Hi all,
My Rex is due for it\'s first MOT at the end of the month.
Being Catless, I understand the best thing to do is to hit Thames Valley who "understand" RX7\'s....
My main question is around the wheel arch liners. The front liners appear to be worn away at the front edge, I guess from heavy spring compression under hard steering. Is this an MOT requirement (I seem to remember there should be no fouling of the wheels, although there is nothing to foul against now...).
Other than that I need to replace my foglight switch with one that works, but I should be good to go.
Any advice ? Do Thames Valley also "understand" that 18" alloys sometimes do interesting things to arch liners ?? Can I neatly cut away some remaining arch liner to make a neat edge and claim it\'s for airflow to the brakes ?? :cool
Help most appreciated.
ATB, Craig
wouldn\'t think the wheel arch liner will make any difference to the MOT afaik :)
IMHO mate, when ya phone ol Dave up just ask him if he can get the bits n fit them for ya while ya down and if not get the bits (switch etc) yaself and same thing hehe
He\'s real nice and real helpful, just say that ya from MRC and tell him ya probs and he\'ll help ya out :)
I got pulled up at the MOT and was made aware that the wheel on my car had touched the inner liner (it was a bit out before I had it tracked) but said it was fine as he couldn\'t make it foul while on the ramps.
but it wasn\'t a fail just a advisory note.
The foglight is only a requirement for the SVA you\'ll find I think. I don\'t have one and mine passed the MOT
I don\'t think the wheel arche liner is either, as long as the wheels spins cleanly on the ramp it will be fine imo
The fog light is part of the test BTW ... unless you have a very slack garage (naughty naughty) it will fail
Mike
I always understood it to be only part of the SVA, its never needed one for the MOT ?
are you sure ? wheres Dave when you need him ?
my Dad works for the VI ... I\'m very sure ;)
Definatly needs a rear fog.
..my car is due it\'s MOT at the end of August...my concern is the fact it runs rich and i\'m wondering how that will effect the emissions test....
...any ideas??
Marc
leggy - it will effect the emissions but pass or fail will depend on what year the car is and how rich it\'s running. Almost all FDs run rich at idle.
Mine recently sailed through it\'s test but it\'s a \'92 on a j-plate so has the non-cat test. You may need to find a \'friendly\' mot station or borrow an apexi and set it for \'good\' emissions (a search should throw up a post or 2 about this).
Iain
...mines is a 1994 L plate, rebuilt engine(last year)...running with a straight thru pipe and de-cat...standard ECU though....
...all my work is normally done at the Garage in Wishaw, maybe one of the locals could shed some light for me...Bobster,Robbie..Donato...
All advice welcome.
Marc
Just to point something out to you guys (and I\'m not trying to rain on your parade) :-
1) Fog lamp is essential for an MOT.
2) If your car is pre July/August \'92 (eg on a J plate) then you can remove the CAT, however you must still have your emissions down to less than 2.5%(CO)
3) If this guy is handing out dodgy MOTs then you are running a big risk and so is he. The authorities have the power to do roadside emissions tests, if you fail then your in big trouble as it invalidates your MOT which means your insurance wont be valid either! If this guy is claiming to \'understand\' Rex\'s, whats to say he wont \'understand\' when a car comes through with a dodgy brake system, or a crack in the widscreen?
Be carefull chaps, the police are starting to crack down on \'have no CAT but passed MOT\' or \'Put CAT on for MOT then take it off\'.
Its better to spend the time getting your emissions down (and it CAN be done) than go around with a dodgy MOT.
A dodgy MOT is just as bad as a fake.
>Stands back and waits for a flaming<
No one at any point has said anyone is handing out dodgy/fake MOT\'s
I\'ll obviously have to put a fog light on for the next MOT, I didn\'t realise I needed one, Mike I stand corrected thankyou :)
I have never seen any police conducting road side emissions tests, I don\'t think its something they are partulary concerned about, they are too busy hiding behind hedges with speed guns :)
No seriously they do, I\'ve been got by \'em before. They pull you over for a \'saftey\' check and get two MOT certified mechanics to go over your car with a fine tooth comb. Last time it happened was on the A24 just past broadbridge heath. They were taking 4 cars at a time (at random) and getting you to stop in the layby. Drivers were taken to an open van thingy and asked to fill in a questionaire, any problems with the cars were then reported to the police and drivers were issued with a docket to give to an MOT station, MOT guy then stamps it once work has been carried out, you then take the form to your local nick. Job done!
