Since I have been working in the garage now for 10 years full-time and dealing with all sorts of customers, I can give you an insight into everything I have come across.  Personally, I am for State Inspections, and not just because it is a source of income for my family.  Below are my reasons for it.

                While over 90% of my customers are good and honest people, the other less than 10% can make you wonder if it would be safe to drive on the road with them.  They are the type to put used parts on the car that shouldn’t be used (think ball joints, pulleys, struts, and such), they will rubber band and duct tape whatever they can and have done it (Walmart grocery bag and zip tie cv boot), have leaks everywhere and it doesn’t matter the fluid. We came across people who couldn’t even make sure that the driver’s seat was bolted to the floor, for obvious reasons they did not get an inspection sticker. They are out there, and they are on the same road as mine and your families.  For these people, if you don’t provide a check and balances system, they will never take personal responsibility.

                 Next, the times of helping dad with the car on the weekends are gone. While a lot of people know to check fluids, lights, wipers, tires, brakes and such, they don’t necessarily do. They don’t tend to have the time, they are not completely sure how to, or someone used to do it for them and that person is gone now. To combat this car manufacturers have started putting all kinds of warning lights on in the dash, but I can tell you many times, I have seen electrical tape, stickers, or pictures over them because the driver did not want to look at them, and that was easier than servicing the vehicle.  

             Some people are knowledgeable about cars, but there is something to be said, to be able to get the car on the lift and have good lighting and space to really look underneath the car, even if it only happens once a year.  Do you know how many cars people think is good, and the frames are Swiss cheese?  If there’s a fuel leak that is very close to dropping on exhaust that you can’t see it when you are a foot off the ground on your back, hoping the car doesn’t fall off the Harbor Freight Jacks and kill you? We don’t want you to go down the Interstate and have your vehicle break in half because you hit a bump the wrong way.

            I am not sure if you know this or not but having the State Inspection helps to ensure that our roadways aren’t filled with broken down pieces of crap. I have seen it in other states. The car broke down, nobody towed it, and it was there long enough to allow moss and greenery to grow around it. It also helps to keep the cars from losing pieces down the road that you may end up running over.

            As part of the inspection, we need to check these main things:

• That your registration and insurance are current
• All the lights work, are the right kind (no blue headlights)
• Suspension components have no play and will not fall off
• Exhaust system has no leaks, securely fastened, and will cause the least amount of carbon monoxide pollution possible.
• That your brakes are in working order and you know how good they are
• Tires have sufficient tread to handle the weather, are the right kind and size for the vehicle and you know how good they are
• That your doors work correctly
• Seat belts in working order and seats securely fastened to the body
• Frame is not rusted through including the hitch on the towing vehicles
• There is not a way for the exhaust to enter the body of the vehicle so that you don’t die of carbon monoxide poisoning while driving your car, and there are no holes in the body in which one could cut a finger
• That your wipers work and aren’t torn so that you can see when it rains
• That you have mirrors to help see what’s around you
• That your fuel system is not leaking especially not on the exhaust
• That your steering components are in good working order
• That everything is securely fastened to your vehicle (the antenna or a Rain guard isn’t going to come off)

             As you can see from the above, we aren’t looking to nitpick on the car, these are legitimate concerns.  It does need to be safe for you, your passengers and the people around you.  What I think the State of PA could do better is change the registration part of owning a vehicle to when you buy a new or new-used car and if you change addresses. Then, they could have us check and make sure your address matches your license.  So, if you move, yeah, repay that money, but if you want to live in the same place for 18 years, only pay once. They are not using the money on the roads anyway. That would be a savings of over 55.00 a year, and you would still be safe on the road.