subaruturbo_18

in my day off filled with boredom and scoobynet, i've found myself watching pimp my ride.

Some of the cars on the show are literally dangerous, and you could actually risk life if you drove them.

Do the american government not care about vehicle safety or are the cars just bashed up to make the show look better?

Markus

I'm not sure about the USA, but it would not shock me if they did NOT have an annual MOT. I know Ontario certainly doesn't have one. I was discussing this very issue with my parents when they visited me over the weekend. They were astonished that there isn't a yearly MOT.

From my understanding on how it works in Ontario, when a dealer sells a car there is a safety check performed, but I don't believe a private seller is required to perform one when they sell, though a buyer can go and get one performed on the car, a bit like an AA check really.

The nearest you get to a check-up is an emissions test every two years when you come to renew your license plate sticker (essentially our equivalent of Road Tax).

I'm fairly sure the USA is pretty much the same, hence why you see a lot of very poorly maintained cars on the road. I've no idea why they don't have the equivalent of an MOT though.

T5OLF

iTrader: (4)

You don't need one in San Fran but they do have smog test's. The wife's sister has an old merc with half the floor's missing which she drives around in.

wayne9t9

They have an "inspection" annually. I watched a guy do it, it took about 10 minutes, no ramps, no rolling roads, no emission test. Didn`t drive the car, he just took off 2 wheels to look at the pads, checked the lights to see if they came on and passed it. All for 12 quid. The emission tests vary from state to state.

Snazy

Different states have different rules, some have almost nothing, others are very strict.

jasey

Having seen some of the "cars" on the roads in louisianna - I doubt they have any sort of Inspections - never mind annual ones .

Must be some sort of right to drive around in a bucket - probably goes with the right to shoot anyone who point out how dangerous your motor is !

oli1983uk

I think in some states of the USA you dont to have a car tested unless you sell it, so aslong as you own the car you dont have any kind of tests.

Brit_in_Japan

In the states you see a fairly high percentage of vehicles with cracked windscreens which would never pass MOTs in the UK. No-one seems bothered to get them fixed as there's no incentive.

subaruturbo_18

Do you have to have insurance in america? Im sure theres no law on having insurance but i could be wrong.....so im not sure...

Ianm1983

Im fairly sure they operate the same system as the australians, car insurance is not a legal requirement, neiher is an MOT, you pay the road tax (or whatever they call it) and thats that, you only have to have your car inspected if you let your tax run out and then re-tax it, if you go a day or so before it runs out and retax in the same way you do here in the UK then you never need to have an inspection

i lived in australia for 2 years and drove a car that wouldnt have pased an mot in a month of sundays, scary stuff on a freeway where you can drive in whatever lane you want and undertake and everyone else is in V8/V6 RWD cars and utes lol

subaruturbo_18

Interesting. Wonder if that makes insurance cheaper as they have to be alot more competitive

cossie-nutter

iTrader: (45)

Very good post I always wondered my self with pmr!

spider

iTrader: (1)

It always made me wonder why there are so many junk cars, especially considering how likely everyone is so keen to sue over there.

I could see people being sued for running into someone else - "your car isn't properly maintained, so it's your fault" kind of thing.

Mind you, I guess those in cr4p cars wouldn't be worth suing!

hotsam

It depends on the state. Florida, for example, has no inspections. Virginia (where I live) has fairly strict inspections.

I'm not sure what is meant by "road tax." Most states have a simple and low registration fee, which varies from state to state. Some states have a personal property tax, but it's deductible from your federal income tax so it's not a huge deal.

As far as insurance costs go, I pay about $130/mo for a 2005 Legacy GT and a 2006 Mazda3 (full coverage, $500 deductible)

Klaatu

Not quite true. Depends on the age of the car for inspections (Pink slip), but "inspections" are no way near like an MOT, anything over 5 years old needs an inspection. They take about 15 minutes, check tyres, brakes etc, very basic IMO. Insurance, albeit Compulsory Third Party Personal Insurance (CTP, or green slip) is compulsory (Obviously). You need this and a valid inspection report before you can register (Get a "tax disk"). That's it. It's adviseable to have additional full-comp insurance, but not a legal requirement for driving a car on a public road.

New Zealand on the other hand has a "no fault" type of state insurance called ACC. They have similar "inspections" and once a valid inspection is conducted, you can get your "rego". Once paid, you're legal. No additional insurance is required to legally drive on a public road.

Having shared roads with both Aussies and NZer's in their respective countries my advice is to get full-comp insurance as they are really the dumbest drivers I've shared roads with!

cster

Yeah, that's mainly right.
Your registration (road tax) covers you for 3rd party personal (not property) insurance. Therefore if someone steals your car and injures someone - they will be covered. That's good I guess.
There is no MOT in some states (eg SA), but if the Police don't like the look of your vehicle (or you!) they can inspect it and issue a defect notice and it will then get a pretty thorough going over.
Other states do have an MOT system (of sorts) and there will be no prizes for guessing where a some of their test failures end up.
The result of all this, is that a lot of (mainly young or poor) people drive around in old unroadworthy cars.
The automatic 3rd party insurance makes this even more likely as you don't get the situation where some 18 yo buys a £100 sh1tbox and has to pay a grand to insure it.
As they are obsessed with the death toll on the roads over there and have a seeming love of being regulated (they are ahead of us on that one) in general - I don't quite understand what is going on. Maybe there is no money in it for the government?
ps OP - looking at your location - have you considered moving to the north island?
Re post 17- the driving there does take some getting used to - a combination of steroids and valium should put you in the right frame of mind!

myblackwrx

iTrader: (1)

Pimp My Ride Season 1 - Kerry's Ford Escort - Truveo Video Search

I'm guessing no MOT on this car

stara