As for your stand on wether or not its dodgy;
QuoteBeing Catless, I understand the best thing to do is to hit Thames Valley who "understand" RX7\'s....
You have to admit that that sounds dodgy! And if he is letting cars pass that would normally fail on emissions then I was right, if he is making sure the emissions are down to the right levels then I stand correted.
I should add that 2 weeks after the road side thing some people were \'visited\' by some guys with a warrant and had their cars inspected again to ensure that the work requirred had been done.
I\'m sure it was in one of the national newspapers awhile back...
The local police round here don\'t seem to be into that, perhaps you have been unlucky if you have experienced it.
I haven\'t used Thames Valley though I have met the well respected member Dave who runs it
QuoteOriginally posted by leggysrx7
...mines is a 1994 L plate, rebuilt engine(last year)...running with a straight thru pipe and de-cat...standard ECU though....
...all my work is normally done at the Garage in Wishaw, maybe one of the locals could shed some light for me...Bobster,Robbie..Donato...
All advice welcome.
Marc
Hmm - don\'t want to sound paranoid but de-cat will usually put you close to running lean under high-load, more so if you have cat-back and a downpipe (or a jap spec pipie with no pre-cat). Would be well worth getting it on some rollers to see if that is the case - would be a shame to need a premature rebuild. If it is runnin glean you can \'justify\' the cost of an apexi and mapping - you should then be able to have both better performance and emissions.
Iain
QuoteOriginally posted by Brett
As for your stand on wether or not its dodgy;
QuoteBeing Catless, I understand the best thing to do is to hit Thames Valley who "understand" RX7\'s....
You have to admit that that sounds dodgy! And if he is letting cars pass that would normally fail on emissions then I was right, if he is making sure the emissions are down to the right levels then I stand correted. [/B]
I\'m sure what was referred to was the fact that turning on the air-con and making sure the car has had a blat before running the test (i.e. not just started). Are what\'s meant by \'understanding\'.
I\'m sure that Dave will be the 1st to point out that he does not do \'dodgy\' MOTs or bend the rules in any way. It\'s also unwise for anyone to imply that he does just in case the BiB get the wrong idea. :)
Iain
QuoteOriginally posted by iaint
You have to admit that that sounds dodgy! And if he is letting cars pass that would normally fail on emissions then I was right, if he is making sure the emissions are down to the right levels then I stand correted.
I\'m sure what was referred to was the fact that turning on the air-con and making sure the car has had a blat before running the test (i.e. not just started). Are what\'s meant by \'understanding\'.
I\'m sure that Dave will be the 1st to point out that he does not do \'dodgy\' MOTs or bend the rules in any way. It\'s also unwise for anyone to imply that he does just in case the BiB get the wrong idea. :)
Iain [/B][/QUOTE]
Very well said Iain
I\'ll shut up then.
To clear this up, I was not trying to imply any strange or underhand goings-on at Thames Valley (I\'ve never met or used them before, but have heard good things on the forum).
I have a cat, just not fitted. I also have a PFC. I understand either refitting the cat, fiddling with aircon, getting the car hot and giving it a blast, tweaking the PFC, or whatever may well get FD\'s past the test.
I also understand that some grease-monkey in garage \'X\' would not typically get any of that, and that Thames Valley apparently do.
As others have said, please don\'t start rumours floating around here, as companys survive by their reputations.
Cheers, Craig
No one really seems to understand what I\'m getting at, I\'m not trying to start romours, far from it. I\'m simply trying to pass on a warning to be careful!
You are suggesting getting your emissions down to pass the MOT, but you are then going back to your old settings afterwards (Correct?) if that is the case then your MOT is no longer Valid. Better to get your car running in such a way that it will pass checks etc without having to change settings. You may think that spot checks are few and far between, but the are on the increase, you only have to have seen the recent adverts on TV and in the motoring press to realise that these checks are going to become regular.
If you set your car up right theres no reason why emissions should be a problem. I know thats its also a long and painful journey to get your emissions right (I\'ve spent the last 6 months fiddling and tweaking and experimenting with allsorts to get mine down) but its worth doing it.
After all whats the point of doing loads of mods to the exhaust and fueling (And I know I\'m grossly generalizing here) when you know that your gonna have to either change it all back for the MOT or spend ages changing settings on ECU\'s and mixture which will then have to be put back to \'normal\' again to make the car drivable and keep the engine/turbo(s) alive for more than 1000miles.
