House bill 2357 was recently signed into law by the governor, which changed the AZ emissions laws somewhat. They used to be very strict, with all cars 1967 or newer being required to pass emissions tests.
The new law:
* Defines collectible vehicles as 15 years old or older, OR of unique or rare design, of limited production and an object of curiosity and maintained primarily for car club activities, exhibitions, parades, etc. and is used infrequently for other purposes.
* Provides for a rolling 15-year emissions inspection exemption that would exempt qualifying vehicles upon enactment and would pick up an additional model year for each year the law is in effect.
* Provides for an emissions inspection exemption for collectible vehicles for which the owner holds appropriate insurance coverage.
* Acknowledges the relatively minimal environmental impact of older vehicles, such as the older vehicles targeted for this exemption.
* Recognizes that such vehicles constitute a small portion of the vehicle fleet and are well-maintained and infrequently operated.
Note that, in order to qualify, the car must carry appropriate collectible or classic automobile insurance, although I'm not sure yet how they define this.
The other thing I'm not entire sure about is when this law goes into effect. The bullets above were pulled from a Hagerty Insurance/SEMA April 2005 press release, so it was signed into law a while ago, but I have lost sight of it since then so I'm not sure when it goes into effect.
