mot

[guzzicat]

Just got Florrie, my L200 back from M.O.T., needed a flexi brake pipe & new rear silencer ,not bad for 114,000 miles, not cotton wool miles either, called by my missus after first ride in it "It,s not a car itsa*******lorry! Hence Florrie the lorry.

[London Best]

This is in no way aimed at  guzzicat’s post above,

but, whilst we are on the subject,

I have always regarded the mot as being just about the minimum standard to be just about fit to be allowed on the road.

[dead eye alan]

14 hours ago, London Best said:

This is in no way aimed at  guzzicat’s post above,

but, whilst we are on the subject,

I have always regarded the mot as being just about the minimum standard to be just about fit to be allowed on the road.

 As I have been a tester since 1971 you are correct, hence today the fail rate is very low, you now have 3 categories on faults major, minor, and advises, not many people have the minors repaired lead allone the advisors. 

[Walker570]

Still a lot better than before MOTs where required, back then we had some serious dangerous wrecks driving about.  The lack of local police on the streets mean we are getting back to that situation with some who only drive locally and unlikely to drive through a camera are using unfit vehicles. My local villages Polesworth/Dordon had three local resident police officers and they knew everybody, now they have to drive 20 miles to respond and know nobody.  Recent accident involved a vehicle which had not been MOTd for five years and was being driven on the handbrake only, no fluid in the brakes at all.

I'm fortunate in having a local garage who know to check and repair as needed. If it involves a bit of expense then they will call me to check knowing full well I will say get it done.  The MOT is really just a second line of defence in my case as it should be with everybody.

Edited June 16, 2019 by Walker570

[London Best]

The problem is many do no maintenance between mot’s. some even think the mot IS maintenance. Last time I had an mot failure was 1979. All checked before leaving home. Brake light switch failed on the way to mot station.

[scutt]

When I had my testing station the words I dreaded to hear was CAN YOU SERVICE AND MOT MY CAR .in the end always advised MOT first then repairs if required then service but informing the of cost at each stage .

Agree minimum standard but many motorists still would dispute even this standard and would prefer to drive a death trap.

[London Best]

Personally, I would be pleased if the mot tester found something I did not know about. After all, it’s my neck he may have saved.

[Walker570]

3 hours ago, scutt said:

When I had my testing station the words I dreaded to hear was CAN YOU SERVICE AND MOT MY CAR .in the end always advised MOT first then repairs if required then service but informing the of cost at each stage .

Agree minimum standard but many motorists still would dispute even this standard and would prefer to drive a death trap.

Well I do similar but back to front.  "It's MOT is due next week, get it done for me and a full service afterwards please, obviously plus anyhting which needs doing to make the grade".

In fact I have been with my present local garage for nearly 30yrs and just say, "MOT due in a couple of weeks"  He then gives me a date.  I get a car/Landie back and know he has been all over it and it is up to scratch. He might make his own advisoroes like, " Check in for some new front pads in about a couple of months".  This is one of the pleasures of using a local village garage. You know who is doing the job and he knows the vehicle inside out.

[Brodie]

Surely best to have the MOT carried out by someone different from whoever does the service. That way you get two independent opinions and not one person checking their own work. 

Totally agree that advisories are joke - I've just seen a car passed with advisories on corroded brake pipes. I know the owner now considers it safe for 12 months. An MOT is meaningless the day after its carried out as the tester cannot know how the vehicle will be used or abused.

[washerboy]

Lad I know bought an mot certificate, £150.just sent the lad his mileage and reg and got one in the post. It goes on a lot more then you think. I for one need to know my car isn't going to kill me or someone else. I get the car regularly serviced as I do 18-20k a year, so an oil change and a check up every 12k miles is the least of it. 

[Flyboy1950]

I think that the MOT is a very good idea in that some one else has a good look over your car and gives you a legal document on it`s condition. As my grand children and partner regularly use our cars it`s good to have the reassurance that the cars have reached a minimum standard of road worthiness. Things that are not normally covered by the "Test" like cam belts and brake fluid changes I keep an eye on and get done at the recommended intervals. As was always drummed into me, the bit of the tyre that`s on the road surface is only just covering an area the size of a shoe sole, not much when a car is travelling at speed and needs to take evasive action or bake suddenly.