I really probably should just but out now.:rolleyes:
QuoteOriginally posted by Brett
No one really seems to understand what I\'m getting at, I\'m not trying to start romours, far from it. I\'m simply trying to pass on a warning to be careful!
You are suggesting getting your emissions down to pass the MOT, but you are then going back to your old settings afterwards (Correct?) if that is the case then your MOT is no longer Valid. Better to get your car running in such a way that it will pass checks etc without having to change settings. You may think that spot checks are few and far between, but the are on the increase, you only have to have seen the recent adverts on TV and in the motoring press to realise that these checks are going to become regular.
If you set your car up right theres no reason why emissions should be a problem. I know thats its also a long and painful journey to get your emissions right (I\'ve spent the last 6 months fiddling and tweaking and experimenting with allsorts to get mine down) but its worth doing it.
After all whats the point of doing loads of mods to the exhaust and fueling (And I know I\'m grossly generalizing here) when you know that your gonna have to either change it all back for the MOT or spend ages changing settings on ECU\'s and mixture which will then have to be put back to \'normal\' again to make the car drivable and keep the engine/turbo(s) alive for more than 1000miles.
I really probably should just but out now.:rolleyes:
Brett
I see what you are saying and thanks for the warning, at the end of the day its people personal choice what they choose to do mods wise. Personally I beleive the police have better things to do as I said before, and even if they did make you change your non-emissions friendly performance mods, once you have them changed whose to say you won\'t put them back again
I think quite a few people on here don\'t have CATS, it is possible to tune the car to a state that it will pass the emissions test without one
I don\'t see how taking the car for a quick blast and changing a few settings or turning the air con on makes you a blatent target for the police
I don\'t think anyone changes their settings to make their car less drivable or make their turbos pop prematurely
As to why would anyone mod their cars I think you know why
yes checks will be a regular thing, I know all the test gear has appeared in our garage at the moment + the inspectors will soon have new powers to pull cars over (currently the police nead to be present to stop the cars) and marked patrol cars to pull cars/lorries in on the motorway if they see fit. (cambridgeshire already have all this in place for stopping lorries)
My point about about changing things and that affect component life was this:-
To get the emissions down generally means running a leaner mix, leaner engines are running much closer to the detontation point and the fuel burns much faster and much hotter resulting in an exponetial increase in heat, now as 13B\'s have cast Iron walls and aluminium housings the excess heat can make the different expansion values of those materials apparant (Read more wear), excessive heat build up in a turbo affects the bearings causing loads of friction (where there should ideally be a coeffiecient of friction of less than 0.2) wich causes excessive wear in very short order.
I dont recal asking why people modify, just asking them to plan for every evantuallity in their mods.
Well fair enough I am sure if the laws are enforced then the thousands of performance car owners will be changing their exhausts and getting remaps etc. I don\'t see it as a major issue, everyone does it and knows that they can be stopped and tested
Everyone can make their own choice, if you get stopped and have to get a new MOT then do the idle air con, blat thing and then show the MOT problem solved unless you are unlucky enough to be stopped again
The biggest challenge is finding a garage that wants to know or cares that Rotary engines are different, and that different rules regarding high rpm testing apply.
i.e. If you rev it to 3000 rpm as requested for every other car than a rotary, it will fail because the air pump is not running.
If you rev it at 2500 rpm with the air pump running, then the catalyst performs better, and you pass.
Mainstream MOT centres, have neither the time or inclination to understand this or check with VI what is the correct procedure.
My local MOT centre is rotary sympathetic, this does not mean my MOT is dodgy, it means they take care to listen to me, read any info I provide and work with me to get the car through the test with a pass.
Richard
Well said Richard
I am sure you are right, we all know modifying decreases the life of the engine, but everyone and I mean just about every Rx-7 owner on this forum does it :)
Discussion is going no where :D , everyone knows the score, modded Rx-7\'s are hard to get through emissions tests end of story
If you can do it great, if not change your mods :D
Notice my use of smileys, I don\'t argue on car forums so don\'t want to be drawn into one :cool :rolleyes:
Your point about about garages not want to know etc has just jogged my memory about something!
