparent. Rear seats must have a grab bar or strap.

 

[twotonevert]

Its usually easier if you don't wait until the last couple of days before its due to get it done.  My regular mechanic does inspections.  I have him do the inspection when he has the vehicle for an oil change near renewal time.

Yeah, I know. Things got ahead of me this time.

 I do everything except major work (timing belts, oil pump, etc..) myself, so no regular mechanic. I'll start looking a little earlier tomorrow and should be able to get it done.
Just seems that a place that applies for and recieves a license to do a state required inspection should be required to do that inspection. If they don't want to do them, they shouldn't hang out the shingle then tell people "we ain't got time to fool with it".
Guess I got spoiled by the bike. All inspections (as you know) are done in April only. I've many times seen the guy at the LBS with 4 bikes lined up going from one to the other checking them out and putting stickers on (and sometimes rejecting one). One trip and the longest you wait is "get in line there", whether it's the first day of the month or the last.
Ah it'll be alright, started in the first week of the month last time and didn't succeed till the very end either.

Sorry bro. I used to have good luck with the oil change/muffler shop next door to the Dairy Queen in Republic. Dont remember the name, but it is just south. They have a good welder too.

 

[Vic_E55_2001]

No inspections in Colorado, emission check for cars every two years, 10 minutes deal usually.

 

[Mrs.Rubber2Burn]

What stinks about the safety inspections in TX is that the price varies by what county you live in. Here in Austin (Travis County) it is between $20-$30, but in Houston and contigous counties (Harris, Brazoria, etc.) it is like $45.50. Houston tacks on a lot of extra $$ for environmental smog crud. It is like a tax for driving and polluting the air.

When we were stationed in Amarillo (Potter, Randall Counties), inspection was $13.50.

Why can't it be one fee no matter what county you live in??

 

[bowwow]

Wait until A Friday afternoon. We used to have emiisions testing every year. No one wanted to spend their Friday afternoon getting their car tested. I would be in and out in a few minutes.

 

[Vic_E55_2001]

I`m curuois what percentage of cars didn`t pass inspection.

I asked emission station employee once. He stated that as far as he can tell only 1 of every 100-150 vehicles failed.

Just another money maker for a state.

Now we have mobile emission stations, they test your car when you passing by. If you due to emission test and passed... just pay $25 and get your sticker. all can be done online and they mail registration to you.

 

[Mr Bogus]

I feel for you...

only reason for those things is "revenue generation" I used to do those inspections in CO in the late 70's early 80's and all it did was add money to the state coffers and allowed unscrupulous garages to rake your wallet over the coals...

The ONLY benefit it really had was you could catch someones brakes before they drove them into the rivets and maybe save a brake drum/rotor here and there..

Then you get the emissions inspections of AZ.. IM240 testing is another fine way to drain consumer pocket books and drive up revenue..

 

[Mrs.Rubber2Burn]

I used to do those inspections in CO in the late 70's early 80's and all it did was add money to the state coffers and allowed unscrupulous garages to rake your wallet over the coals...

Getting raked over the coals by an unscrupulous garage is RIGHT!!

I won't even take my own car for inspection anymore!! It never fails: They tell me I need brakes, tires, and everything else under the sun. I used to be very naive and just buy what they say I needed.

Now I only take my car to be inspected at places like "The Sticker Stop". All they do is inspections, there is nothing to sell you! Most of the time I just send hubby to do it so that I don't have to go in there and try to be taken.

When we were in Virginia it really made me mad, because if you "failed" inspection, they would scrape your sticker and put like a big ole FAIL sticker in the middle of your windshield. You then had 30 days to correct the problem, or pay a $500 fine. So the garage would say "you need this, this and this...." Unless you wanted the FAIL sticker, you paid them NOT to scrape your sticker. RACKET I tell you.