How does a vehicle pass Maryland emissions with the engine light on?????

Depends on what the code is and what test is being used and what the regulations are with regards to the MIL in your state.

Only way legally is if they have a waiver. Those are good for 2 years. BUT you have to spend over $400.00 trying to fix it before they will grant the waiver!

They have the same "Light is on = automatic fail" rule for light trucks and cars as NY does so ????

Precisely. To my mind, it goes to show how in his location it's _not_ a scam. Apparently they just test the emissions and let you go if they meet spec, which is how an emissions testing program would go if the point was to actually decrease emissions.

When they start checking other things besides actual emissions, THEN it's clear that a scam is going on and they are doing it to increase revenue rather than decrease smog.

--scott

If MIL on = automatic fail then there was a screw up.

Eric Peters (I think he lives in Virginia) has an article similar to that.

I just put a code reader on it. It came up with two codes.

PO017 - Cam/Crankshaft Position Correlation Sensor B Bank 1 (was replaced) PO300 - Cylinder 1 misfire detected.

The second was probably caused by the first. Just clear them and see if it comes back since the part was replaced otherwise the MIL will stay on until an entire drive cycle is completed. If it was replaced some time ago then there's something else going on that makes it think the sensor isn't working right. But off the top of my head the ones I can think of would be various sorts of catastropic failures like a broken cam shaft.

Don't recall off hand, did that sensor replacement also include a relearn??