About 18months ago the section on wankel engines was removed from the MOT manual. This led to lots of head scratching around the country, for awhile a lot of places classed \'em as two strokes (so no emissions check!) but, (and theres always a bloody but) unless you are now actually running a full premix setup and have the documentation to proove it you will have to take the same test as a 4 stroke. (My MOT guy is Uber helpfull, even made a point of going to loads of seminars so he could get the official line on derestricted wankels. The ministry said that the car\'s passed the test when manufactured and so must pass the same test as everyone else\'. Guess who my MOT guy was talking to? The man who first worked on getting the RX\'s emissions down for the UK market!)
Just an interesting point,.
Just to join in the fun.....
Quote
"You are suggesting getting your emissions down to pass the MOT, but you are then going back to your old settings afterwards (Correct?) if that is the case then your MOT is no longer Valid."
This is patently untrue. The MOT is an indication of a vehicle\'s condition ON THE DAY OF THE TEST only. The certificate although valid for one year, does not guarantee satisfactory condition of the vehicle for that whole year - how could it? The condition of your vehicle may be tested at any time simply because of it\'s presence on the public highway.
See here for my understanding of emissions regs:
http://www.mazdarotaryclub.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6272
I got my 96 tested in May and they thought it was a 95 due to date on previous cert and private plate. Nevertheless they gave it the more stringent test that I was hoping to avoid but it still passed - I think because they didn\'t measure the engine speed whilest checking the emissions. Probably couldn\'t find the plug leads!!!!
I can also confirm that a rear fog light is needed for both SVA and MOT although the rules on positioning are less stringent for MOT. As an example I needed a hanging down foglight for SVA but it has now been changed to one of my reversing lights which is ok for MOT.
Does anyone know if the front lights on the RB are fogs or driving? If driving then what are the regs for having them on? Mine can be switched on with a non illuminated switch when on side lights only.
Angus
QuoteOriginally posted by rxangus
I can also confirm that a rear fog light is needed for both SVA and MOT although the rules on positioning are less stringent for MOT. As an example I needed a hanging down foglight for SVA but it has now been changed to one of my reversing lights which is ok for MOT.
Having the driver\'s side reversing light converted into a fog is fine for sva - that\'s how mine passed it\'s sva and recent MOT.
Adding to the point about people \'de-tuning\' their motors for MOT or spot-checks - I was lucky in that mine had no issues with the emissions levels (was high but just below the limit). If it was a k-plate or later the test would\'ve been stricter and it may have failed. I\'d have had no qualms with tweaking the PFC settings to get it past this though.
I do think that it\'s possible to higly tune an FD and have it meet >96 tests but it would cost a few HP and more than a few quid. High-flow cats are damn expensive!
Iain
QuoteOriginally posted by iaint
Having the driver\'s side reversing light converted into a fog is fine for sva - that\'s how mine passed it\'s sva and recent MOT.
Its not, there would of been an additional foglight on for the SVA which would of then been changed to the reversing light before you took delivery of the car.
If you actually done the SVA yourself, im prepared to be proved wrong but then you probably had a suspect SVA as im pretty sure thats not allowed.
Lee
Infact I think yours is a 92 so might not have even needed an SVA.
Guess thats me well and truly :flamed
C ya on another thread........;)
Brett
I don\'t think you have been flamed at all :)
its all good mate, discussion makes world go round :D
:D I know that mate, In the same way that I knew that first post would stir up a robust exchange of opinions! :rollin
Controversial - I like it ! :rollin
Thats the great thing about message boards, you get time to plan your answers......:evillaugh
why does veryone has better smileys than me, its annoying !
You can download sh*t loads of smilies off of the web, or theres about 30 on the side panel when you write your post (click on \'get more\')
Just realised that in the last 2 weeks I\'ve done about 25mins work!!! Only 3 days left until I quit! Yes! :cool :cool :cool :cool
QuoteOriginally posted by J4P RX
Infact I think yours is a 92 so might not have even needed an SVA.
Good point Lee!
Iain
QuoteOriginally posted by Brett
Thats the great thing about message boards, you get time to plan your answers......:evillaugh
That\'s cheating!!! You should say the 1st thing that pops into your head and damn the consequences!
:spank
Iain
Last time I said the first thing that popped into my head I got my missus pregnant.................not gonna take that risk again!!!:rollin
brings new meaning to \'oral sex\'.
did someone say the magic word (http://www.computerpannen.com/cwm/otn/funny/lew.gif) lol
Si
:rollin :rollin :D :D :rollin :rollin
Why does the bride always smile when she walks down the aisle?
Cos she knows shes given her last blow job!
:evillaugh