Garage Misdiagnosis: Error or Rip-Off??

YorkshireBloke · #1 11th April 2017, 07:50 PM

Hi All,

You may have read my thread on pre-MOT test today 11.4.17.

I had a new battery fitted and the friendly guys told me the 2 rears were "below MOT standard".

Today:- would pass, advisory (same as last year's MOT).

I paid for an inspection and got an estimate for suspension rebuild, MOT potential failure on anti roll bar bush.

Today:- "hardly worth mentioning bushes, don't recommend doing but have to say on form".

Belts over age but under mileage, need changing to avoid doom, destruction and poverty....

Previous inspection by some pals, looking down at belt say... Well, they look fine to us...

I am confused, is this just business? The MOT station today does LOTS of trade MOT testing, not looking for repairs but has a massive reputation for failing anything that needs failing (their mortgages depend on keeping MOT work...).

Where the garage gets work the worse it is...... The worse it is!

Am I too cynical??

Mechanics; defend your trade!

Robert

ainarssems · #2 11th April 2017, 07:59 PM

Why do you go for pre -MOT test? You have to pay for pre-test and then for MOT itself. I just go for MOT and if there is something that needs doing I have 10 working days to fix it and go for a free re-test. I don't even bother doing any checks myself before MOT apart from making sure all lights work.

As far as the bushes go it's down to the tester, they may look deteriorated but still be perfectly safe. I have had rear bushes as advisory 1 year then nothing for the next 2 years from the same MOT tester.

YorkshireBloke · #3 11th April 2017, 08:54 PM

Hi,

I went for the pre test 'cos I am so stressed about the potential problems and need to totally cover my back.

MOT not due until May: Wedding in July.

One Man, Two Mistresses...

Robert

sarg · #4 11th April 2017, 10:35 PM

I see absolutely no point in paying for a 'pre-test' a month before it's due, anything else could go awry in the next month.

As for your mates "looking down at belt say... Well, they look fine to us", are you serious???

Don't mess about with schedule for changing belts, it really is not worth it, can't actually believe anyone on this forum would even contemplate it

Personally, I would never go to a MOT station with a reputation for passing anything, the whole point of the test is to find faults I might have missed myself. It's not happened for a long while, apart from a blown horn fuse fixed at the MOT station, but I'd rather have a professional second opinion, not a dodgy tester that will ignore stuff.

steamship · #5 11th April 2017, 10:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ainarssems

I just go for MOT and if there is something that needs doing I have 10 working days to fix it and go for a free re-test.

I was going to say we're lucky in Northern Ireland because we get 21 days to rebook, but then you added the 'free re-test'. We have the added luxury of paying another £18.50 for a re-test.

Quote:

Originally Posted by YorkshireBloke

I am so stressed about the potential problems and need to totally cover my back.

If you'll pardon the expression, it's not worth stressing about. Just learn to love your car for what it is... an Audi A8.

I just posted in another thread in the D3 section about front suspension and pinch bolts. My D2 is up for the MOT on Thursday and I left it with the mechanic last night to do all the full front suspension. After a full day of hammering, drilling, heating and whatever else, he calls me with the news about the pinch bolt problem (a common problem it seems). Anyways, I ended up having to order a front hub from A8parts. Cost me £130 and hope to get it by Thursday, but could have cost me around £400 new and taken longer to arrive.

I'd prefer to still have the £130 in the bank, but I'd much prefer to have my A8 back on the road.

MikkiJayne · #6 11th April 2017, 11:03 PM

Pinch bolts have become an annual service item for me. Take them out and re-grease on steel uprights, replace on alloy ones. Did your hub get damaged or is the bolt just stuck?

I learned to work on cars in the first place because I couldn't find a mechanic I could trust. Now I have become the mechanic who other people trust. Hmm...

steamship · #7 11th April 2017, 11:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikkiJayne

Pinch bolts have become an annual service item for me. Take them out and re-grease on steel uprights, replace on alloy ones. Did your hub get damaged or is the bolt just stuck?

I learned to work on cars in the first place because I couldn't find a mechanic I could trust. Now I have become the mechanic who other people trust. Hmm...

