Rip-off Garages

[muttywhitedog]

In March 2009 I took my 51 plate Volvo for an MOT at a national chain in Grantham. Whilst it passed, I was told by the mechanic that the exhaust was on its way out, wouldnt last until the next MOT and they had taken the liberty of providing me with a quote for a replacement (£300) that was good for 3 months.

Fast forward 6 years and 85,000 miles, and my car has passed its MOT today. The exhaust is the same one that I chose not to spend £300 to replace!

 

[Kryten]

I had a similar experience with my Golf back in 2010 - the garage told me the seal between the pipe and the exhaust box was leaking and that it would need replacing at my next MOT......five years later and I still have the same exhaust fitted!

 

[ScoobTech]

Hence why I only take my care to places that only MOT, not had a problem since even my 13 Yr commute shed passed it's last MOT with no problems with some age related advisories, Headlights discolouring, rear number plate degrading, & tyres which I knew about and was waiting to see if it passed before splashing out.

 

[AVliney]

my mate works in the motor trade, exhausts are the one thing they love to replace, as the garage gets to sell you and expensive exhaust and the mechanics get an easy job of replacing your exhaust and then take the catalytic converter down to your local scrap yard and receive a bucket load of cash for it!

Always ask for your old Cat back and scrap it yourself!!

 

[Barch]

my mate works in the motor trade, exhausts are the one thing they love to replace, as the garage gets to sell you and expensive exhaust and the mechanics get an easy job of replacing your exhaust and then take the catalytic converter down to your local scrap yard and receive a bucket load of cash for it!

Always ask for your old Cat back and scrap it yourself!!

Every time I have seen a 'Cat' replaced it has always been an exchange item with the old one going back to the suppliers.

 

[SORRY CJ]

A nice German car specialist garage in Cartoon Town talked me out of replacing my cat, in turn he welded a pipe in situ. Sorted Satis
Mr SCJ

 

[spike7451]

A nice German car specialist garage in Cartoon Town talked me out of replacing my cat, in turn he welded a pipe in situ. Sorted Satis
Mr SCJ

Might cost you a lot more in the end...local garage did that to my Pug 206,ended up replacing not just the cat but also the front & back pipe as well,cost me the guts of £150 in the end...

Last month I got the dreaded 'eco system faulty' light come on my 207 GT,Peugeot wanted £70 just to diagnose it,following a mates advice,I drove it in 4th for a while & the fault went away....

 

[steve_k243]

A nice German car specialist garage in Cartoon Town talked me out of replacing my cat, in turn he welded a pipe in situ. Sorted Satis
Mr SCJ

As long as it's petrol I think you may be ok MOT wise--this from a forum, it's a reply to an email to VOSA.

"Thank you for your email enquiry dated 3rd February 2014, concerning the
above.

At the time of writing this email, the MOT does not include a check for
catalytic converters or Diesel Particulate Filters missing where fitted as
standard on diesel-engined vehicles.

However, this is about to change and a missing catalytic converter/DPF
where fitted as standard will result in a failure from 16th February 2014"

 

[Barch]

|If a Cat was fitted on build but is missing at the time of the test it is now a Fail.

>> MOT Tester Magazine <<

Click 'Exhaust & Emissions' on the interactive guide.

The exhaust system will fail the MOT if:

• Part of the system missing or excessively deteriorated
• A catalytic converter is missing where one was fitted as standard (on vehicles subject to a full cat test only)
• Mounting are missing or damaged so that the exhaust system is insecure
• There is a major leak
• The system emits appreciably more noise than a similar vehicle fitted with a standard system in good condition.
• Class (v): Exhaust tailpipe positioned so that fumes are liekly to enter the driver or passenger area.

 

[andy135]

Does this mean that it is now illegal to modify a car even if it passes the emissions test?

Before long it will probably be a requirement to have all replacement parts as original manufacturers spares only.

 

[steve_k243]

Does this mean that it is now illegal to modify a car even if it passes the emissions test?

Before long it will probably be a requirement to have all replacement parts as original manufacturers spares only.

IIRC an illuminated engine management light is a fail now, or will be very soon.

