Your MOT certificate is a legal necessity if you want to continue using the UK’s roads in your three-year-old plus vehicle. This is also liable for motorists driving in Yorkshire and in close locality areas to it. Driving a vehicle abiding by all MOT rules not just saves your extra car maintenance expenses but also guarantees you safety for a longer time.
While some of the tests are minor and will not constitute a fail should they not be in good order, there are some factors which are an immediate major fail. These are the top five most common serious MOT fails:
Tyres
Your tyres are your point of contact with the road and faulty tyres will almost inevitably result in an accident. Get into the habit of checking your tyres regularly, making repairs if feasible or replacing your tyres once they become too worn or damaged for safe continued use. Check for bulges or cracks in the sidewall, damage to the contact area, and any distortions or excessive wear on one part of the tyre: this can indicate a weakness that is about to fail.
Lights
Your lights do not only help you see, they help other people to see you and advise them as to your intentions. Your headlights, indicators (both turn indicators and hazard lights) and back and brake lights should all be in good working order – and even your interior light, should you have one, should be in good working order too.
Steering
As soon as you lose the ability to control your vehicle’s direction, your car turns into a large unwieldy weapon, one that will almost certainly do harm to someone, whether it is you or another road user. Play in the steering wheel should be minimal, and you should be able to swerve around an obstacle handily in an emergency. If your steering gives you cause for concern, get it checked as soon as possible. You can also book an MOT in Wakefield at Ossett Tyre House (tel: 01924271081).
Brakes
Along with lights and steering, brakes were the one of the three items on the original MOT test back in 1960. These three factors were thought to be the reason for the rising level of accidents on the UKs increasingly busy roads: and this was correct. Just like being unable to steer, being unable to stop is very dangerous to everyone in the vicinity, as a moment’s thought will prove!
Visibility
As well as needing lights to be seen by others, you need to be able to see all around your car. Having good lights is not enough, though. You need to be able to see as far as the light through your headlights, and for that you need clean windows, a clear field of vision, and no clutter in your back seat or stickers on the windscreens. Even a dirty windscreen can be enough to put you in harm’s way – or fail your MOT, so keep your field of vision as unobscured as possible.