Before I start, let me make it clear that I’m not slating every importer or M.O.T. testing station in the country, just those who need it.
I have been working on and testing these motors for some time now and the more work I do, the more disillusioned with the system I am becoming. I quite often get asked to look over and test drive GTOs for people who are either about to buy or who have just bought their first /second etc GTO. Something that has occured to me is that a hell of a lot of fresh imports are not really being M.O.T.’d properly. My only assumption for this is that the importers have the M.O.T. tester in their pocket. Some of these motors would never pass a genuine test in a month of Sundays and are a danger to anyone driving them and the general public at large. Here’s a small list of some of the faults I have found on motors with a recent M.O.T.
Worn and leaking shock absorbers,
Worn and clunking C.V.Joints
Brakes juddering so violently that safe braking is absolutely impossible
Worn steering racks that induce wander and unsafe road holding,
Leaking steering racks [these systems run at over 1,000 p.s.i. of pressure on load],
Worn and/or noisey wheel bearings.
O.k. a smallish list but extend that to all of those components covered on a four wheel drive sports car and alarm bells start to ring. I have even worked on one motor that had been given a full M.O.T. when the engine was a non runner due to a broken cam-belt. Can anyone explain how it passed the emissions test?
This is obviously not only limited to our motors, it must cover every range of import and not just the sports type. The reasons are blindingly obvious, the importer wants his maximum profit margin and it’s probably a damn sight easier to pay off his buddy with a few extra beer tokens than to replace a new front suspension or steering rack etc as this would cost quite a few hundred quid plus labour if done properly. By being done properly I refer to having someone who is a qualified mechanic actually fit the component, a component which is either new or in very good second hand condition and then having the vehicle set up properly to accommodate this new part, this is for suspension and steering components.
I looked at a GTO the other evening which had even undergone a test by a well known motoring agency who had failed to pick up on a dodgy gearbox £1K to overhaul], worn and faulty steering and dodgy brakes. This motor had a new M.O.T. certificate, o.k. it doesn’t cover transmission noise but the rest of the faults should have been covered. The whole reason for this post is to enlighten you, the possible first time buyer of an import of the dangers that may await you on purchasing your new pride and joy.
The M.O.T. test is supposed to make sure that the vehicle being tested is in a roadworthy condition at the time of testing, any possible future wear and tear is written as an ‘advise’ note. This means that it is your responsibility to ensure that the vehicle remains in a roadworthy condition for the remainder of the twelve months until it has its next test. There are procedures for claiming unfair testing, but let’s face it, who has ever taken their motor back and complained that it has passed the test when they didn’t think it should?
My advice to anyone buying an import, especially one which has been recently imported and had its first test is to have it thoroughly inspected before parting with any cash, inspected by someone who not only knows the motor but who also is not related in any way at all to the company selling the motor and is willing to give a totally honest and impartial view.
The outcome of this is that I am currently putting together a list of M.O.T. testing stations which I honestly believe are continually flouting the laws of motoring and thus endangering each and every one of us, don’t forget that it’s not just the driver of that particular vehicle who is at risk, it extends to everyone who uses the roads and pavements.
You, the first time buyer will most probably be totally oblivious to most of this until you have your first M.O.T. at your local testing station twelve months down the road, at which point you will be amazed at how much your pride and joy has deteriorated in the last twelve months and how expensive the repair bill is.
I will be forwarding my report to the Department of Transport and it will include a list of importers and M.O.T. testing stations who I believe have repeatedly contravened safety checks of motors being sold to the general public. Yes, they do listen to validated claims of neglect, I can assure you of that.
Please, do take great care when buying and gather as much information as possible about the relevant type of vehicle as possible, and if your mechanical knowledge is a bit vague, get a mate or someone who does know to inspect it. By ‘a mate’ I do not mean your best buddy who can change his own oil and talk a good bit, I mean someone who really does know what they are doing.
One final point, some motors may have an M.O.T. that was given a couple of months previous to sale, especially if it has been hard to sell, vehicles do not just fall to pieces on a forecourt, well not in the way of safety that I have referred to above anyway. Just to state again that this is not a witch hunt or hate campaign against importers, just the immoral and neglegent ones who are ripping people off for thousands of pounds and endangering each and everyone out there.
Mark.