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Feature Article June 5

Feature Article June 5, 2002

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The old Chev and Drive Cleanby Inie PlateniusJuly is looming on the calendar, and Revell Motors in Verona is busily tooling and training to meet the requirements of the provincial Drive Clean program. I talked with Service Manager Tracy Scott for his perspective on what the program will mean for the garage and for car owners.

I dont think its going to be that bad, says Tracy. The test is only $30, and if your car fails the test, the maximum youll have to pay for repairs in the first phase is $200.

The program works like this: Beginning in July of this year, owners of cars with odd model years (like my 93 Chev) will get a slip with their registration renewal that their vehicle must pass an emissions test before it can be re-registered. Next year, even numbered model years will be notified. Vehicles under three, and over 20 years old are exempt.

So, lets go through the process. I get my notice for registration renewal. I take my old Chev to Revells, which is the only place in my area which has invested the money ($75,000 - $100,000 is a good estimate) in equipment and training to be a testing/repair facility. In fact, it looks like its the only place north of Kingston between Tweed and Perth. [Editors note: see ads on this page for emissions testing facilities in other areas]

I pay $30 for the test. If my car passes the emissions test, Im home free. I take my proof to the registration office and get my sticker. If my car fails, I have to get it fixed before my registration comes due. In order to qualify for the $200 repair limit, I have to have it repaired at an accredited Drive Clean repair place, and right now Revells is the only one here. However, a garage can become an accredited repair place without investing all the money for the testing equipment, and its entirely possible that some of the other garages in the area will eventually do that. Some of them are seriously investigating that move, but that also involves training and paperwork, which puts a different kind of burden on smaller operators.

OK, so I get my old car fixed at the accredited place and shell out a maximum of $200 for repairs to pass the test. Then I pay $15 for the re-test. If I pass that, off I go to the licence bureau, pass in hand. But if the old girl is still spewing bad stuff, what then? Well, I get a conditional pass that lets me register the car anyway for two years. (I think the reasoning is, even if the car hasnt passed, the $200 repair I just had done will clean up the air somewhat.)

Two years go by, and my slightly defective, conditionally-passed old Chev has to go back for a retest (along with all the other odd year models that passed with flying colours two years ago). Now what? This time, when I take the Chev in, I spend a maximum of $450 to get it up to standard.

But what if, when I first fail the emissions test, I choose not to have it repaired at an accredited repair facility? Instead, I take it to my brother-in-law, who fixes cars as a sideline, or to any garage. Well, I forfeit my right to the $200 repair maximum. Whatever the cost of bringing the car into a passing grade is what I pay the garage. (My fictional brother-in-law would do it for a steak dinner.) And, if when I take the car back for a retest, it doesnt pass, I dont get the conditional pass to get it registered for two years.

All of this applies only if Im re-registering the car in my own name. As soon as I sell it or give it to my niece, it must pass the emissions test. Conditional passes do not apply to change of registration.

I asked Tracy about the possibility of fraud and corruption in this process. He says the system is pretty well monitored. The information from the dynamometer that check emissions is fed through to Toronto as its read. And if anyone tries to tamper with the machine, says Tracy, it automatically shuts down. And how busy does he think the garage will be starting July 1? I wouldnt even want to predict how long the line would be, he grins. But the way the system is set up will help. The notifications are staggered. He thinks most people will have little difficulty passing the test. New cars have done a tremendous job of reducing pollutants, he says.

Ill keep you posted about my old Chev.

With the participation of the Government of Canada