Just my take on it.

[Walker570]

19 hours ago, Brodie said:

Surely best to have the MOT carried out by someone different from whoever does the service. That way you get two independent opinions and not one person checking their own work. 

Totally agree that advisories are joke - I've just seen a car passed with advisories on corroded brake pipes. I know the owner now considers it safe for 12 months. An MOT is meaningless the day after its carried out as the tester cannot know how the vehicle will be used or abused.

Absolutely agree. My vehicles are tested at a separate business to where my vehicle is serviced / repaired where he earns his living on HIS reputation.

[bornfree]

23 hours ago, washerboy said:

Lad I know bought an mot certificate, £150.just sent the lad his mileage and reg and got one in the post. It goes on a lot more then you think. I for one need to know my car isn't going to kill me or someone else. I get the car regularly serviced as I do 18-20k a year, so an oil change and a check up every 12k miles is the least of it. 

The polish lads on the farm all do this it costs them £80. You should see the state of their cars.

[hodge911]

On 15/06/2019 at 16:36, London Best said:

This is in no way aimed at  guzzicat’s post above,

but, whilst we are on the subject,

I have always regarded the mot as being just about the minimum standard to be just about fit to be allowed on the road.

You are my friend 100% correct .

It even used to say on the old certificate "AT TIME OF TEST" 

And during all the refresher courses I was on while I was testing it was ALWAYS stipulated that the mot test was to make sure the vehicle met a basic minimum standard to be allowed on the road .

(mot tester for 20+ yrs)

[London Best]

I am always grateful if the tester can find a safety issue with my vehicle which I may have missed myself.

[scarecrow243]

an mot for motors is a good thing as people have said but you still get garages that will rip you off saying you have faults that are not there i was taught at 13 years old to work on cars etc i am now 59  and seen many faults reported that were not there

[London Best]

Oh, yeah! You gotta watch ‘em. Until you find one you know well and can trust.

[Flyboy1950]

Interesting how different countries apply the "MOT test", I have just returned from a road trip around Ireland, both North and South of the border. In the North it appears that as part of the UK the first test is at 3 years, and this is the kicker, they only have about 12 test centres so you have to be booked in well before it`s due as you may have to do a bit of travelling to do to get it done. In the South the first test is at 4 years, but they are a bit luckier as they have around 70 centres to pick from. Never the less the island seems to be in a shocking state of arrears with a huge number of cars without MOT tests on them. Shows how lucky we are, that most of our garages can do both the servicing and testing and are within walking distances. It dosn`t take long to find a garage you can trust.

I had a friend who had a car recovery business in Belgium and every time a car is taken to a garage for any work, its mileage is registered on a central data base, so clocking is difficult to hide and a full service history is independently recorded and if a car is sold, even if it has not reached the normal 1st Mot test point at 3 years , it has to be taken for testing before it can be bought/sold. I should explain that the Controle is Government run testing centres, much the same as in France.

We have a lot to be thankful for if we did but know it.

 

[Rossco89]

On 17/07/2019 at 12:51, Flyboy1950 said:

Interesting how different countries apply the "MOT test", I have just returned from a road trip around Ireland, both North and South of the border. In the North it appears that as part of the UK the first test is at 3 years, and this is the kicker, they only have about 12 test centres so you have to be booked in well before it`s due as you may have to do a bit of travelling to do to get it done. In the South the first test is at 4 years, but they are a bit luckier as they have around 70 centres to pick from. Never the less the island seems to be in a shocking state of arrears with a huge number of cars without MOT tests on them. Shows how lucky we are, that most of our garages can do both the servicing and testing and are within walking distances. It dosn`t take long to find a garage you can trust.

