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[Genem]

Re wheel wiggling....I MOT'd my sons Clio a month or so ago, the new kit in the MOT bay at Kwik Fit had an automated "waggling" function on the two small turntables for the front wheels, no need for the inspector to have an assistant, likewise he had an adjustable strut to push the brake pedal when checking the lights... Previously they had a spotty youth employed in this role, between fitting tyres I suppose. 

[Bradley66]

I stopped putting my two through the MOT when the guy who carried out the test retired. He wasn`t an "Engineer" but a very competent mechanic who new his subject and wouldn't let anything dangerous out of his yard.

My father was an Engineer (by qualification and registration) He studied automotive engineering in the 50`s , becoming a chartered Mechanical Engineer . He also worked for a couple of big names in the car world , including Rover , I too am entitled to call myself an Engineer.  The two garages that I have tried for an MOT really didn`t understand the basics. They were fitters not mechanics. Replace not repair type places.

It may well be that a shortage of competent garages is why so many people avoid getting their classic cars tested. 

[Wittsend]

Personally I'd be more worried about them extending the 1st MoT on new cars to 4 years and thereafter a test every 2 years 

Far more regular cars registered on the road than classic cars.

 

[Peter Holden]

Some cars cover mega miles in the first 3 years and are dangerous by the time they are eligble for their first test.  They should be tested when new and the every year rather than waiting 3 years.

Also MOTs should be done at government centres


Peter

[Smokey 11a]

Some cars cover mega miles in the first 3 years and are dangerous by the time they are eligble for their first test.  They should be tested when new and the every year rather than waiting 3 years.

Also MOTs should be done at government centres


Peter

You can have an MOT at the local council, any MOT station has to have provision to do MOT's for the general public, there are many government ones around if you choose to use them, but the same legalities apply. 

[diffwhine]

As per normal, we appear to have gone off piste discussing the MOT process... After 30+ years in the motor trade, I place next to zero confidence in an MOT at a general garage. There are some clearly highly experienced and skilled MOT testers, but by definition they are general testers and not make / model specific. If somebody asked me to inspect virtually any Land Rover, I could do it with confidence and accurately. If I was asked to appraise a classic Buick, I could give an opinion, but it would not be one based on many years' experience of the flaws, foibles and idiosyncrasies of a product I know so well.

In my view, every classic vehicle should have an independent inspection by a specialist. Personally, I don't think the MOT serves any purpose apart from satisfying a tick box exercise and giving many owners a false impression of the state of a vehicle. That inspection should be paid for, but there are inevitable liability issues if somebody misses something. Whenever I do a rebuild, I always ask somebody else who knows LRs well to have a look at it and 9 times out of 10, they spot something that I've missed. Thankfully its usually very minor, but gives me peace of mind that a 3rd party has looked at my work. I do these LRs at home really for pocket money, but still like a second opinion. Frequently I return the favour!

We need somehow to make sure that at the very least, our Club members understand that MOT exemption is not a bye to proper safety checks.

[Peter Holden]

I think your last sentence says it all Mark

I remember being at leafers a few years ago and seeing a S1 land rover owned by an occassional writer for Classic LandRover Magazine and the fron dumb irons were like lace. - a really good advert for them.  They are not a member of the S2 club fortunately

Peter

[w3526602]

Hi,

If I can divert to definitions of "Fitter" and "Mechanic". In the RAF, Fitters are superior to Mechanics.  I believe even more so in the REME .... run the engine without oil, till the bearings "run". Remove sump and collect all the white metal. Use a paraffin blowlamp to melt the recovered white metal, cast new bearings, and scrape to fit the crankshaft. Continue journey.

Me? In the RAF? Not wishing to spend six months on a training camp, I opted to just take the end of course exam. That was three days of Hell, sitting in the shower for half an hour at the end of each day. The first day was the "fitting" ... filing two lumps of metal so that they could be interlocked in any of eight combinations, to within plus or minus 2 thou. I had some idea of what to expect, so arranged for the Ford Motor Company to provide me with brand new files and hack-saw blades.  The examiner said I could use whatever tools were available in my tool kit, or in the workshop ... so I used a bench drill to hold the 1/4" BSF tap vertical, while cutting the female thread. I can't remember if I did something similar with the male thread onto the round bar that had to screw into the flat bar. I knew the examiner was going to check everything with a micrometer and set-square.

Apparently I did well enough to spend the rest of my service, on X-Flight RAF (Google might find something), who delivered atomic war-heads around the country, and then 33 squadron, an RAF SAM site, on an Australian fighter base in Malaya, two hoots and a holler from Vietnam.  The Ausies were fighting in 'nam, but I assume us Brits were just there to discourage anybody getting too close. I doubt that the RAAF "white mice" (ex-Korean War F86 Sabre fighter jets) were going to discourage the bad guys.  Our new Oz CO, flying in from 'nam, never arrived ... believed shot down.

602

[Peter Holden]

One of my uncles was a "fitter 1" in the RAFfrom the late thirties to the mid fifties apparantlt he was qualified to repair anything from jet engines to the air sea rescue launches.  After hsi RAF career he went into the cilvil service.  On retirement he took up building violins.  he had to make all his own tols as they were quite specialised.

Peter

[Bradley66]

"I place next to zero confidence in an MOT at a general garage."

Which is the point I made earlier.

As a club that encourages the use of these vehicles we should encourage that people seek appropriate advice and guidance , in particular where brakes and steering are concerned,
in fact brakes seem to feature on a lot of posts. This indicates that very few people really understand them and how to set them up correctly.
The thing is , whoever is giving that advice should understand the consequences of free advice given on a forum being misunderstood.

Maybe that garage mechanics should be licensed in the same way that the CAA licenses aircraft mechanics.

[Worf]

In this blame culture world, few people will want to give a written inspection of your vehicle whether paid or not unless they have liability insurance etc. Asking a mate to have a look round to see if you have missed something is a good idea, but it becomes a bit of a problem for the "mechanically challenged investor" types that just buy stuff because it looks nice.

I lost all confidence in MOT's some time ago. SWMBO phoned me to say that her car had just passed its test, but the tester had commented that there was "slight play in n/s front suspension". I was quite surprised as I had only recently replaced the kingpin. She phoned me again to say that on her way home from the tester (1/4 mile) the front wheel fell off as wheel nuts had come off Whether it was my fault they were loose or whether someone had been trying to pinch the wheel I will never know.

[autorover1]

When I did a pre inspection on my Rover 75 (2003MY)  I noted the brake pipes looked a bit scabby , but thought I would go for Mot anyway as the whole would be up in the air to check. Passed with no advisories or comments . I mentioned the pipes and was advised they were OK, just a little surface rust. 3 month later under heavy braking a steel pipe to the rear burst !  . I now always trust my own instinct.

[Peter Holden]

The guy at the garage where our cr and camper go for MOT is pretty savvy and he recons the MOT minimum standards are too low but they have to stick to the rules.  He says he has to pass things that he wouldnt accept on his own car

Peter

[diffwhine]

To add to the list on the vehicle in my original post.
All four engine mounts split and physically detached...

 

I rest my case m'lud...

[Marky Harvey]

When I worked at JLR, any of the prototype vehicles that had been in the workshop for service or repair would have a 'Safety check'.  This was a thorough check to ensure that the vehicle was safe to use for its next phase of testing.  This should perhaps be the sort of things we should strive for. I'm sure that there is enough expertise in the club to develop a suitable procedure that could be used by competent people to check that vehicles are at the very minimum, safe to use.