MOT vs. Rust...

[Spinal]

I need to get the Shogun MOT'ed but before I waste £50 I need some advice.

The rear wheel arches are VERY rusty (like, a 1-inch wide hole on one side and a half-inch, by 6 inch long hole on the other). The rust coincides with the plastic wheel-arch trims and is hidden (mostly) by these...

They are not on the same panel as the seatbelt mounts, but are within 12-inches of the mounts.

Is this criteria for an mot failure? I would prefer not to spend any money on the car... but then again, I do want an MOT for another year

Any advice would be great!

M.

edit: sorry, the rust is on the inner wings... and potentially the arches as well...

 

[Roger Jones]

These may help:

MOT UK car and vehicle MOT information equipment car servicing parts and spares - mot testing

http://www.motuk.co.uk/manual/contents.htm

 

[stevesey]

Should be fine (as not structural by your description) although IIRC there is a clause about dangerous to pedestrians somewhere - any exposed sharp edges?

 

[Laurie]

I'm pretty sure that where a danger to pedestrians would exist (caused by sharp, rusty edges) a bit of duct tape will put this to rights.
Certainly worked on my old Transit when I was dealing in antiques and the margins were tight !

 

[Spinal]

There are no sharp edges which a pedestrian could reach... at least, not without getting their hand stuck in the wheel first....

The sharp edge is (quite literally) above the wheel.

Roger: I did have a read through the MOT manual - that's where I got the 12-inches from the seatbelt mount... but it doesn't state if it needs to be on the same panel...

Will try to grab some pictures...

The car really only needs to last until January... so I'm hoping I can get away with it!

M.

 

[219]

I'd think that going down to Halfords and spending £5 or £10 on some body filler and aluminium mesh would be a good enough repair on the (non structural) panel to get round any sharp edges being a problem - might not look pretty but should be legal enough to get you by .

 

[Spinal]

I found this list on the pajero club... thought someone here may find it handy! I think the filler will be the way to go... now I just need to figure out how to remove the plastic wheel-arch trims...

It all starts with the pre checks
I not seen them done for some time .....
all doors /boots must open and close
oil leaves checked on all diesel engines / petrol
cam belts advised as you - the car owner - are to keep the car/jeep in tip top condition
if the engine lets go on the test its not down to the tester / the garage
always check the easy bits
ie lights are all working
wiper blades are not split
washer bottles full
tyres inflated
there’s an old saying when I worked part time in a college - yes teaching ladies DIY mechanics

P petrol/fuel
O oil
W water
E electrics
R rubber
spend some time checking the bits you should be doing at least once a month

test started as you all know there logged on the vosa comp system
some thing asked is how long is a test ?? I have asked myself many times
and vosa will not give you a time a gestimate is 30 - 45 mins

inter checks
front/rear seat belts . seat security
( ie give them all a pull and make sure all mounting bolts are in & the bolts locking an come out all they have not got fraying or any damage to the webbing

rear fog light tell tale ABS warning ( abs warning light works as it should)

indicator / hazard switches ( ie you turn then on and off and the do as they should)

view to the front / wiper and washers ( keep stickers out of the wiper sweep area it’s called zone A / zone B ie size of a 5p in zone A (in front of you the driver) size of 10p in zone b ) washers send water to the screen and the wiper move as they should ... they don’t have to go in to park

brake pedal servo operation ( there no signs of fluid leaks . the pedal rubber in there and not to badly warn . pump the brake pedal empty the servo then start the engine the pedal should drop slightly that shows the servos working)

handbrake. Steering wheel & column ( make sure the hand brake staying in the upright /on place .. ie if taps it does not click off and the button works ... steering wheel dose not move up and down or side to side )

front doors / mirrors / horn ( front doors open and close from inn side and out and latch .. mirror is one we are often asked about most cars have 3 you only need 2 out of the 3 to pass the mot .. horn easy it got to make a nose when pressed yes if it not load then the test can fail it

exterior checks

front and rear number plates ( not to be too badly damage .. readable and not going discoloured and not hanging off right size letters )

front lamps and indicators ( they all work and show the right colour light were needed and don’t go out when tapped and are fixed solid ) this is for all lights fitted ) rev lights are not part or the mot

headlights and aim ( they work and are set within limits) limits are set on the beam tester

mirrors .front and rear shock absorbers ( as above on the mirrors .. we cheek the shockers do damp when pushed down )

front and rear tyres ( there the same size on the same axel and for damage)

rear lights . rear fogs . number plate lights ( rear light all work and the right colour rear fog light works only need the n/s/r and need to work with the dipped beam on . number plate light no white light going backwards and one out the 2 working)

stop lights ( they work when the brake pedal is pressed 1 o/s1 n/s ) upper lights are not tested

fuel tank cap ( it seals all the way round)

indicators . hazards ( they work as they should including side repeaters ware fitted)

rear doors and boot lid ( they open and close an secure in the closed position)

wipe blades ( not split or damaged and are fixed to the arm)

general condition of the vehicle ( ie no sharp edges bumper end caps fixed )

under bonnet

vehicle structure ( ie rot but as with peds the inner wing could be rotten we are looking at the chassis and mounting points)

braking system ( ie for leaks and the pipes for rot .. note if brake pipes are covered or greased / covered in under seal we are not allowed to remove it to test it ) grease all your pipes

