After a few recent discussions on the forum i have decided to write a few of the more trick questions to answer

Lighting

rear foglights
rear must be present if only single must be on the midline of the car or towards the drivers side. must show red

front foglights
these can be fitted and not functional. they are not included in the test

indicators
must illuminate orange no matter what colour of housing.

spotlights.
if fitted these must be functional and operate with the main beam

reverse light
you do not need one as it is not part of the mot test

all lights (this one i think is great)
if all lighting is disconnected or blanked off it will not be taken into account on the MOT and you will pass. although driving at night is at your own risk

braking

abs
if abs system is fitted the dash light must fucntion correctly
if the abs system has been removed the dash light must function correctly but when removed it will light up permanently, this is beacause it wrk on a normally closed loop, so simply bridge the connector and it will work fine

front brakes
pads must not be worn to less than 1.5mm
discs must not be heavily pitted, grooved or lipped
any cracking etc of the disc will result in immediate faliure

rear brakes
must work and have no more than a 45% bias to the rear.

hand brake
must have adequate reserve travel and must physically stop the wheels

lines
these must not be kinked dmagaged or heavil corroded

common question
my car failed its MOT on braking performance but the garage wont give me a precise estimate to fix it!
This is beacause no dismatleing is allowed during the MOT so unless the damage is visable it could be many unseen things

mechanical

Lower arms/ball joints
if your lower arms are knocking and are deemed to be excessively worn you will fail.

CV joints
any leaking or incorrectly seated CV joints will need replacing to pass an MOT

structural

arches
if your arches are rusted to the point that they are flaking you will fail as this is a hazard

rust
excessive rust (full penetration) withing 30cm of load carrying suspension mounting points will need corrective work
excessive rust within 30 cm of seat belt mounting points will need corrective work

cills
any full penetration rust will need corrective work

floorpan and major rust patches bigger than 10cm in diameter will need corrective work

seat belts

if fitted from factory rear selt belts have to be present if the seats are still fitted to the car

harnesses.

aslong as they are fully uk road tested and carry suitable certification it will be fine if in doubt anything FIA spec is usually fine


Anything else you can think of post up and either myself or the admin will update the post

HTH Tony

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Great stuff there Tony, very useful

Will stick it in FAQ's for people to have a look at, and it will be immortalised forever

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Tyres

(I think most people know this anyway - but thought I'd add what I know)

Must have a tread of at least 1.6mm across the central 3/4 of the width of the tyre.

Any cut in excess of 25mm (or 10% of the width of the tyre, whichever is greater) and is deep enough to reach the ply cord, will result in a defective tyre - ie fail.

HTH too

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whats the deal with windscreen wipers?

My gf's rear wiper isnt working and shes got MOT in a few weeks. Pass or Fail?

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Quote Clarkson, Top Gear, 17th July: "I'm not having a stroke... just driving a Nissan!"
Quote Ry, Mallory Park, 3rd Dec: "Ahhhh crap... Just a bit too over eager really!"
"I used to be an adventurer like you, but then I took an arrow in the knee"

yeah there not checked, as some cars don't come with them!

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Save the trees, wipe your arse with a Cosworth

[quote="Mattyboy"]yeah there not checked, as some cars don't come with them! :)[/quote]

if there is an arm and wiper are present then some garages will fail it for that reason, best option it to remove the arm and cap it :)

for a car mot the rear wiper is NOT a testable item..

Quick question, Leaks..
I have a leak which is going to require the gearbox to be taken out, its an oil leak, and only a few drops come out slowly but surely. I think engine stop leak has done the job for a little bit.. I should really check, but if its in the MOT and leaks a bit will that fail?

Mirrors - You must have internal mirror, and one other mirror e.g drivers side wing mirror and internal mirror. (enless van or other)
So if you are missing a wing mirror you are ok. (if the mirrors are cracked this will more than likely fail you)

I thought you HAD to have drivers side mirror and one of either interior or passenger side??

correct me if im wrong please :) ?

Grant

[quote="G-Muzzy"]Mirrors - You must have internal mirror, and one other mirror e.g drivers side wing mirror and internal mirror. (enless van or other)
So if you are missing a wing mirror you are ok. (if the mirrors are cracked this will more than likely fail you)

I thought you HAD to have drivers side mirror and one of either interior or passenger side??

correct me if im wrong please :) ?

Grant[/quote]

Your right on that.. where did this info come from? lol

How about window wiper/screen washers, does it matter if they don't work, my motor has gone i think so i have a silent button.

are your sure its gone or could it possible just be blocked, can you hear any noise when you press the washer button?

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FEED ME MORE!!!!

Na its dead when you press it, main fuse is fine so i thought it would be the motor.

oh right, only a 2min job to change it dude, spend more time getting to it. lol

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