A Few Things You Need To Know About Maryland Vehicle Inspections

In Maryland, before registering your vehicle, it’s important to have it thoroughly inspected. There are approximately 1,600 locations throughout the state of Maryland that have been licensed to correctly inspect your car. While the station should first be authorized to follow through with the inspection, most locations specialize in inspecting passenger cars, trailers without air brakes (up to 20 feet or less in length) and light trucks and SUV’s weighing no more than 10,000 pounds. Getting your car inspected shouldn’t be a tedious or complicated task, but it should be something you have knowledge about prior to visiting an inspection location.

1. When To Inspect Your Vehicle

Maryland only requires you to get your vehicle inspected for two reasons:

• You just moved to Maryland and your vehicle is registered in another state,
• You just bought a used vehicle (or received it as a gift or inheritance)

Note that some of the driving services (Uber, Lyft, etc) may require an additional Maryland State Inspection even if you have previously had an inspection performed and/or the vehicle registered in Maryland prior to becoming a driver for their service.

If you just moved to Maryland, you have 60 days to register your vehicle, and you need to pass the Maryland state inspection before registering your vehicle. If you just purchased a used vehicle (or received it as a gift or inheritance), your car needs to pass the Maryland state inspection prior to registering the vehicle. Once passed, state inspections have an expiration date of 90 days and are electronically transmitted to the MVA for processing when you go to get your registration and tags.

2. Scheduling Your Inspection

Prior to scheduling your inspection you want to make sure that the inspection station is authorized by Maryland as the Maryland Vehicle Administration only accepts certificates from authorized locations.  Fitzway Car Clinic is station #8047-A and has technicians certified to perform the state inspection. Typically inspections are done first thing in the morning to allow for the time necessary to complete the inspection as well as our custom web application that documents any inspection related repairs necessary with pictures and mechanic notes for you to review.

3. What Does The Maryland Vehicle Inspection Check

Patience is a virtue and when it comes to Maryland vehicle inspections the main goal is to try and get your car back in your possession in a feasible amount of time. Most inspections take anywhere between 1 to 2 hours once the mechanic begins to work on the vehicle. Depending on your vehicle, different aspects of it are checked. In general, brakes, steering, lights, exhaust, safety belts, and other crucial components are checked during the Maryland vehicle inspection.

Upon completion of your auto inspection, the mechanic will issue you a report that states whether or not your vehicle passed and what may or may not need to be discussed further. This pass or fail notice is also electronically submitted to the MVA at the time of the inspection for their records. A certificate will not be issued if your vehicle fails to meet any of the safety standards.

You have the option to perform required repairs at the station, complete the repairs yourself, or have them performed at another location if for example your vehicle is under warranty for the item(s) that failed inspection.

Note that if the vehicle is re-inspected within 30 days after the original inspection and you have driven it less than 1,000 miles, the inspection station only needs to inspect the defective parts noted during the original Maryland vehicle inspection.

To learn more about the Maryland Vehicle Inspection – click here.

4. Inspection Costs and Fees

For more information and to schedule an inspection:
Please call: 301-662- 421
Text: 240-575- 3999
Email: fcca@fitzwaycarclinics.com