exhaust system ( ie its not blowing and mounting are there)

steering & suspension ( nothing look damaged and rubber boots / cloves look in good condition

power steering ( the no leaks of excessive nose)

under vehicle inspection

steering inc power steering ( looking for ware and movement leaks damage poor or bad repairs)

drives shafts (if applicable) we only test front shafts / cv boots for leaks ( rear ones are not tested)

front suspension shock absorbers ( cheek for play side to side .ie 9 and 3 o clock then 12 and 6 o clock) shocks for leaks and to fail it must be dripping out not just damp )

front and rear wheel bearing ( ie play . nosey and roughness)

wheels and tyres ( damage cuts bent rims size on each axel you only need 3 quarters or the tread showing the 1.6 mm the outer or inner edge can be smooth but not showing any cord)

service brake ( ie the handbrake cables and operating leavers)

mechanical brake components ( pads must have more than 1.5 mm on pipes for corrosion grease them up leaks)

fuel tank & fuel system ( no leaks all pipes fixed to the floor all filters fixed )

rear suspension inc shocks ( ware play in joints rot bushes worn shocks for leaks)

structure general vehicle condition ( rot wheel arched sharp edges )

brakes are tested in the brake rollers you can have one hand brake not working and it still pass
if you take you ped in in 4 wd you must tell them as they will use a deceleromater ...

as rot if found it all depends where it is and on the tester as for where its listed at as prescribed areas are different on most vehicles

 

[Spinal]

Update...

1. Tried jacking the car up... my jack wasn't high enough!
2. Tried jacking the car up... bottle jack failed (the orignal one for the car)
3. Run to Halfords, look for the highest jack they have... nothing that will work... (but I did get a trade card, so not a lost trip)
4. Ended up jacking the car up with my jack and some wood blocks, then putting the axle stands...
5. Remove wheel and pressure wash underarch to detach rust flakes and mud... discover 2 more small rust holes and a bit of surface rust here and there...
6. As I couldn't find my grinding disk, I took a knotted wire drill bit and removed all traces of rust I could find... fibreglassed the two (new) tiny holes and used the oxy-torch to cut around the larger hole where I couldn't properly remove the rust with the wire...
7. Applied hammerite "direct-to-rust" to seal off all exposed metal

Tomorrow I'll fill the larger hole with expanding foam filler, then fibreglass top... then more hammerite...

Hopefully by this weekend it'll be ready for the mot...

If I remember well, foglights aren't checked during the MOT right? I ask because I seem to have "forgotten" my foglights in the mud last time I was offroading

After the MOT I still need to refit some foglights, put in the new horn (a stebel nautilus... one of the twin OEM horns has failed so sounds... diseased) and fit some door/petrol locks...

Oh yeah, finish painting the roof and putting vinyls My application for the rally was submitted last week... so I'm holding my breath and keeping my fingers crossed!

M.

 

[KillerHERTZ]

Any pics m8?

 

[Spinal]

Picture... sure:

Sorry, couldn't resist

I walked to work today (I blame the sun... the sun made me do it... It wasn't my fault... please oh please don't make me do it again!) so I don't have the shoggy here...

I'll get some pics tonight before I close the larger hole... I'm very temped to weld it, just to practice what I'm learning... Only thing is, it's right next to the plastic trim - and I don't want to remove that as it's held on by some pretty large pop-rivets that I'm not sure I would be able to buy anywhere but at a dealership...

The finish on the rest looks pretty good - good enough in fact to look almost new!

M.

 

[Adam230K]

How bizarre! You seem to know the laws about xenons but not rust!

 

[Spinal]

I never claimed to be a lawyer I just look up the law when I'm unsure of where I stand...

Regarding the fog-lamps, it appears that the rear ones are checked, but the front ones are not (though there is some debate over whether they should be working if fitted).

The only reason I "know" the xenon law is that I bothered spending quite a bit of time reading about it in as much detail as possible... I'm young(ish) and drive some pretty nice cars... I get pulled over (alot). Hence, I can't afford to be on the wrong side of the law!

M.

 

[Spinal]

As promised

You can see the black hammerite on the left... tonight I'm going to do that large hole and the post another pic...

as you can see - the panel behind the hole is actually in good condition...

 

[wemorgan]

If I remember well, foglights aren't checked during the MOT right? I ask because I seem to have "forgotten" my foglights in the mud last time I was offroading

As far as I can tell from here fog lights are included in the MoT.

 

[renault12ts]

As far as I can tell from here fog lights are included in the MoT.

Correct, front fogs are not checked. Rear fogs are.

 

[Spinal]

Finished it yesterday... it's not pretty (the MIG welder I have it worthless I've decided) and I couldn't find my ginding disk, so I used a wire-brush attachement to smooth it... so you can immagine how ugly it looks... but at least it's not rusty anymore!

I ended up welding 3 strips of metal (actually 3 nails); then glueing some alu mesh behind, and finally making a putty out of fibreglass (i.e. I took some old fibreglass matting, tore it to shreds and mixed it with the resin... then added hardener as needed in batches... the Halfords body filler was too expensive) and filled the hole... Finally painted it over with hammerite...

Without further ado:

(sorry for the image quality, couldn't find my camera so used my phone)

M.