PA Inspection Checklist: What Gets Checked and What Fails

This checklist comes from the rules that inspection mechanics work from: 67 Pa. Code § 175.80, which is also printed in PennDOT's Publication 45, Vehicle Equipment and Inspection Regulations. We turned the legal wording into plain English and kept the actual limits.

This is not a ranking of the most common failures. It is what a passenger car or light truck can actually fail for, minus the rare items most drivers never run into.

The quick check you can do at home

Start with the items you can see yourself, so you can deal with them before the visit.

Tires and wheels

A tire fails if:

• Two adjacent grooves have less than 2/32 inch of tread at any point, or the wear bars touch the road in two adjacent grooves.
• Any ply or cord is exposed, or there is a bump, bulge or separation.
• It was repaired with a blow-out patch or boot.
• Tires on the same axle are different sizes or construction types.
• It is smaller than the manufacturer's recommended minimum size or below the recommended load rating.
• It is a studded tire in use after April 15 and before November 1.

Wheels fail for missing or loose lug nuts, or for damage that affects safe driving. There is also a catch-all: "other conditions" reasonably believed to make a tire unsafe. That is why a cut or other damage can fail a tire even when the tread is fine, and why two mechanics may see the same tire differently. Need new ones? See our tire service.

Brakes

The mechanic has to remove at least one front wheel and the opposite rear wheel to look at the brakes, so you cannot fully check this part at home. The car fails if:

• Bonded linings are under 2/32 inch at the thinnest point, or riveted linings are under 1/32 inch above the rivet head.
• A disc is thinner than its stamped minimum, or a drum or rotor is scored deeper than .015 inch.
• A hose, line, caliper, wheel cylinder or master cylinder leaks.
• The pedal travels more than 80% of its available range, or fades while the car is stopped.
• A brake warning light shows a fault. There is an exception for ABS systems that fall back to normal braking with no loss of performance.
• The parking brake does not hold on the road test.

If the pedal feels soft or you hear grinding, have our brake team look before the inspection.

Lights and electrical

• Any exterior bulb the car came with does not light properly (ornamental lights are the exception).
• A lens is missing or broken, or a lamp shows the wrong color.
• Turn signals do not flash 60 to 120 times per minute, or do not self-cancel if designed to.
• Headlights aim more than 4 inches off, or the high beam indicator does not work.
• The battery is not held down by a proper fastening device.

Glass, wipers and mirrors

• Windshield damage in the area directly in your normal line of vision, an area 8 1/2 inches wide and 5 1/2 inches high on the driver's side. Hazardous cracks that interfere with your vision also fail, as does glass that is shattered or has sharp edges.
• Material you cannot see through that blocks your view of the road. On a passenger car, it also cannot extend more than 3 1/2 inches up from the bottom of the rear window or rear side windows.
• Wipers that do not return to rest, or blades that are torn or streak after 5 cycles.
• Washers that do not work, if the car came with them.
• Mirrors that are cracked, broken, discolored or will not stay adjusted.
• A defroster fan that does not work.

Steering and suspension

Most of this needs a lift, so leave it to the mechanic. But some symptoms warn you early. A brake or steering problem that shows up as a pull, shimmy or wander on the road test can fail the car. It also fails if:

• A tire moves more than 1/4 inch at the front or rear when the mechanic tests the steering linkage with the car raised.
• Steering wheel free play is over the limit, such as 2 inches on a wheel of 16 inches or less.
• Ball joint movement is beyond the manufacturer's spec.
• A coil or main leaf spring is broken, or the sway bar is missing or broken.
• A shock is missing, has broken mounts or leaks severely (slight dampness is fine), or the car keeps rocking for more than three cycles after being pushed.

A bouncy or clunking ride is a good reason to check your shocks and struts first.

Exhaust

The car fails if it has no muffler or a muffler with an external repair, loose or leaking joints, or holes, cracks or leaking seams anywhere in the system. Loose clamps or hangers and a muffler cutout fail too. You can often hear this one: a louder or rumbling exhaust can mean a leak. Our exhaust repair team can find it.

Body, frame and rust

The rejection list does not name surface rust. What it does name is rust or damage that makes the car unsafe:

• A floor pan rusted through in a way that endangers occupants or lets exhaust into the cabin.
• A frame that is not solid, or frame parts that are cracked, rotted or broken.
• Frame repairs made with tape, tar paper, cloth or another temporary fix.
• Broken, cracked or missing body mounts or motor mounts.
• Torn metal or loose parts sticking out in a way that creates a hazard.
• A missing fender, or a hood or trunk lid that does not close properly.

Inside the car and the road test

Inside, the mechanic checks the driver's seat, which has to be firmly attached and hold its set position, along with the seat belts and warning lights. On the road test, the car fails if:

• It does not stop within the required distance, or swerves out of a 12-foot lane under braking.
• The automatic transmission does not hold in park.
• The speedometer does not work. The same goes for the odometer, unless the car is at least 25 years old.
• It cannot drive both forward and backward.

The Bucks County emissions test

Bucks is an emissions county, so most gasoline cars also need this test. Most 1996 and newer vehicles get an on-board computer check and a gas cap test, while most 1975 to 1995 vehicles get tailpipe, gas cap and visual anti-tampering checks, according to the Drive Clean PA customer FAQ.

Under the state OBD test procedure, a check engine light that stays on while the engine runs is a failure. The car can also be turned away as "not ready" if its computer has not finished enough self-tests, which can happen right after trouble codes are cleared or the battery is disconnected. If that light is on, book a diagnostic check first.

For due dates and exemptions, see our complete PA inspection and emissions guide. For the price, see how much a PA inspection costs.

If you disagree with a failure

1. Ask to see the part. A good shop will show you the problem and explain which rule it breaks.
2. Compare it with the rule. The official rejection list is public, so you can read the exact wording.
3. Get a second opinion on the repair. You can choose who fixes the car.
4. File a complaint if needed. PennDOT's inspection FAQ says safety inspection complaints go to the Quality Assurance Officer for your county.

Frequently asked questions

This checklist covers passenger cars and light trucks and explains Pennsylvania's rules in plain language. It leaves out rare items, so the linked regulation is the full list. Last reviewed November 2026.