MOT Queries

Can i pick the collective brains of the MOT testers on here...i'm after a bit of pre-emptive advice as Walle is booked in for his MOT on monday morning.

Front suspension - Rubber Covers over the top & bottom balljoints - are these a failure if they have cuts on them? They're still in one piece but have some quite large cuts in.

Doors - If doors are fitted, is there any extra testing required, ie. opening/closing latch mechanism etc... As the doors are held on by 2 Shoulder bolts it takes about 2 mins to take them off (most of that is trying to find the bl@@dy allen key), is it better to leave the doors off ?

Mirrors - Walle was 1st registered in 1982, how many mirrors should he have? At the moment i've got a drivers side mirror & an interior mirror, do i need a passenger side mirror for the MOT ?

Brakes - I've converted the brakes from single circuit to front/rear split with a later model master cylinder. I've left the existing rear brake regulator valve in place. (The early "Tee" type which has brake master feed in, & a port out to each of the rear brakes) This valve has been converted to an adjustable type...it can ONLY be adjusted by lying under the car with a bag of spanners!! Is this OK on the MOT ?

Ignition - Is a seperate "Push Start" button allowable ? Still got ignition key & Steering Lock, you have to turn the key to the on position & press the button to start.

Windsceen Wipers - Do they have to automatically go back to the down position?

Any general advice to make the MOT testers job easier ? I don't mean bribery...

Cheers in advance,

Neil

Ok i'll answer the questions in turn...

Gaiters for balljoints are not a failure, but you will get an advisory note telling you about them.

Doors must open and shut from both inside and out, having to unbolt them to open them would be a failure, my thoughts on this is it's a high priority safety point, if (god forbid) for any reason there's an accident i'd want anyone wanting to be help me, to be able to open the door quickly if i couldn't do it myself.

The Mirrors you have will be fine for a pass.

Brake valve will also be fine so long as the limited brakes work properly and there's no fluid leaks.

Ignition, so long as it starts and runs it's not a problem, but explain it to the garage before leaving them to work it out or refuse to test as it "won't start"

Wipers just need to switch on and off properly and clean the screen, the self park must either park themselves in the correct position or be able to be stopped in the correct position manually.

Advice to make our life easier, make sure it's fairly clean, not full of rubbish and everything is accessible, make sure they have a key for everything, eg fuel cap, and make sure everything works and the car will start easily. There's nothing more annoying than having to mess around trying to jump start a car for the test, it can easily put us behind for the next test so will get our backs up before the event so to speak!!
Having the V5 to hand is always good with kit cars in case there's a problem with logging it onto the system before the test.

Hope this helps

For what it's worth I'd take the doors off anyway. It also has the benefit of giving the MOT tester easy access.

My MK2 was so stripped down (no doors, no screen etc...) that there it took longer to drink the tea than it did to MOT it!

Cheers Cambiker,

Thats a load off my mind... I used a simple logical approach to the potential issues & came up with the same answers, then i thought the MOT is devised by a government agency so logic doesn't apply...

Thats my panic level reduced to Defcon3 for the MOT...Just got to get all the little jobs done by monday.

Cheers Guys

Neil

Well the MOT has been & passed.....

A bit thank you to mike's lad Matthew...

Just need to work out why the little shite overheated on the way back from the MOT...oh & sort out tax & insurance....

Stourport is now looking likely!

Cheers guys for tha advice..

Woohoo!!!! See you Friday!

Hope the overheating is easily sorted / kept under control.

I Think i've found the cause of the overheating....Thermostat is stuck closed !

A big thank you to the engine designers at Vauxhall...you have to get the timing belt/pulleys & timing covers off to get to the 2 bolts for the thermostat

New thermostat in my oily hands ready for fitting when i get home tonight

Just a knocking exhaust to sort out, fit the doors back on, & loads of simple tweaks to make.

On a side note, something that Matthew pointed out at the MOT...the nuts to secure the upper/lower balljoints on the front mini/metro hubs SHOULD be captivated. ie, either locknuts or have the bolt drilled & fitted with a split pin. The nuts that i got with my balljoints are plain nuts with a spring washer (Good old Quinton Hazel).

For future reference these nuts are 7/16" UNF.

Cheers Guys, Cya at Stourport

Neil

On a side note, something that Matthew pointed out at the MOT...the nuts to secure the upper/lower balljoints on the front mini/metro hubs SHOULD be captivated. ie, either locknuts or have the bolt drilled & fitted with a split pin. The nuts that i got with my balljoints are plain nuts with a spring washer (Good old Quinton Hazel).

All mini's come this way it was not till the metro came out that Rover used locknuts with the updated balljoints but the mini never got the newer Metro Hubs.

The mini ball joint nuts to the hub have a lock ring that is held in place by the grease nipple and is knocked over when the correct shims are correct, the nuts that hold the ball joints to the upper and lower suspension arms are secure by the fact of the taper shaft/hole so a spring washer and nut are sufficient.

Alex was a clever man he used the spring washer to take out any play out the top ball joint as the weight of the car took it out the bottom one pushing the joint up with the help of the taperd shaft .If only he could of seen in to the future, that for mot you have to jack the things up now.....lol