:: The Wendy House ::

Today my 1995 Honda had its ‘emissions’ tested to check that they are consistent with the standards required by the county where the car is registered. A Vehicle emissions test is a necessary pre-requisite to obtaining “tabs“. Tabs are small coloured plastic labels showing a ‘date’ when they ‘expire’. They last one year. They are attached to the car license plate to indicate that Road taxes have been paid for this vehicle and it has passed an emissions test. The UK equivalent of Tabs comes in the form of an “MOT” and tax disc. Washington state does not check the road-worthiness of the car beyond the car emissions. This was a shock to me. Realizing that road vehicles are not checked for road-worthiness beyond their emissions. The MOT is a very effective way of ensuring lack of accidents due to poor car maintenance, it probably saves lives.

What’s the process like?

• The local “DOL” (Department of Licensing) sends the registered vehicle owner a letter to remind them that they need to renew their tabs every year, sometimes (not annually) it includes a requirement to have emissions tested. This letter arrives about 2 months before the Tabs expire.
• You find a vehicle emissions test center. They publish current ‘wait times’ online (that rocks!). You drive your car to a station. They actually recommend that you warm the engine-up with a 15 minute drive and keep it warm to increase your likelihood of passing.
• You sit in a line of cars leading to covered, outdoor checking station (in my case). The cars are generally older, the smell of all the ‘running’ engines is not pleasant. Even though the test center is outdoors I noticed it was supplied with multiple, large, fans. They weren’t running today.
• As you drive from the line in the street, to the line in the forecourt of the testing station you take a ‘ticket’ this ticket is stamped when you are tested. This provides the ‘wait time’ information that is published on the web-site.
• You pay, you park the drive-wheels of your car over some ‘rollers’ and get out. A tester puts a long cable in the exhaust pipe of your car and plugs a computer of some form into your lighter-socket. He then drives your car (without moving) over the rollers. He watches a TV display (which I couldn’t see) that presumably gives some sort of ‘live’ feedback. Then he gets out of the car, unplugs everything, and gives you a print-out of your results. The actual test only took about 5 mins.

I think an MOT would be quite a cultural suprise to americans, both in terms of ‘time’ to get the test completed, the sheer breath of things tested, and of course - the cost!

WET - Wendy Emissions Tested