For years I have been coming to this establishment for a couple of reasons. 1) to support small businesses 2) to support local businesses. I arrived to smog one of my vehicles and I was second in line so I patiently waited outside for my turn as usual. A vehicle pulled in after I arrived proceeded to the office. After the car in the stall was finished, I noticed the vehicle who pulls up after me moving his vehicle into the stall. I then asked the owner if this gentlemen was here before me because I had been waiting outside when he pulled up. His answer was "first come first served" which I get, but I was clearly here before which I explained, he then said "oh, he's my friend". I get it, atleast give me a heads up or an explanation first. I didn't like the answer given so I left. Sad to say I won't be bringing any of back .Hopefully this business does better for you than it did me. read more

I've been taking my vehicles here. Mr. Pham is quick and efficient. I now have only one older vehicle (sold the other two) so it needs a more intensive testing. I stop by a day before the testing in order for him to prepare the machine. I have a 1998 toyota. It takes about 45 minutes to complete and costs a little more than newer vehicles. Btw, he only accepts CASH. read more

When you stop to get your smog inspection once every two years, you remember things, and you forget things as well! On my first visit in Nov.2020, I remember a kind gentleman there who took care of this for me and we had a good chat. I was committed to going back here again for a second round, which I did. I had forgotten whether or not Smog Centro takes credit card payments! Well, the gentleman who had his inspection before came out of the shop and said it was cash only!!! Well, there were two of us behind him who heard this and left this inspection site as a result. I griped my way down to Walmart, bought some items I needed, used my debit card to get cash, and went back to Smog Centro. I told the manager about what we were told regarding payment and he corrected it. TAKE NOTE: Smog Centro DOES take credit card payment. HOWEVER, it will be $63 to your inspection instead of $60 as customers cover the credit card fee. The inspection is pretty thorough for what is required to be covered and the inspection certificate is entered into the CA DMV system. I still take my hard copy evidence when I go to the Auto Club to renew each year. I like this shop and the gentleman who does the inspections is detailed and methodical in getting these done. Next round two years from now! Let's see what I remember, and what I forgot!! At least this time, I have my own review to fall back on! Recommend: HIGH read more

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Very good service,the gentleman who helped me he's very nice, super HONEST ! he told me how to do the drive cycle ! He didn't charge me for the pre diagnose! Because my car failed! He's Fast ,Good price ! My car finally past after finish the drive cycle ! Very modest place , I do recommend this place ! *****!!! read more

My family has been going here for a smog check for years. It was time to take my car in for a smog check again. The technician is friendly efficient and knows what he is doing. He gets the job done. Reasonable cost. read more

Quick in and out! 2 people ahead of me only took at 30 minutes to get full service! 8 dollars cash to pay for the certificate, rest can be paid with card read more

One man operation. Had 2 ppl in front of me, probably got out of there in less than an hour.

Went in at 4:20, business advertises they close at 5pm. There was one person ahead of me and the guy tells me he's done for the day and to come back tomorrow. I'm sorry doing a smog is such a "grueling" process, I can't imagine sitting and doing basically nothing all day. read more

Been getting smog checks here for years now for several different cars. It's a one man team, but he's quick and reliable. Service is great and usually only takes 20-30 minutes depending on how busy he gets. Also, call in advance for a quote because it's a CASH ONLY establishment with no ATM on site, so be prepared or else you'll be walking a mile to the nearest store to get cash. read more

Went in and out for a smog check. it took 10min tops !! Kind and reliable spot to get a smog check. read more

Update 2019! Under new ownership! Still a one man shop where as the last owner retired. The new individual that took over is much knowledgeable about after market/Carb emission requirements. He did question my K&N intake on my S2000 in which he checked to see if the carb except number matches the year and make of the vehicle. His prices also went up! $38 for inspection and $12 for the certificate. I was in and out in less than 15 minutes. Highly recommend if you value your time. read more

One man show! He gets the job done and in a timely manner. Brought my car one day and was out within 30min. The guy is very OLD school and won't test your car if he sees any aftermarket parts under the hood or plugged into your CPU. If you have a performance modified vehicle do not come here unless you have stock parts to swap back in for emissions. read more

Fast and quick smog. Was able to get my car checked in less than 20mins. The only thing is, they only accept cash. Good thing I had cash w/me when I went. read more

Not a Franchise smog. It's a nice elderly Vietnamese gentleman working alone. Works fast. Speaks basic English. Patience is a virtue . Knows more English than most immigrants; plus at his age...? If your car is modified I recommend not to bring here. The local smog business owner designed this place for normal cars. If you have the cash to modify your car; you should have the cash to smog it. bring it to a modern updated franchise, is that "Simple". Based on Past Reviews the complaints about if the car exhaust is legal; it's a "scion!" Why? Second, the man is an elderly and I am amaze with him speaking basic English. Most national city immigrant doesn't even speak English. Over all, his service is quick. Fair English communication. Airs your tire. Stock, factory cars smog check only. To be fair the one star minus is because it doesn't really accommodate "special" cars and "customers" 5 star expectations for a local business owner that's been up in the 80's. Common sense. read more