The bolt is just stuck, or what is left of it is.

I had actually printed off the instructions for doing it from the Audipages site and even bought a 'pickle fork', but after reading through it a couple of times decided it was beyond what I'm willing to attempt, especially since it would be done outside in whatever weather. I have to say that I've done a lot more on my car than I would ever have attempted before, but there were just too many 'bits' involved with this one. Maybe next time.

Adrian E · #8 12th April 2017, 03:13 PM

Since I work in this area, albeit on the legislative side I'll post some thoughts that might be useful.

The annual MOT is only a snapshot of a vehicle's condition at the absolute moment it is presented for test. You could drive it out of the lane, have a bulb fail that was working when inspected, and potentially leave the garage with an unroadworthy vehicle unless they spot it. Likewise a part that it marginal in terms of wear may pass the MOT but any sensible person would accept that the level of wear present may warrant early replacement, not waiting till it potentially fails a future MOT, or makes the car unroadworthy (i.e. dangerous and/or in breach of Construction and Use Regs).

On your specific points:

Quote:

Originally Posted by YorkshireBloke

I had a new battery fitted and the friendly guys told me the 2 rears were "below MOT standard".

Today:- would pass, advisory (same as last year's MOT).

MOT - The check for tread depth is a minimum of 1.6mm over 75% of the tyre's width, with no exposed cord. Heavy wear on the outer edges is allowed so long as no cord exposed. They will measure with a depth gauge.

My view - that's a very low standard to be running a tyre down to to be marginal at MOT - in wet weather the available braking and steering effort will be much reduced as the tyre is wide enough to struggle to clear the water. Change tyres at 3mm unless heavy wear in one area dictates earlier. If they're not wearing despite use, look at the age of them (4 digit code 01-52 for week followed by short year so 0510 = week 5 of 2010). They're probably hard as nails and offer little grip.

Quote:

Originally Posted by YorkshireBloke

MOT potential failure on anti roll bar bush.

Today:- "hardly worth mentioning bushes, don't recommend doing but have to say on form".

Bush wear has to be extreme to be an MOT failure. If there's no knocking then no major issue to leave it. If your pre-MOT was done on a wheels free hoist (i.e. wheels dangling in the air) then you can't test the suspension or rubber components in the suspension, as it needs load on the car and shaker plates to see any wear.

Quote:

Originally Posted by YorkshireBloke

Belts over age but under mileage, need changing to avoid doom, destruction and poverty....

Previous inspection by some pals, looking down at belt say... Well, they look fine to us...

Looking at a belt is pointless. It will only look less than happy moments before it completely fails, unless it's so aged that the internal ribs start to crack and fall apart. It is more likely if the belts were done a long time ago that the tensioners will fail before the belt anyway. The only belt you can see without removing covers is the auxiliary drive belt for the power steering, air-con etc. The cambelt is fully covered. Stretching on time grounds can be OK if it was all done properly last time and your usage isn't extreme. Cambelts commonly fail when the engine/weather is cold as that's when the greatest load is on them. If stretching on time, don't go anywhere near the mileage limit as well.

I agree with comments above that the best form of pre-MOT is take it in 1 month before it expires and get a 13 month ticket if it passes. Treat any advisories as potential work items to be done at leisure, depending on severity. There's a lot on a car that isn't even looked at at MOT, though.

Be aware that a vehicle can be unroadworthy at any point after an MOT and it will potentially be an offence if stopped even with a 'valid' MOT, which ceases to be valid.

Turbo Tony · #9 12th April 2017, 03:52 PM

Fantastic response, Adrian.

briang9 · #10 12th April 2017, 11:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Adrian E

I agree with comments above that the best form of pre-MOT is take it in 1 month before it expires and get a 13 month ticket if it passes. Treat any advisories as potential work items to be done at leisure, depending on severity. There's a lot on a car that isn't even looked at at MOT, though.

Be aware that a vehicle can be unroadworthy at any point after an MOT and it will potentially be an offence if stopped even with a 'valid' MOT, which ceases to be valid.

great advice as always from Adrian, I do this with our family fleet, my mechanic does a pre mot check, picks it up, and brings it back for a tenner over the MOT cost