MOT's Every Two Years?

[Steve VH]

I have just read a newspaper article saying that the government are looking into altering the annual Mot, to be done every two years.

What do you think?

[Syncrofred]

Be interesting to see some figures on fail rates and the main areas of failure.  At the end of the day, the test was to keep unsafe cars of the road.  Modern cars still wear out and with ever longer mileages between services, this sounds like a risky proposal.

[duncan-uk]

Seems daft to me. Got my MOT and very soon after a hidden brake pipe failed. I’m usually confident in my car being in good condition but a second pair of eyes once a year can’t be a bad idea. 
 

Don’t agree with exemptions for 40yr old cars either. If I had one I still think I’d have it looked over annually for peace of mind. 

[RoryB]

Don’t agree with MOT every two years. Just think how many dangerous cars will be out there. I look after my cars and never failed an MOT 

[Ray112]

But there are few countries where MOT is every two years, and it's not like streets are full with death traps. In one year's time a lot of things can happen and it owner's/driver's responsibility to keep car roadworthy and pay attention to any issues they notice. If something is rattling, it has to be fixed as soon as possible, not when next MOT test has failed. 

[Steve VH]

I would say items like seatbelts, lights, corrosion rarely wear out over a year or two, but safety critical consumerables such as tyres, brakes, steering, and suspension do, and should be checked annually, a one year old company car can easily have 60,000 miles on the clock, don't tell me that at two years old, and 120,000 miles items will have worn out, and still another year to go before its first MOT.

[JohnH]

I thinks cars need an annual safety inspection as others have said.

I would question why it takes 45 minutes however. Whenever I drop my car off for testing I park it in the test bay and go for a walk around the block. Usually get back half an hour latter to find the car parked up outside and the test bay empty, with the tester hanging about doing nothing after he has entered the results in the online system. I usually have a chat with him, just to keep him onside of course! 

I cant see mots making a garage much if any money, other than giving the disreputable ones an opportunity to rip of oaps. 

Edited January 20, 2023 by JohnH

[Syncrofred]

I always stay with the car and actually help with the test.  It is done 'live' and has to take the time stipulated.  The tester can't shorten the time.

[Starbuck88]

What are the statistics for say USA where most states have no checks what so ever? Are there more RTAs or deaths due to shoddy vehicles?

[4aceman]

2 hours ago, Starbuck88 said:

What are the statistics for say USA where most states have no checks what so ever? Are there more RTAs or deaths due to shoddy vehicles?

For sure, just have a look on youtube on “just rolled in” and you’ll see the kind of stuff the mechanics see.

People wearing brakes down to the backing plates, tires worn to the cords and bulging, bushes which no longer exist.

The main thing is over there the roads are much wider and bigger, and every intersection is a traffic light. Much harder to get in an accident.

[BobA]

So much depends on the mileage and how they’re driven over the year. Long motorway journeys are pretty easy on the car’s mechanics. Sitting on the drive all day doesn’t wear things much. On the other hand every year I see about 10-20% of our local taxis with hundreds of short journeys fail their annual council safety checks so it’s difficult to generalise. Maybe leaving it at a year is safest - not as if it’s a big cost or bother and TBH occasionally I’ve had something pointed out that I wasn’t aware of.

Edited January 22, 2023 by BobA

[Flandy]

Beyond the obvious safety issues of leaving people to be responsible for the condition, maintenance , and rocognition of issues with their cars, there are a lot of garages out there whos bread and butter is MOT testing, and at a single stroke, this would cut their work intake by half. These are the primarily independent garages, the ones people use to avoid the main dealer prices. I can't imagine this isn't going to have a drastic effect on the number of these independents, and hence the affordability of running an older car for many people. 

I have a car that'll be 40 before its next MOT would be due, so it's technically had its last test. As i use the car regularly, I'm still going to have my local MOT tester take a look at it once a year, because even though I am pretty good at spotting problems in advance, I have been surprised in the past with failures or advisaries that I havent seen, or considered. 

All cars should have an MOT test, and it should be annually.  

