What you need to pass Texas vehicle safety inspection

by: Kelsey Thompson

Posted: Apr 27, 2023 / 04:38 PM CDT

Updated: Jun 14, 2023 / 11:29 AM CDT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — With Texas being one of several states nationwide requiring annual vehicle safety inspections, those tests are required for vehicle registrations. Here’s a look at all the steps the Texas Department of Public Safety mandates a vehicle needs to pass before owners can renew their registration and legally drive on Texas roadways, by vehicle type.

The following vehicle parts are checked and must pass in order to renew a bus’ vehicle registration:

A moped’s brake, head lamp, reflector and rear lamp must all pass a safety inspection to authorize a registration renewal.

All the following must pass before a registration is renewed:

Requirements include:

The Texas Department of Public Safety outlines a list of vehicles exempt from safety inspection requirements. Those include:

Only 17 counties in Texas require emissions tests as part of vehicle registration renewals. Those counties are:

However, these mandatory emissions tests are only applicable to gasoline-powered vehicles. Diesel-powered vehicles and motorcycles do not have to undergo an emissions test, even if they live in one of the counties listed above.

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