New EU MOT rules on the UK from tomorrow

[maingate]

I agree with some of what you say David (is that a first?).

A lot of big 4 x 4 vehicles are permanent 4WD albeit with some fancy addons. They consume more fuel and tend to wear tyres quicker. Why they have done away with manually selecting 4WD (or the low range) is beyond me. The fact is that they are now just posing machines for tossers and are unsuitable for offroad use. Look how many got stuck in the snow despite the advances in technology.

I also drove off road extensively overseas. The truth is that I did not need 4WD very much but it was essential at times.

I would slam these Chelsea Tractors with high duty, no matter how 'clean and green' it is.

 

[Techno100]

Mine`s in 2 weeks today , we`ll see how it goes , i always stay and watch.

I`m trying a new MOT Station this year after the " FIASCO " last year with the AL-KO Handbrake.

Mine passed last week but they said my handbrake is right on the pass line of 60% What was the fiasco you had?

 

[mark61]

Vehicles with these safety features should also have a huge boxing glove behind the sun visa. Safety feature activated followed by a whack round the head.

Saying that I did have a chance to thoroughly muck about on empty Swedish roads with loads of snow. ESP is amazing.

Permanent 4x4 or part time 4x4, doesn't make that much difference if any.

 

[Wooie1958]

Mine passed last week but they said my handbrake is right on the pass line of 60% What was the fiasco you had?

Mine flew through as well this year ( April 2nd ) , however last year was a Joke

The MOT station i used to use had MOT`d the van from it`s first one at 3 years old to date ( 3 in total ) so they knew the van well and
always commented on it`s condition.

Last year they said it had failed on the Handbrake ( just ) and came in at 17% ( ? ) so while it was there they lifted it up on the Main Ramp
and i had a look underneath with the Owner ( MOT tester ) and we saw that one side of the Handbrake Cable had almost seized.

There was what looked like a split in the cable and moisture had probably got in and rusted it.

To cut a VERY VERY long story short..........they then spent 2 weeks trying to fit numerous Peugeot Handbrake Cables to a ALKO Chassis
despite me telling them it was a ALKO cable that would be needed.

The first ALKO cable they fit they put on completely wrong and had it tangled around the top and back of the shocks which cut into the
cable and rust started in that one as well.

The second cable ( Overnight Couriered ) from ALKO after a 8 day delay due to being shipped from Germany went on OK.

Whilst having the van in and out of the garage 3 times to sort this out the managed to damage the step twice and catch the Awning on
the door frame.

The reason they gave was that they had never seen or worked on a Motorhome with a ALKO Chassis before.......*ollocks

This garage is in the " MMM Recommened Book " of Garages and MOT stations.

I E-mailed the MMM at the time ( last year ) but i`ve not even had so much as an Acknowledgement of them.

 

[mark61]

Yes, you are right, it's all about the tyres. A 4x4 with low profiles is going no where in the snow.

I have BF Goodrich AT tyres which are M&S, not a strictly a winter tyre as they are not a soft compound, but are legal everywhere that requires winter tyres by law, provided they have adequate tread.(5mm + I think?) I regard them as a "jack of all trades" tyre, and are known for their longevity. I sell mine when they reach 50000 miles.
Funny enough AT tyres are generally much better in soft snow then proper winter tyres, but obviously nowhere near as good on wet/icy roads.

I was very impressed with ESP. Having the opportunity to play with it safely on open roads was an eye opener, it reacts so quickly and it really does know where you wanted to go, I would never believe it if I hadn't tried myself. ESP indeed. Yet I still don't like the thought of a computer having so much control. lol. But as you say, I did have reasonable tyres for the situation. I wouldn't have got that far up North on the tyres most UK 4x4's are fitted with.

Hill decent is another subject, scary.

 

[Techno100]

Thanks very much for your time :cheers:

 

[iveco4x4]

Have a 22 year old truck - what ABS / Airbag / traction control etc etc

I do have Front & rear difflock lights + 4x4 light, I'm hguessing they won't be checking those

Rich

 

[mark61]

Have a 22 year old truck - what ABS / Airbag / traction control etc etc

I do have Front & rear difflock lights + 4x4 light, I'm hguessing they won't be checking those

Rich

Who needs traction control when you have a proper 4x4.

My next one will be proper too

 

[hextal]

Who needs traction control when you have a proper 4x4.

My next one will be proper too

A while back the head of ktm was asked why the rc8 didn't have traction control when many similar sports bikes did. His response was 'why do you need traction control if you have traction'.

I just quite liked that as a response.

 

[Teutone]

A while back the head of ktm was asked why the rc8 didn't have traction control when many similar sports bikes did. His response was 'why do you need traction control if you have traction'.

