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spotland5 · Joined: 27 Mar 2006 Posts: 2 Location: grtr manchester

I took my wifes car for it,s test, the garage phoned later that day and said it had failed. I asked why,the reply was "there is a small hole in the offside sill",but dont worry I can weld a patch over it and it will be fine, we will do it first thing in the morning. When I went to collect it I was given the pass ticket and the fail ticket,when I looked at the fail ticet it said failed due to "001 offside sill suspension component mounting prescribed area is excessively corroded(2.4.A.2) also 002 offside sill seatbelt anchorage prescribed area is excessively corroded (5.1.b.6). Now I am not a mechanic but how does a small hole become excessive corrosion in two prescribed areas?.When I asked them this all they would say was"we have only charged you £37-50 labour,£1 for materials and vat, whats your problem?. £1 pound material to fix excessive corrossion I dont think so. I spoke to the local VOSA office and told them I thought I had been charged for work that did not need doing they were not interested.I think I have been conned. Another thing that bothers me is that with the new computerised test anyone can log on to VOSA and find it shows the car was excessively corroded,which gives it the kiss of death for selling it, what is your opinion?

garethgas · Joined: 05 Oct 2005 Posts: 43 Location: S Wales

Can you see where the work was carried out? If so you might be able to make some kind of assessment. Oddly enough my car had the exact same thing on iits last MOT and I had both sills welded on the seat belt anchorage points. Although your question is quite detailed, I'm not quite sure whether your complaining that the work hasn't been done or that it has been done but wasn't necessary. If its the latter, maybe you should have looked at the hole before they worked on it. Easy with hindsight I know.
Other than that, I'd be quite happy if that was the only thing wrong with my car!
Garethgas

paulm34 · Joined: 08 Apr 2006 Posts: 7

Hi im an mot tester and by looking at what he has put on the failure doc sounds about right. Because when we use the mot computer to find the failed parts it only gives you certain sentences. If the corrosion on your car is in a prescibed area of the seat belt, it means its in an area of 30cm around the seat belt (in this case the sill) It can be a small hole or a great big one but it will still be listed as excessive corroded. Hope this helps Very Happy

wilko the vanman · Joined: 28 Jul 2006 Posts: 12 Location: lincolnshire

Your right about the kiss of death on selling. I recently took one of my classic cars for MoT which is almost mint condition. However I got a list of advisories as long as your arm. I wont bore you with all the details, but some the classics were.

1. Play in Track control arms. The TCA's on an Anglia are sprung loaded and this is what he was referring too. The best bit was he asked me if they were sprung loaded and I said yes they were designed like that.
2. Oil mist on rear shocks. The Anglia has lever arms shocks and the oil to which he referred was on the arms not the body of the shock. I later looked and found it to be axle oil from a previous now repaired diff leak. The oil mist was a perfect line on the floor from one side of vehicle to the other.
3. Drivers seat (which tips forward for access) not secured. Show me a bloody 105E Anglia with locking seats. Was never made like that.

There was a whole host of things like that. Now I'm new to the area I live in, so I asked other classic car owners who did they take their cars too and this guy came recommended. I can only assume I was the first one locally to take mine a computerised test, as I'm sure they wont be returning when they get the same treatment. The MoT testers response when I pulled him up on all this was. "I'm just covering myself".
I cannot type my response to him on here.