Smog Centro - Small local smog place not a co. - Smog Check Stations Near Me - National City, California

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The worst service I have had, failed my truck by a visual and had all my paper work to show that everything on my truck is California certified. He needs to have better customer service and know how to look up the come talk on your vehicle when dealing with stuff instead of threatening people. Will never go back to this place again. This guy deserves a crappy ratting.. not only that his BBB rating has multiple complaints on him !!! read more

Well my review isn't much different from some of the reviews i read after going here. My story is as follows, my check engine light was on so i took my truck into the firestone down the street, spent a thousand bucks and get the truck ready for smog. The guys at firestone forgot to reset my computer unbeknownst to me. I took the truck to smog centro and the old guy working here said he could not pass it because the computer was still showing codes from before i got the truck fixed. The guy didnt charge me (which is why he is getting 2 instead of one stars). I took the truck back to firestone and they told me they goofed and cleared the computer for me. Because i had already driven a couple hundred miles they said it was ready for smog. The next day i took the truck back to smog centro and the old guy (who doesnt seem to speak nor understand english) said he would not even try to smog it. I got the impression he thought i was asking him to do something illegal. It was bizzarre. So i left, took the truck two blocks down the road to patriot auto care and got the truck smogged. My whole experience was bizarre and the guy lost business because he doesn't speak nor understand english very well. It was frustrating to have him turn me away in the way he did and i would NOT recommend this place to others. Coming here is a waste of time. read more

Horrible customer service! Can barely speak english and will hang up on you when you are trying to ask questions!!!!!

Stopped by today to get my car smogged. After driving around town and passing by a few smog shops I decided I'd stop here and try my luck. I was greeted by what is probably the owner. Very friendly older Asian man, he said it would be about a 30 minute wait. After he helped the previous customers my turn came and it was a smooth transaction. Took his time explaining to me the results. I will definitely come back. It's cash only so it's best to come prepared. read more

Excellent service. One man army but he handles his business. Also does an undercarriage inspection and makes sure the cars ready/safe to roll out of his shop. Legit shop. Cash Only*** Come to this shop-or any Smog shop ready to test. Make sure your check engine light is off, your intake/exhaust, sensors, catalytic converter is good and you should be fine. Change the oil, and make sure the car is HOT when you pull in. Hell even leave the car running until he turns it off himself. Don't ever go to a shop with a check engine light ON! Nor, missing pieces from your intake. I read that in prior reviews. The owner/all other smog test centers check everything first before they test it! So don't set yourself up for failure! Ha! read more

I had the complete opposite experience from the earlier post. Lou was courteous, considerate and very attentive. When I went, he said he would pre-test my car, and assured me it would pass...and it did. 20 minutes later, I was done. That's all you can really ask for in a smog check. Plus, he seems to love kids and made sure to offer my son some treats from his desk candy jar! I highly recommend this smog station if you are in the National City area. read more

I have been going to this place for years. Very honest and reasonably priced, so I am not worried about any perceptions of bad customer service skills,. He is a one man show, so you must have a little patience when he gets busy. There are several good little restaurants within walking distance, so I usually grab a bite to eat while I wait. read more

Usually I just use yelp to find good restaurants, but my horrible experience at this place made me have to warn others. It's a one man show here, an elderly Vietnamese gentleman easily pushing 70 if not already. Barely able to speak English and to be perfectly frank borderline senile. I showed up at his shop, showed him my DMV paper. He pulls my car in starts the test and then says "oh no" and informs me he can't pass me because of my aftermarket intake. I tell him it's CARB legal show him the EO number to put in and descriptions of it on my phones browser. Describing its carb legal because the sticker for it peeled off and I lost it. But again he refuses and says "sorry I cannot pass it like that." And fails me on the test and puts tampered as one of the reasons. Alright whatever I'll take it to some other STAR station. Both of the ones I went to said that they would pass me as is. But didn't want to risk the complications of overriding someone's "tampered" description on it. And told me I could try another smog shop with a repair station. Or go get the guy to reverse the tampered description they have on my vehicle so they could work with me. Furious I drive home swap out my intake to the stock one I had laying in my garage. And one and half hours later I'm back at fucking smog centro tell him what happened and that he has to pass me. He told me the other shops were lying and looks at my engine bay. Again and says he can't pass me because I'm missing a 6 inch piece plastic pipe that goes at the bottom of the airbox that just draws the air in from 6 inches lower!! All the hoses, electrical and mass flow sensor were connected and working! It even has the filter and numbers to verify its stock by Toyota on the side of it!! I go home again! Zip tie the piece he's talking about to the airbox because the seal was broken. And I didn't want it to just fall or rattle in the engine bay. He hooks it up runs the test and says I failed it, but he changed the intake status to "defective" instead of tampered because I zip tied it in place. I ask him why because everything I've noticed should say otherwise. He says the OBD 2 codes are saying my emissions equipment are failed. That's bullshit! I have a higher end Innova OBD 2 scanner and scanned it to make sure everything was reading right after I swapped it! He tries to charge me again! Furious I leave go to one the prior star stations I went too. Again he tells me it's passable even without the six inch piece of plastic tube zip tied on. However in the timeframe of it getting tested again and me going to the ATM next door, yeah he only takes cash apparently. He reset my cars computer and the emissions codes that were supposedly on it with it! So now I have to drive it another day or 2 for the codes to get picked up again before I can risk getting it tested again to make sure. If you value your car and time stay away from this guy!! He's friendly but entirely incompetent and untrustable! Your experience may differ if you have a simple, entirely stock car. Or he actually takes an interest to pass you. His workspace and equipment seems dated I doubt he can reliable test more complex cars or turbocharger ones. I think he just wanted to mess with me after I tried to prove my intake was legal in the first place and waste both of our time. Enter at your own risk. read more

