Tow yards and car auctions are not required to provide passing smog check certificates when selling their vehicles.
The smog check requirement for sellers does not apply to car auctions and tow yards. Vehicle sales at these facilities do not conform to typical seller/buyer sales transactions partly because the sellers rarely have any idea about a vehicles condition or previous history therefore making them not responsible for the vehicle's smog check results, but mainly because they are only in position of transferring title from an entity other then themselves to a new owner (the buyer).
So when buying a car, truck, van, or RV from an auction or tow yard be aware that you will be responsible for that vehicle passing a smog test prior to you being able to complete the vehicle registration process. You will be able to transfer the title into your name, but be unable to legal drive the vehicle on public roadways.
At times an auction will provide a guarantee of a vehicle's smog check passing status, however this is typically rare when it comes to auctions or tow yards open to the public. Even in these cases strict disclaimers apply. You'll typically see these vehicles being sold as "green light" cars.