I had a friend who had a car recovery business in Belgium and every time a car is taken to a garage for any work, its mileage is registered on a central data base, so clocking is difficult to hide and a full service history is independently recorded and if a car is sold, even if it has not reached the normal 1st Mot test point at 3 years , it has to be taken for testing before it can be bought/sold. I should explain that the Controle is Government run testing centres, much the same as in France.

We have a lot to be thankful for if we did but know it.

 

In N. Ireland the mot centre is run by the government. Yes there’s is only 12 centres but it’s a small country. If you book your MOT when you get your letter to remind you (about 6 weeks before expires) there isn’t an issue.

I think it’s a more regulated way for ensuring vehicles are safe to be on the road. 

Can you still get a dodgy mot certificate? Probably. 

Last couple I have heard of though have been “mot’d” in Scotland despite never having left Belfast.

One last thing and pet hate of mine is the “put it through and see what it needs” approach, taking your failure notice to a garage and saying fix what’s on the list.

I believe in fixing issues as they arise, not turning up the radio so you can’t hear the strange noise!!

[bluesj]

 

On ‎17‎/‎07‎/‎2019 at 12:51, Flyboy1950 said:

Interesting how different countries apply the "MOT test", I have just returned from a road trip around Ireland, both North and South of the border. In the North it appears that as part of the UK the first test is at 3 years, and this is the kicker, they only have about 12 test centres so you have to be booked in well before it`s due as you may have to do a bit of travelling to do to get it done. In the South the first test is at 4 years, but they are a bit luckier as they have around 70 centres to pick from. Never the less the island seems to be in a shocking state of arrears with a huge number of cars without MOT tests on them. Shows how lucky we are, that most of our garages can do both the servicing and testing and are within walking distances. It dosn`t take long to find a garage you can trust.

I had a friend who had a car recovery business in Belgium and every time a car is taken to a garage for any work, its mileage is registered on a central data base, so clocking is difficult to hide and a full service history is independently recorded and if a car is sold, even if it has not reached the normal 1st Mot test point at 3 years , it has to be taken for testing before it can be bought/sold. I should explain that the Controle is Government run testing centres, much the same as in France.

We have a lot to be thankful for if we did but know it.

 

You  want to try and get a truck test! you can only book up to 3 months ahead and they are fully booked for 3 months.

On ‎15‎/‎06‎/‎2019 at 16:36, London Best said:

This is in no way aimed at  guzzicat’s post above,

but, whilst we are on the subject,

I have always regarded the mot as being just about the minimum standard to be just about fit to be allowed on the road.

Of course it is! if the mot was more strict that would be the minimum standard 

[London Best]

Good point bluesj, I never thought of it like that!

[mel b3]

Thinking back to a former life when I worked as a MOT tester , some of the home repairs that rolled over the pit were , a handbrake cable that had been knotted to remove the slack , a leaking metal brake line that had been cleaned and wrapped with electrical tape , and a complete drivers side footwell , that had been made from plaster of Paris and cardboard , and then undersealed 😆.

 

[Salopian]

mel b3,

 I remember a friend Des.Harper MoT ing a Ford at Guest Motors West Brom. Being a nice chap rather than fail it because of a worn tyre , he fitted the spare .

Chucked the worn wheel and tyre into the boot and it came right through the cardboard boot.

[London Best]

These are what we are all mixing with on the roads.

Vive la MOT !

[mel b3]

4 hours ago, Salopian said:

mel b3,

 I remember a friend Des.Harper MoT ing a Ford at Guest Motors West Brom. Being a nice chap rather than fail it because of a worn tyre , he fitted the spare .

Chucked the worn wheel and tyre into the boot and it came right through the cardboard boot.

Hahaha , the cardboard and filler repair was a regular one. Folks would drop a piece of cardboard over a hole in the floor, then wipe a layer of filler across it , then paint it with underseal , but they often forgot to underseal the underneath , when you inspected the underneath of the car , you'd see the Benson and hedges or cornflakes box 😅.

We would always try to be fair with customers , as most of them had been regulars for years, if a car failed on a tyre ,we would just put the spare on , and let them know to get a new spare , or if the car failed on a brake light/side light etc, we would just fit a bulb for free.