 

[SORRY CJ]

Think you are starting to bark up the wrong tree here....I never said that the cat was removed..
The pipe that was in line directly behind the cat had a hole in it and he just replaced this. The cat is still in place just with a new section of pipe.
Mr SCJ

 

[Fu Fu Valve]

IIRC an illuminated engine management light is a fail now, or will be very soon.

My car has an illuminated engine managemement light but passed the MOT - it's on thanks to a mouse chewing some wires from a sensor. Garage told me it's a 'Caution' light not a 'Warning' light. So if the ABS light was on that would be a fail, a 'Caution' light is apparently ok.

On the Exhaust thing, my car left the factory with 2 cataclysmic converters fitted. They have been replaced with a 100cell sports cat and i have no problems with the MOT (as long as it's warmed up properly). If you remove the CAT it's an instant fail. If it had one fitted at manufacture it needs to have one for the MOT. Standard, sports, whatever it doesn't matter as long it still has one in the system.

 

[needsabiggerfuse]

My car has an illuminated engine managemement light but passed the MOT - it's on thanks to a mouse chewing some wires from a sensor. Garage told me it's a 'Caution' light not a 'Warning' light. So if the ABS light was on that would be a fail, a 'Caution' light is apparently ok.

On the Exhaust thing, my car left the factory with 2 cataclysmic converters fitted. They have been replaced with a 100cell sports cat and i have no problems with the MOT (as long as it's warmed up properly). If you remove the CAT it's an instant fail. If it had one fitted at manufacture it needs to have one for the MOT. Standard, sports, whatever it doesn't matter as long it still has one in the system.

Off Topic I'll bet you're Hell on Wheels! DT_Xtremez_28:

 

[Fu Fu Valve]

Off Topic I'll bet you're Hell on Wheels! DT_Xtremez_28:

4wheel drive, adjustable diff's and 400bhp under the right foot I have been called it before ::

 

[Gord]

Why would it fail due to an ABS fault light, that doesn't mean your brakes don't work, just that you ABS doesn't work, so what, thousands of cars are made every day that are not fitted with ABS in the first place. You may as well say that the car will fail because the cigarette lighter doesn't work or in today's anti smoking environment, because it does bloodywell work.

 

[El_Boomo]

Same reason as an airbag fault light is a fail, but never having had one in the first place isn't. Because a safety system is faulty.

 

[Gord]

Sorry, I guess I misunderstood the topic here, I thought it was to do with emissions testing considering all the talk about exhausts. As for safety checks, well here in God's country, the only time you need a safety test is when you buy a used car, then before you can put it on the road it must pass said test, the only other time one is needed is if you are pulled over by a police officer and he estimates that your vehicle is unsafe, he will then issue you with a ticket for whatever is considered unsafe or in violation of a particular part of the highway traffic act and you will have to get that fixed before you can put your car back on the road. new cars and cars bought from a dealer, whether new or used must pass the safety test. In the case of a used car it must also the emissions test which in Ontario is administered every two years.

The annual MOT test that you folk have to go through is IMO a pure rip off fostered by garage owners, mechanics and the car manufacturers in order to sell more new cars and of course approved by the government cos they make oodles of cash from the taxes.

It has already been determined that the emissions testing of cars over her has achieved it's purpose as there are very few older cars left on the road and that the test has simply become a tax grab by the government. Of course the government isn't going to stop demanding the testing as they too are making a p!sspot full of cash with them.

 

[Gord]

Speaking of air bags, I have been involved in three head on's with deer that have run out in front of my car, all of which have caused a fair degree of damage to my cars and have yet to have an airbag deploy yet according to the onboard computer, my air bags have been in working order at all times. I don't trust them at all but I do ensure that everyone is wearing their safety belts before I pull out of my driveway, those I do trust.

 

[briggfairy]

Airbags only go off if the on board computer detects a big enough frontal impact and associated decceleration, they are actually quite a violent thing and cause many injuries themselves as they have to counter the force of a humans head/upper torso moving at 70+mph, quite a considerable force.

I'd say that if you haven't bounced your head off of anything gord then your airbag didn't need to go off and the system works fine. as for seatbelts only a muppet wouldn't wear one nowdays