pslewis

My Impreza is due its MOT soon.

I am probably going to come out of the Main Dealer Servicing and either do it myself or use one of the many specialists about. But most do not carry out MOT's.

My usual test centre, the one I use for my others cars, only have a 2 wheel roller. Now, the only reason I use them is because I don't pay anything if the cars fail and if they pass it costs me just £28.

I have asked them whether I can accompany the tester when he takes my pride and joy out to do the Tappy Brake Test ........ they say, no! The Ministry will not allow them to!?

Funny, I thought, many people on here have posted that they accompany the tester??

He asked why I wanted to go along, I just said its my pride and joy and I am very **** when it comes to someone else driving it.

The REAL reason, of course, is that the 'normal' cars they see are Escorts, Micras, Mondeos, etc. Subaru Impreza Turbos do not appear that regularly (if at all) ..... the tester is about 25 years old and his 'assistant' who needs to go with him is about 18 years old.

Now, I don't want to be snobby .................. but, you just KNOW what I'm thinking!! They will give it a good old seeing to ... I would, wouldn't you!?

I mean why pay for a track day when you have one dropped into your lap to take around an Industrial Estate??

Any advice??

I could just take it to a Subaru Main Dealer, but the one I use is a 75 mile trip!

I could just 'accept' it and trust that they will treat it with care?

Have I any argument and documentary evidence to say that there is, in fact, NO rule from the Ministry to say that you cannot accompany your own car??

I'm not sure why the testing station objects so much?

So? do you go with your car? am I being an old woman? am I being particulary ****? any MOT Testers want to comment?

Pete

Boost II

iTrader: (1)

Most independent specialists you mention will have a local place down the road where they get MOT's done all the time. They will have a good working relationship with them that the MOT centre won't want to stuff up and also they will get loads of scoobies down there - most of them faster than yours. Don't worry about it. Some people spend their whole lives living in fear of chav's doing stuff to them especially when reading threads on here - just get on with it and enjoy not getting your pants pulled down by the main dealers. (who incidentally often take your car to a separate MOT centre anyway which is just as likely to have chav's in it as any other )

pslewis

Thanks Boost

You reckon I should just 'live and let live' then??

Smile, hand over the keys and hope it comes back in one piece?

How long should the brake test take? 5 minutes?

ALSO, they said that they cannot test the handbrake on the 2 rollers either -how does THAT get tested then?? Surely not on the road?

I thought the hanbrake test could be done on the 2 rollers?

Just because its not a Fast-One doesn't mean that they only thrash the modified ones!!

Pete

Boost II

iTrader: (1)

What I was sort of suggesting was that you might give it to a scooby servicing place to MOT. Even if they don't do it themselves they will arrange it, and you will pay them for it as an extra on the end of the servicing bill. You then have slightly increased peace of mind that a number of other scoobies have gone down this path before. Better than just turning up at a shady industrial unit and giving the keys to someone you've never heard of. Don't know how they test the handbrake but I doubt it is round a hairpin - why do they want rollers involved - that would simulate simulate pulling the hand brake on whilst driving in my mind Would be better just to park it in neutral on a steep hill over lunch and see if its still there afterwards

pslewis

Hanbrake test, as I understand it, rear wheels in rollers - handbrake on - rollers on and look at dial when handbrake 'gives' ??

How do they test handbrake without the rollers?

Good idea to find out where the specialists take the Imprezas they have trusted to them

Pete

Matt P

Pete,

No doubt you will dream up some new names to call me for posting a reply to one of your threads but here goes anyway...

I have sat next to the MoT tester during the on-road brake tests a couple of times. (I take my car to the garage I used to work at so I know and trust the testers, not sure if that's why I was allowed to go on the test run or not, didn;t know it was supposedly outside the rules).

The test is very mickey mouse and the testers know it. To test the brakes, they put the Taplow meter in the passenger footwell and brake sufficiently hard from 30mph so as to register the correct reading on the meter. In reality, this amounts to little more than routine braking force. A similar test is then carried out using the handbrake instead of the footbrake, this time at around 20mph and looking for a lower reading on the Tappy. As the last tester commented, an Impreza would pass the test if only one brake was working...

If you put a Scooby on a 2-wheel roller you'll destroy the centre diff fairly quickly.

As an engineer I'm sure none of this is news to you anyway.

New_scooby_04

iTrader: (4)

You wouldn't believe some of the muppets I had to deal with when taking my car for an MOT. I'm not a mechanic in any sense of the term, so I do not expect to have to tell a mechanic why you can't put a Scooby on a 2wd rolling road. I drove away from 3 garages on these grounds. Another garage tried the old "leave the car with us mate and come back in a couple of hours" trick....er, I don't think so! My own rules: The car stays in my line of sight, or you aint touching it! Simple as that! Next time I'll get organised a bit earlier and just pop down the MOT station Xtreme use!

If you can't make it to a Garage that is recommended on here or affiliated with a specialist with a good reputation, my advice would be phone around first and see if a local place knows about Scoobies and the brake test issue. Also confirm with them that you will be allowed to accompany the tester on any road test.

