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Welcome to the Aston Workshop news section. This section will update regularly, enabling you to keep up to date of changes and new information relating to the Aston Workshop and the Aston Martin Marque.
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Q: What should I check to ensure my car passes its annual MoT?
A: The key elements of the MoT cover Structural integrity, Suspension and Steering, Braking Systems, Engine emissions, (for vehicles manufactured before 1975) Lighting and indicators, Wipers/washers, Horn, Seats and safety belts, Windscreen, wheels and tyres.
Apart from engine emissions testing, the essentials of the test are common for all vehicles, though the tester must ensure that the assessment is against what was required of a vehicle at the time it was originally manufactured. One example of this was the need for brake lights which are not required for a pre 1920 vehicle. Another is that any car manufactured prior to 1965 did not require seat belts and if built in 1985 or later, must be fitted with rear seat belts if applicable. However, if they are fitted, then even though the belts were non-standard, they must still be fully serviceable.
Much of the structural and mechanical assessment of the steering, suspension etc cannot be undertaken without the car being suspended on a lift. This the average owner cannot usually check for himself, although any undue play in the steering, wandering and heavy vibration should raise concerns as to whether it will pass the MoT. However, the most common failures are often those which you as the owner can check for yourself. For example, do both headlamps work and does the dip switch function as it should. Are the windscreen wipers and washer functional? Do the brake lights come on and are the indicators fully serviceable?
A car will be failed if the windscreen has a stone chip in the driver’s normal arc of vision. Again, it is a simple check and if the windscreen isn't cracked, these can be remedied in situ. For pre-1975 cars, the emissions check is simply to ensure that there is no undue exhaust gas smoke or fumes which would clearly indicate a badly worn and/or tuned engine. Thereafter, a progressively stricter test is applied for NOX, lambda, and CO, depending on the age of the car. Checking these requires specialist emission testing equipment.
Wheels and Tyres are another common item on which a car can be failed. The security of the wheel spokes should be routinely checked anyway, but again, evidence of broken spokes will be another failure item. A concern which was raised by a fatal accident with an MGB, concerns the age of the tyres. Tyres may have plenty of tread remaining but any evidence of cracking in the walls of the tyre, bulges and cuts are instant failure items. In addition, tyre age and any tyre over 6 years if fitted and 3 years if it has not been fitted must be regarded as suspect. The MGB in the fatal accident had "new" old stock tyres of 7 or 8 years. They looked fine but they failed when stressed with fatal results. Given the performance available with Aston Martin cars, can you take the risk? Another failure item is the fitting of tyres whose performance rating is not consistent with the performance of the car. As a general rule, any post-war Aston should be fitted with VR rated tyres or better.
Finally new rules concerning testing now require the testing station to pre-book cars. This means you must book the test in advance. Tests can be undertaken up to a month prior to the current MoT expiry date, but then be post dated to that date.
In most cases these simple things can be rapidly checked at home and faults remedied prior to taking the car to an MoT testing station. This will avoid having the inconvenience and embarrassment of having to bring the car back for retest at additional expense.
Remember, there is no reminder system in place to ensure that the MoT is current. The police now have the ability to check if the car is insured, licensed and tested on line using number plate recognition systems. It is your responsibility as the owner to ensure that you remain "legal".
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