Jay Leno, the retired host of "The Tonight Show," is still on TV with a program showcasing his passion for classic vehicles.
Jay Leno's Garage features his personal collection of 181 cars and 160 motorcycles. But Leno has become so fed up with California's insistence that all vehicles built in 1975 or later undergo a strict smog check, that he's decided to turbocharge a deregulation effort.
Leno led a rally last week in Sacramento to push "Leno's Law, which would allow vehicles built before 1990 to be exempt from smog inspections. Otherwise, he warns classic car enthusiasts will flee to Nevada, Texas and other states with more rational standards.
"California helped invent car culture--from lowriders in East L.A. to muscle cars in the Central Valley.," Leno told legislators. "I watched the movie industry get decimated. Everybody moved out of California, they charged so much to film.... I don't want to see the hot rod business or mechanical business leave the way the film business did."
"Our classic cars are only driven for special occasions, weekend drives and car shows," he says. "Very few shops have the special equipment to test them, so I end up driving more miles to get many of my cars checked than I normally drive them in a year."
We're happy to report that Leno's bill was approved by the state Senate's Transportation committee on a 7 to 2 bipartisan vote the day he testified. We will keep you posted.