NS04

Mungo

The owner of my MoT station has his own Scooby, so driving one isn't any kind of novelty and I'm happy to leave it with him for the 45 minutes or so the test takes. See if you can find someone similar near you?

eclipse

Where I get my MOT done they don't even bother testing the brakes more than moving in and out of the garage. they don't really need to on a scooby.

pslewis

Thanks for that Matt - I appreciate your input.

I am torn between coming across to the MOT Testing station as a complete and utter **** pratt (worrying about his car and how it 'may' get treated) and trying to find somewhere who will let me 'ride along'.

What I would like is evidence either way - a call to the Ministry maybe? Isn't there a contact number on the back of the MOT Cert.??

Anyway, I ring up the Head Office of the outfit concerned and they had a chat with their resident MOT Tester (in their Head Office) and he gave some bull**** about loadings and braking effects altering the figures on the meter if someone else was in the car other than the tester I said that an assistant will be in the car too ......... phone went quiet - ah, yes, but he is allowed in the car!!

Why don't they want me in the car with them????? I was expecting the old 'Insurance' line .... but no, its the Ministry Rules!!???

Pete

dpb

So where have you take it on previous years then huh......

As far as i can see the ole girl would enjoy a bit a stick...........how often does she get used properly in your hands- you ole cogder



















.....and i am talkin about the car......really i am..

pslewis

Keep up

Its been done at the Subaru Main Dealers when its been serviced - now Subaru want £1233 to cover the car for a further 12months then I am not paying Main Dealers rates anymore if I can help it!

I have no problem with the MOT and having it done at my 'usual' place - its the frigging fact that 2 young mechies will be taking it out, alone, to test the brakes! Now maybe it needs a blow-out ............ but I will do that thanks!!

This is the same outfit that bent my Calibra on a test drive ..... then denied they took it out at all!! even though the mileage had gone up by 16 miles or so!! They were called LexAutocentre then!

The manager at Head Office said that they treat customer cars with care and respect ....... errrrrm, not what I have seen!!

So, when I can keep the car in sight I am fine and they are fine ....... its when it disappears I have issues!!

Pete

GC8

Pete; I was told that I could sit in if I wished, but seeing as the bloke is steady and they do it on the small industrial estate road alongside the test centre, I declined.

Simon

pslewis

Cheers Simon ....... not sure why they refused me then??

Pete

GC8

Ive just read what Matt P has said; I pretty sure that the tester reads the Taplow meter himself too so theres no need for an assistant, maybe he wants to do it on the ringroad?

Simon

Edited to add: Theyre quite casual about a number of Ministry rules so the fact that theyd allow me to sit in doesnt mean that its prohibited.....

dpb

So what happened to all you other cars on test .....and why dont you go somwhere else ....?
.......they prolly just wanted to give you summat to yap about on SN.......

pslewis

Well he wants to take his assistant, who is about 18 years old ..... this is where my worries started - "go on, give it some welly" .. "go on lets see what it will do" .. "lets do some doughnuts" .. "give me a go, we are on a quiet Industrial Estate"

Hmmmmmmmm, maybe I'm wrong but I can just see it now!

Pete

pslewis

The other cars are NOT AWD!!

I go there because ........ oh, read the first post

Pete

GC8

You have an old camcorder Im sure; these people can help you

There certainly isnt a Ministry regulation relating to in-car video; how can they refuse?

Simon

pslewis

Interesting .......... but they will just do a SPEED trick on the film!!

Pete

pslewis

Another way is for the wife to follow them in her car!!??

Filming them??!!

Pete

GC8

How do you mean; not drop below 50Mph?

pslewis

No, put a loop in the tape - so that I think they were only going at 20MPH!

Pete

dpb

yes........i have.........and..........

as mentioned above how do you know what happened to the car once you dropped it off at the OFFICIAL scooby servicing centre?

jjones

spotty oiks at garage will trash your car..

willsy369

When mine needs to get done they just do the check on a rolling road. Technically each wheel station should be checked independently and is only done at a slow speed anyway. The road comes on the wheel(s) turn and the tester slowly applies the brake, either till lock out and the road carries on rolling under the locked wheel or the car can move back out of the roller. (same test for h/brake)Either way there is a gauge that will leave a reading then they all get divded by the gross weight of the vehicle and times 100 to give an overall % which is your pass or fail. I would not let my car out of my sight!!! If a road test MUST for some reason be done either the machine is bust or they cant afford one. they would in theory be able to do it in a reletivly short length of road. not a 20 mile joy ride!! Willsy

pslewis

OK just for you ......... a line you missed twice from the first post .... "Now, the only reason I use them is because I don't pay anything if the cars fail and if they pass it costs me just £28"

I don't know what happened to it when dropped off at a Subaru Main Dealers - the one I use IS an MOT Testing station .... they are used to these cars, no novelty, no need to give it a bit of welly!!

Pete

scoobyjohn2000

just be4 they take it out..pull the connector off the map senser ,car will go into safe mode only 5psi of boost so wont be able to thrash?

pslewis

And they won't??

Will they treat it with the 'utmost' respect??

Maybe they will, so why not let me pop along with them - they can drive it up and down the ramp all they like!

Pete

pslewis

Interesting, trouble is he will want to know what I'm doing!

I'm SURE its not a Ministry rule of no customer/owners to accompany the tester ............... anyone find where it says that?

Pete