The free road tax for 40 year old cars can stay though........... 😁

[oldjohnny]

My sister in law has a 2009 Mercedes c class saloon.  She left it in for a pre mot check up and was informed that the rear chassis was about to collapse and they would not release the car to be driven due to the danger involved.  Had it been a two year test it could have been a very sad outcome.  Mercedes luckily picked up the car and replaced everything free of charge.  (this fault was not uncommon it appeared),  so I am firmly on the side of the 12 month test remaining.

[Ray112]

On 24/01/2023 at 16:46, oldjohnny said:

My sister in law has a 2009 Mercedes c class saloon.  She left it in for a pre mot check up and was informed that the rear chassis was about to collapse and they would not release the car to be driven due to the danger involved.  Had it been a two year test it could have been a very sad outcome.  Mercedes luckily picked up the car and replaced everything free of charge.  (this fault was not uncommon it appeared),  so I am firmly on the side of the 12 month test remaining.

If chassis is about to collapse, then it's a new car time, not sure what can be replaced by Mercedes or anyone else. Sounds a bit of a fairytale to be fair. And let's not forget that Germany with it's unlimited speed autobahns as well have vehicle technical inspection every two years only, but some how they are not driving around with death traps, never mind higher speeds etc. 

[4aceman]

40 minutes ago, Ray112 said:

If chassis is about to collapse, then it's a new car time, not sure what can be replaced by Mercedes or anyone else. Sounds a bit of a fairytale to be fair. And let's not forget that Germany with it's unlimited speed autobahns as well have vehicle technical inspection every two years only, but some how they are not driving around with death traps, never mind higher speeds etc. 

They have a manufacturer defect with the subframes, they rot out very quickly. 

 

Mercedes replace the subframe free of charge but I think they’re on a huge backorder 

[Ray112]

2 hours ago, 4aceman said:

They have a manufacturer defect with the subframes, they rot out very quickly. 

 

Mercedes replace the subframe free of charge but I think they’re on a huge backorder 

That makes sense now, because subframe and chassis are not really the same thing. At least good Mercedes agreed to replace it on their cost. 

[4aceman]

44 minutes ago, Ray112 said:

That makes sense now, because subframe and chassis are not really the same thing. At least good Mercedes agreed to replace it on their cost. 

Such a crazy issue for a modern car to have

[Flandy]

Well that's terrifying.

[Ray112]

55 minutes ago, 4aceman said:

Such a crazy issue for a modern car to have

And let's be honest, that car must be barely holding on the road, rear tyres are good proof of how much out of alignment were wheels. There must be something knocking underneath when these arms just freely wobble around and driver should inspect tyres every then and now, so if driver didn't notice anything wrong with car and popped in just for an oil change, that's totally irresponsible attitude from driver.  

If you believe that because of extended MOT intervals this car would managed to get moving for another year, think twice. Currently it every year and still didn't stop from this happening. If people are idiots, no one can save them. 

[oldjohnny]

Sorry.  My bad.  I meant rear subframe. 

They also replaced part of the suspension which was a bonus as the workshop had not been informed that a memo had been sent fron H.Q. stating that, unlike earlier repairs, nothing else was to be fitted free other than the subframe.   What bothers me is surely this major fault didn't just begin to happen a year after its last mot.  Our mot test centres in Northern Ireland are all Government DVLA units, (no private garages) and are really stringent, so amazing that this was not evident in some way at the time, but thankful I suppose for small mercies as a two year mot could well have been funeral related.

[Ray112]

1 hour ago, oldjohnny said:

Sorry.  My bad.  I meant rear subframe. 

They also replaced part of the suspension which was a bonus as the workshop had not been informed that a memo had been sent fron H.Q. stating that, unlike earlier repairs, nothing else was to be fitted free other than the subframe.   What bothers me is surely this major fault didn't just begin to happen a year after its last mot.  Our mot test centres in Northern Ireland are all Government DVLA units, (no private garages) and are really stringent, so amazing that this was not evident in some way at the time, but thankful I suppose for small mercies as a two year mot could well have been funeral related.

Maybe car has spent most of it's life next to see side, and that obviously will increase rust issues, but few years later rest of c class will have it as well.

About MOT, possibility they didn't pay that much attention to exact part, especially since it's covered with plastic undertrays and car being not that old, but as it's becoming more common failure, most likely that area will be inspected a lot more carefully in MOT testing in future. Won't be surprised if Mercedes will announce official recall for rear subframe, because it's not normal and it is very dangerous.