I've been going to Smog Centro for only a couple of years, and it's been a positive experience so far. It's a small place, and there's only the owner that smogs the car. True, it's cash only, but there's market next to his business place that has an atm machine. Also, the location is convenient for me since I live just a mile away. read more

I had to get my smog test today so I went here specifically because they are a STAR Station. The man working there was very courteous and nice, bringing out two chairs for me and my father before asking for the keys and working on my car. It was very quick-- probably less than 30 minutes. Afterwards he told me what I need to do for the DMV and even giving me advice as to which process was the easiest. That was very nice of him. After all that was done he said thank you for my business and we chatted about his job and he asked me where we're from and my school. He was very friendly and easy to talk to which made the whole experience wonderful! I would DEFINITELY recommend this place because it is efficient, quick, and most importantly the friendly service. read more

I have been going to Smog Centro for the last 10 years and i drive all the way from Oceanside just to get my truck smog checked by someone I know I can trust, I recommend them highly. read more

Was actually on my way to another smog center when I saw this one at the corner of 4th & Highland. Since I was on my lunch break & didn't have a lot of time, I figured I'd stop in and find out if they could do the smog check quickly. There was an older Asian man sitting out front eating noodles. He quickly performed the smog check and it was completed before I knew it. The only reason I gave 4 stars is because of one drawback: they only accept cash. I had to call my father-in-law to come bail me out. Whew! Would I come back? Absolutely. With cash. read more

Went in for a smog check this morning. Nice older fella working there, good price too. Only tip i'd have is to either show up early or make an appointment, I showed up early and was done pretty quickly, but by the time I left there was a line 4 cars deep. read more

Honest and quick service. The elderly asian guy who run the place will not try to BS you like any other places. I was in and out within 40 mins. I highly recommend this place for a smog check and will go back here again for my other cars when it's time for smog. read more

Been back two more times. Great service. No issues. This is the only place I take my cars for smog now.

I brought my car in first thing in the morning, and the smog check was super quick! Maybe 30 minutes or less. The owner, the man who took care of my car, was very nice. I would definitely come back here again. Only draw back is that this place is CASH ONLY. I had to come back with cash, but $40 for a smog check? Not bad at all! read more

In 1995 I used to buy and sell cars when I met in Lou at his shop, M&C automotive on Morrell St in Pacific Beach. His mechanic skills were top notch and at a fair price. I have followed him loyally ever since. Hard to find a good, honest mechanic at a fair price. Wish he would start doing mechanical work again. Smart guy, used to be a doctor. Be patient with his accent because he has your best interest in mind when giving advise or diagnosis. Speaks many languages too Vietnamese, French... read more

I would recommend this place to everybody. The owner was very nice and efficient. I was very surprised because my smog was very reasonable. read more

Suck .don't even deserved even one star. Came for my SMOG I pay the $49 I failed came to re smog I have to pay another $49 .ROBBERY .

the guy that works and i believe owns this place is rude. he has no customer service at all. i remember bringing my car to get a smog check done and i told him i could leave the car and come back because i work down the street and he said it would be about 1 hour. well after about 2 phone calls, one about an hour after i dropped it off and a 2nd about 2 hours after that i was told the car was still not done. i decided to just go over about an hour after that at it was still not done. when i began to complain the guy told me he didnt need my business anyways so take my car somewhere else. at the same time that i was getting ready to leave another customer was complaining because she had asked him if the car would pass smog and he told he didnt think so but he would pre test it....well it failed and he ran it as a regular smog so it was electronically sent to the dmv that she fail....she was so pissed she called the cops. DONT go to this place....if you need a smog check out California Smog at the corner or Paradise Valley Rd an Meadowbrook (619) 479 -5882, they will take car of you. read more

Went in for smog and the owner was nice to me. I asked all the appropriate questions such as price, reporting results to dmv, fail options, and how his day was going. He told me that for $15 he could do a pre-test but that the dmv could somehow see it and he warned me about which i thought was good info and good thing he told me. He said that for my car it would cost $37+ ($5 for certificate). If it failed it would only be $37. I decided to do the actual test and passed, (my car had been non-operational for a year and a half.) He even went as far as putting air on my tires and everytime he would ask me something he said "excuse me" and "please + thank you". I hope this is useful info, and as for the other reviews about payments it is a cash only place and the language barrier was not bad at all, just have to really listen to what he is trying to tell you and you should be fine. Great service. Total wait time 20 min, but with that great customer service i would've waited an hour or more. My car '99 civic. read more