I just quite liked that as a response.

what a stupid response from KTM. Well you might not need a traction control because your engine hasn't go enough power??

Like Enzo Ferrari.Aerodynamics? That's for people who can't build powerful engines.

 

[hextal]

what a stupid response from KTM. Well you might not need a traction control because your engine hasn't go enough power??

Like Enzo Ferrari.Aerodynamics? That's for people who can't build powerful engines.

And breathe........

His point was that tc is all well and good but you only need it when losing traction. If the chasis is well set up then you will have more traction without the need of tc.

A couple of the bike mags ran the bike against the new ducati panigale with full multi setting tc and concurred. basically the bike with no tc was faster and more stable because it was set up better.

The point im trying to get at is that these things can add benefit but seem to be used to make up for low rider/driver skill and poor car/bike setup.

I feel like im having to have more kit cos other people are bad at driving.

 

[Bigpeetee]

I browsing in the motoring section of our public library a few months ago, I spotted a Hayne's Manual for the Ford Cortina MKIV, I used to own the estate version, I thumbed through the book, there were no references to ABS, ECU, EBS or any of the the troublesome Gizmos which plague our present day vehicles. The manual was printed on proper paper, not the recycled loo paper the latest ones are printed on, and the photos were crisp and clear. Those halcyon days of uncomplicated motoring.....OK, I'll concede that I used to have to change the over head cam and followers every 20K miles.

Didn't they also have a section on repairing rusty holes??

As they got older they went faster as the body weight reduced due to the tin worm.

Very good car for the time and mine didn't destroy the valves when the timing belt went.

 

[Smaug]

Who needs traction control when you have a proper 4x4.

My next one will be proper too

Take care with 4x4's the apparent good traction can be an illusion as it can all go pear shaped very quickly when cornering or braking - and very badly pear shaped if you are daft enough to do both at the same time!

It's back to the false confidence you can get when the car does the thinking for you.

 

[mark61]

Was really referring to off roading, where traction control is just a mickey mouse attempt to do replace difflocks.
But yes, it is true, some 4x4 drivers assume just because they can go, they can also stop.

 

[Teutone]

the good old days with no electronics or drivers aids. It was soooo good.

Hmmmm, was it? Imagine such an engine today.
-- high fuel consumption
-- high emissions
-- low power
-- bad drivability (compared to todays engines)
-- relative short life span (compared to todays engines)
-- short service intervals

I think some people have to take the rose tinted glases off when looking at the old stuff. Don't get me wrong, I would love to have less complicated stuff under the bonnet which I can repair myself.
BUT I also like to drive a 170bhp big estate car with a load of comfort, very little service (Oilchange every 19000 miles!) AND 50mpg+ economy. 200k+ miles on the clock and still running well.
Switching my heated seats on in the winter, nice cool air con in the summer, nice and quite on long runs.....

How's about that?

Sure the downside is that IF something goes major wrong, you will have to face big bills. Or even a write off! But there is the option of warrantee......

 

[Smaug]

Hhhhmmm, I have a 1981 car that has ABS, Cruise control & fuel injection, but it cost around 50 grand new! So not exactly yer average motor.

 

[hextal]

Don't get me wrong. The idea of kick starting a 1200 twin would not appeal particularly. Im certainly not against all things electric. Its just that we appear to have gone past useful and into bizarre.

Automatic wipers, parking assist, lane drift warning, automatic braking. If a person feels they need these things then i honestly don't think they should really be on the road.

 

[mark61]

Have a 68 Citroen HY van I picked up in France last year, with a bit of luck may even pass MOT this week. These vans were well passed their sell by date even in the 60's. VW T2's, Transits, were light years ahead. No wonder only the French bought them. :lol-053:
no servo, no windscreen washers, no self parking wipers, no self cancelling indicators, about 30hp. I love it. LOL

But I also appreciate the luxuries of a modern van.

 

[QFour]

I suppose that if we switched to 24 month MOT's then there would only be HALF the income that is generated at the moment. This would put a number of MOT Stations out of business and increase the number of people out of work. If on the other hand we had one every 6 months it would DOUBLE the number of MOT's and therefore provide thousands more jobs in the service industry ... Hmmmmmm hope know one of any inportance in the Government read this .. :dance:

 

[Teutone]

You need my ex-mechanic as a manual starter! Grabbing a 996 at the exhaust ends and off he goes overtunring 12.7:1 Compression! Not quite the norm, I know but still an impressive view to see him push starting such a bike on his own when the rest of the grid is running around with motorised power rollers. (Pilot in the saddle of course)