Don't buy French , Italian or 'Pacific-Rim' ...

[219]

Not if you want your cars to keep passing their MOT !

The MoT Files: Bottom 50 MoT performers | Good Garages | Honest John


At least no Mercs in the bottom 50 :bannana:

 

[V12]

Good showing for the 212 e class here :
The MoT Files: The first MoT - top 10 cars | Good Garages | Honest John

 

[moonloops]

Don't buy French , Italian or 'Pacific-Rim' ...

I will take the DVD's back

 

[markjay]

It is not very scientific blaming the marques...

You could very well argue that people who buy cheap second-hand cars are not likely to willingly invest in the vehicle's servicing or maintenance.

If this assumption is correct, then this will see fast depreciating cars at the bottom of the MOT fail list, and slow depreciating cars at the top.

Of course, you could argue the opposite - that the MOT failing cars are crap and theretofore depreciate quickly...

And then this could be a compound relationship, where both assumptions are correct and this spirals the cars' value downwards and it deteriorates even faster...

What we need is a proper randomised test with a control group

(I studied this at Uni 30 years ago - experimentation and research methodology )

 

[Deleted96908]

Whereas AutoCar carried a report last week stating that Warranty Direct rates French people carriers as the most reliable:

and you are right of course >>

It is not very scientific blaming the marques...

You could very well argue that people who buy cheap second-hand cars are not likely to willingly invest in the vehicle's servicing or maintenance.

If this assumption is correct, then this will see fast depreciating cars at the bottom of the MOT fail list, and slow depreciating cars at the top.

Of course, you could argue the opposite - that the MOT failing cars are crap and theretofore depreciate quickly...

And then this could be a compound relationship, where both assumptions are correct and this spirals the cars' value downwards and it deteriorates even faster...

What we need is a proper randomised test with a control group

(I studied this at Uni 30 years ago - experimentation and research methodology )

But for a true measure of reliability, head off to somewhere remote and see the cars they run there - London minicab firm should do it

 

[markjay]

I used to work in Africa... most taxis were old Mercs of some description - W110 and W115 were among the favourites - then over the years the Mercs slowly disappeared and the taxis became mostly Toyotas or Nissans. Not sure what they are these days - Koreans? Chinese?

 

[boxbrownie]

I used to work in Africa... most taxis were old Mercs of some description - W110 and W115 were among the favourites - then over the years the Mercs slowly disappeared and the taxis became mostly Toyotas or Nissans. Not sure what they are these days - Koreans? Chinese?

Still Japanese.............

 

[Deleted96908]

I used to work in Africa... most taxis were old Mercs of some description - W110 and W115 were among the favourites - then over the years the Mercs slowly disappeared and the taxis became mostly Toyotas or Nissans. Not sure what they are these days - Koreans? Chinese?

Depends when and where you were in Africa. In North Africa (Egypt, Libya) Peugeots were widely used until the early 80s. Nothing could touch a 504 on those rutted roads. Many a trip to the airport in Cairo in one of those bouncing along. Also Fiat 131 climatizzazione (sp?) and thousands of Seats. British Expats, if they worked for the Embassy, tended to import their own on a temporary carnet, avoiding hideous levels of import tax. Lots of Russian military vehicles in Egypt too. Thought nothing of almost being killed by loons driving camo'd Russian 4x4s. Got photos somewhere, I'll try and dig them out.

Further south, in Sudan for example, Fiats and Toyotas were widely used. We had dozens of Cressidas in metallic light blue in our pool. Rarely saw a Merc (other than G Wagens) unless you worked next to the German Embassy, as I did. Although, bless him, one enterprising local had an Aston Martin Lagonda squirrelled away in his 'garage'. Anybody who spent time in Sudan in the 80s will know how crazy that would have looked. Much the same story in Uganda, Eritrea and Ethiopia, although I spent less time there, so not so clear in my mind.

 

[219]

If you spent time in Uganda , wasn't Idi something of a Merc fan ?

I believe he had a number of 600's

 

[Dieselman]

If you spent time in Uganda , wasn't Idi something of a Merc fan ?

I believe he had a number of 600's

Mercedes are endorsed to pass the UK MOT test by no less than Idi Amin...

 

[Deleted96908]

If you spent time in Uganda , wasn't Idi something of a Merc fan ?

I believe he had a number of 600's

Preceded my time there by 2 or 3 years thankfully - but I was in Egypt when Sadat was assassinated and in Sudan when Numeri imposed Sharia Law, including bulldozing all known booze into the Nile. Now that was fun. As to their love or otherwise of Mercedes, no idea.

But I did see some interesting things in Jeddah, working at MODA (Ministry of Defence and Aviation). Roofs that parted Thunderbird style to allow gold plated piston elevators (lifts) through on to the helideck and other stuff, which let's just say, makes a mockery of some of the things the regime there imposes on its citizens.

GK Chesteron's 'I may not practice...' springs to mind.

 

[grober]

The thing that seems to put old Mercs off the road with MOT failure is not mechanical--- its body corrosion. Perhaps the reason all these old Mercs survive in warmer climates is down to the lack of moisture and road salt? You don't see modern Mercs more than a few years old to the same extent now because they have become too complicated and third world countries lack the dealer infrastructure to repair them when they go wrong. This is even true in Europe but to a lesser extent. We are now entering the era when MOT testers will start failing cars on the basis of warning lights showing [ signifying a problem obviously] Usually this will mean the replacement of some expensive electronic box of tricks and the necessity of coding it to integrate into the rest of the car's systems to merely extinguish a bulb!

 

[Dieselman]

Usually this will mean the replacement of some expensive electronic box of tricks and the necessity of coding it to integrate into the rest of the car's systems to merely extinguish a bulb!

I think you will find the warning lamp is simply an indication of a fault, not the cause.

 

[grober]

I think you will find the warning lamp is simply an indication of a fault, not the cause.

You misunderstood what I was saying I think. Wasn't trying to argue cause and effect merely the stark reality being
Warning light illuminated = MOT fail

 

[219]

Mercedes are endorsed to pass the UK MOT test by no less than Idi Amin...

If such a thing as an MOT test , or equivalent , existed in Uganda - could you imagine what would happen if a tester dared to fail Idi's car ?

 

[Dieselman]

If such a thing as an MOT test , or equivalent , existed in Uganda - could you imagine what would happen if a tester dared to fail Idi's car ?

Yep. He would probably have got a ride in the boot of Idi's Citroen SM...

Oops...Franco-italian, but one of his favourite models of car...having seven of them.

 

[Charles Morgan]

Which came first, the SMs or the madness?

 

[nick mercedes]

Not if you want your cars to keep passing their MOT !

The MoT Files: Bottom 50 MoT performers | Good Garages | Honest John


At least no Mercs in the bottom 50 :bannana:

That's because they've all gone rusty and been scrapped.

 

[Meldrew2]

I think you will find the warning lamp is simply an indication of a fault, not the cause.

Concievably in the future a car could even be it's own mot tester - green lightk to drive, red light: engine immobilised, get car repaired.

 

[219]

Concievably in the future a car could even be it's own mot tester - green lightk to drive, red light: engine immobilised, get car repaired.

Didn't the Americans start down that road with cars that wouldn't start until you closed the doors , buckled up , blew into the breathalyser etc ?

Then they had these crazy seat belts that fitted round the doors and you stepped into them - as if putting a normal one on was too hard .