Air bag removal and mot

[calecosse]

I've got an e36 compact that I recently bought and am putting back on the road. I'd like to start doing some hill climbs and sprints in it but want to keep it on the road as a summer semi-daily. I'd like to put a different steering wheel on, like a momo or something, but it has a drivers side airbag. Is that allowed? The wording is a bit wooly but I thought from that sort of era it wasn't a legal requirement so if its there it has to work but if removed thats ok? Or is that wishful thinking.

To make things more awkward it's a p reg which is right on the crossover of when it became mandatory at time of manufacture.

[Rich]

The failure is ‘obviously removed’. Will it be obvious that the car had one once it’s removed? That’s basically the question. MOT manual is available to view via the sticky thread here BTW.
forum.retro-rides.org/thread/163485/vosa-mot-manual-line-version

[mk2cossie]

Officially, yes its a fail.

Also worded as the only allowance is for "rally cars" converted from road cars. But no mention of what qualifies as a rally car in the manual 🤔

Personally, if its stripped out with a cage, bucket seats and 4 point harnesses, and obviously for track use of some kind, I'd pass it

[slater]

You won't have any issue as long as the light is removed too. They would never know it was there.

[calecosse]

Thanks for the replies. That's kind of what I was thinking would be the case. Luckily it's only one airbag in the wheel so once it's changed it wouldn't be obvious really. It'll be used for sprinting but other than a bucket seat the interior will stay standard so I can take my daughter out in it and it's still usable. So it won't be an obvious race car. Its hopefully in for an mot next week and the tester I use is really good so I'll have a chat with him and get his opinion as well.

[tofufi]

Feb 26, 2023 7:40:24 GMT calecosse said:

To make things more awkward it's a p reg which is right on the crossover of when it became mandatory at time of manufacture.

Airbags are not, and have never been, mandatory fitment at the point of manufacture/type approval...

[mk2cossie]

Feb 26, 2023 10:50:59 GMT tofufi said:

Feb 26, 2023 7:40:24 GMT calecosse said:

To make things more awkward it's a p reg which is right on the crossover of when it became mandatory at time of manufacture.

Airbags are not, and have never been, mandatory fitment at the point of manufacture/type approval...

Actually, they have. The standard car is what gets approval, and airbag equipped stuff used to have an airbag symbol on the vin tag on the dash (no idea where that is on the nearer stuff tho)

[tofufi]

Feb 26, 2023 14:17:35 GMT mk2cossie said:

Feb 26, 2023 10:50:59 GMT tofufi said:

Airbags are not, and have never been, mandatory fitment at the point of manufacture/type approval...

Actually, they have. The standard car is what gets approval, and airbag equipped stuff used to have an airbag symbol on the vin tag on the dash (no idea where that is on the nearer stuff tho)

No, they don't. The crash requirements mandate performance criteria, not fitment of an airbag.

UNECE R94 is frontal crash, UNECE R95 is side impact.

Neither mandates fitment of an airbag.

(Source: I work for the DfT approving new vehicles with regard to crash safety).

[mk2cossie]

Fine, not going in to virtue signalling. Just what I know.

And clearly that isn't much

I thought (wrongfully it appears) the type approval was for how the car was presented. Airbags, ABS, EVAP systems and catalysts as well to meet the many requirements.

DfT needs to get all its hens in a row, sounds like they are worse for not knowing their elbow from there ear hole more than the DVSA