Inspection

All vehicles are required to go through inspection at least once a year (new vehicles do not have to be inspected for the first two years after issuance but then must be inspected every year after).

There are hundreds of Official Inspection Stations in Louisiana (HINT: they sport a sign that says “Official Inspection Station” out front), so to get your car inspected, just make an appointment. If you pass, you’ll get a fun sticker to put on your car. If you don’t pass… well, for starters you’ll have to get your car fixed. Then you’ll have to go through inspection again.

The Inspection Station will check a ton of different things on your car, but here are some of the major ones:

• Clearly visible Vehicle Identification Number (VIN);
• Undamaged rear view mirrors;
• Horn able to be heard from 200ft away;
• Working windshield wipers;
• Working defroster;
• Working and proper turn signals, headlights, stop lights, rear lights, and plate lights;
• Working foot brake and parking brake;
• Undamaged and properly tinted windshield and windows;
• Working and unworn steering and front end parts;
• Working exhaust system, free of holes, leaks, or unnecessarily loud noises;
• Proper tire treads;
• Properly attached license plates;
• Undamaged body and chassis parts;
• Working speedometer/odometer;
• Unaltered bumper height;
• Unaltered fuel inlet;
• Properly installed and unaltered catalytic converter;
• Updated flux capacitor.

Ok, so maybe they aren’t too worried about that last one, but everything else should be in fine working order if you’re hoping to pass inspection.