Fellow Motorheads,
It looks like smog tests are still a hot topic, Hemmings Motor News has
for years carried on more or less this same debate. My main point was
meant to be that nearly ANY well-maintained car should be able to pass
a smog test / safety check, and it is in everyone's best interest to ac-
complish that goal with the least amount of expense or bureaucracy.
I don't wish to deny, confiscate, or crush anybody's collector car or
daily commuter either. From What I've heard, something like 10% of the
cars on the road account for 90% if the pollution, and for the most part,
those are the ones that fail the E-check. Employees of the checking
stations around Dayton have said that you wouldn't believe the sad parade
of smokin', clankin', bald-tired junkers that they see every day, and I
don't doubt for a minute that those are the 10%ers we're talking about.
The owners of these junkers (and I've owned plenty of rusty old iron
myself) just don't have the money, knowledge, priorities, interest, or
whatever else is called for to either maintain their cars or replace them.
I don't see this as a Big Brother issue, rather a rich / poor issue; the
fact is, most people use cars to get to work, and if they're young, poor,
and ignorant, they're more likely to find themselves in that 10% that
needs to take better care of their cars. Many, many car owners don't do
any more than kick the tires, fill up the gas tank, and turn the key.
Period. They worry about maintenance after the car quits or fails to
start, and not before, and they just don't know any better.
As Ken said, that's why we need laws.
Thank you all for your kind attention, time for me to get off my soap box.
Best regards,
Tom Tweed
TR-250
SW Ohio
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