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Many states barely even check anything anyway. Out of six states I've had a vehicle inspection in, only one (Maryland) did more than check lights, wipers, brakes, and horn. Inspections seem to be more a revenue stream than anything else.

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I think most states will fail a car with the "check engine" light on. For cars in the northeast, keeping the CEL off gets more and more expensive every winter. I had a truck that was getting a new oxygen sensor (there were 6 on the car) every year from age 8 to 12. The truck drove fine with them malfunctioning, but it couldn't pass inspection. My current Jeep, I assume is going to need about $2K every year in maintenance to get it to pass inspection. And the only reason to do the maintenance is the inspection, because it also drives fine.

> I think most states will fail a car with the "check engine" light on.

Except Maryland, none of the states I've done an inspection looked inside the vehicle. The states that did emissions would fail if check engine light is on, but if you disconnect the battery right before to reset it then they might pass it.

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