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Mar 23, 2009 16:45:48 GMT
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I had no idea my sills had -gaping big holes- in them, about 6 inches wide. Basically, the whole sill needs replacing, but the reason I had not noticed it before was because of the sideskirt. It effectively covers the sill and is held in place. What do MOT testers do with these?
I can't comment so far as I think the previous MOT test was a bit dodgy.
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Mar 23, 2009 16:54:53 GMT
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You get an advisory saying it could not be inspected afaik! That's what it came up as on the Impreza.
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1997 TVR Chimaera
2009 Westfield Megabusa
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Ratchet
Part of things
The user formerly known as Thomas
Posts: 682
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Mar 23, 2009 17:31:18 GMT
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If they cant see it they cant fail it*, they could give you an advisory if they have a strong suspicion of it being rotten though. When I was doing my apprenticeship at a mot station I remember removing a side skirt from a car to repair something (welding on the rear inner wing iirc) it hadn't failed on the sills but when i took of the skirts there wasn't much left of them.  *the same applies for hubcaps/wheeltrims, I remember taking one off a car that had just gone through an mot and there were only 2 studs holding it on |
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Competition is the law of the jungle, but cooperation is the law of civilization.
1971 vw beetle 1200
1978 international loadstar 1700 4x4
1987 landrover 110
1994 Yamaha FZR600r
2010 honda CBF100GT
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Mar 23, 2009 18:23:05 GMT
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This used to happen a lot with Fiesta XR2s! If you cannot prove the metal underneath the trim/sideskirt etc. is seriously weakened then it will fail as thomas said.
You are not allowed to dismantle anything to check a car during an MOT.
When it comes to inspecting bodywork/structural/chassis areas you are only allowed to use the corrosion assesment tool (small black 'hammer'), your hands and a torch.
A tester at another station I worked in failed an old fiesta for having sills made of plywood and filler (yes, really!) and the guy appealed. Vosa said although the car was unsafe the tester should not have failed it as he could not prove the sills were made of anything other than metal. They looked as they should, they did not crumble or flex under finger pressure and the corrosion assesment tool didnt show any holes.
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Mar 23, 2009 20:07:32 GMT
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I thought MOT testers had a scraper to scrape away underseal? Presumably he scraped away the coating to reveal plywood!
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1987 Maestro 1.6 HL perkins diesel conversion 1986 Audi 100 Avant 1800cc on LPG 1979 Allegro Series 2 special 4 door 1500cc with vynil roof. IN BITS. HERITAGE ISSUES.  |
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Mar 23, 2009 21:34:38 GMT
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All the Austin Allegros we ever had came with plastic sill covers. This meant that they could go through MOTs with gaping holes in the sills as long as the plastic covered them because as has been noted above if the tester can't see it he can't fail you on it.
However this was the 1980s so things may have changed.
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"Jeremy Clarkson, a man we motor enthusiasts need on our side like Lewis Hamilton's F1 car needs a towing ball and a Sprite Musketeer" My motor |
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Mar 23, 2009 22:51:10 GMT
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i need me some sideskirts, pronto!
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Mar 24, 2009 13:06:05 GMT
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This used to happen a lot with Fiesta XR2s! If you cannot prove the metal underneath the trim/sideskirt etc. is seriously weakened then it will fail as thomas said. You are not allowed to dismantle anything to check a car during an MOT. When it comes to inspecting bodywork/structural/chassis areas you are only allowed to use the corrosion assesment tool (small black 'hammer'), your hands and a torch. A tester at another station I worked in failed an old fiesta for having sills made of plywood and filler (yes, really!) and the guy appealed. Vosa said although the car was unsafe the tester should not have failed it as he could not prove the sills were made of anything other than metal. They looked as they should, they did not crumble or flex under finger pressure and the corrosion assesment tool didnt show any holes. Would be fun to print on the VT32 a manual advisory recommending that the car doesn't come back here next year for an MOT test!  |
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Last Edit: Mar 24, 2009 13:06:38 GMT by daverapid
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Mar 24, 2009 15:29:45 GMT
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well my MOT tester is still under the impression he cant fail it if he cants see it, I.E Hubcaps over wheels and covers over sills etc. Dunno if it's still the law or what tho
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Mar 24, 2009 19:30:15 GMT
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I thought MOT testers had a scraper to scrape away underseal? Presumably he scraped away the coating to reveal plywood! Nope! MOT testers don't have scrapers. IF you feel it is necessary you are allowed to use the pokey end of the corrosion assesment tool to knock away dirt or loose coatings (on brake pipes for example) but you are not allowed to remove paint. As far as the plywood fiesta was concerned the tester should have used his knowledge and discression to point out to the vehicle presenter that although the sills were visually ok they did not sound as they should when struck with the corrosion assesment tool! |
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Mar 24, 2009 20:10:42 GMT
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Hammers are used for the sound of the metal. They know what to look for. I'm wanting to put my MR2 in for MOT at the end of this month, but if I can get away with doing the sills for now, that's another job crossed off.
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Mar 24, 2009 21:39:33 GMT
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2 mot's ago on my older almera it came back after a fail with about a 2" x 4" hole in the sill where they'd found some rust and kept picking to see how bad it was haha.
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