MOT Failure

scaredofdebt

My car failed the MOT today, it's an '04 plate Mondeo diesel with 183k on the clock.

1. Exhaust - there's a crack around the whole exhaust, it's still on the original exhaust and the garage tells me they come in a complete unit so the whole thing needs replacing. He's charging £150 for that including labour, seems reasonable but is it?

2. Front suspension ball joint needs replacing. The part is around £75 but it's an hours labour so he's charging me around £150, is that reasonable?

3. Failed emissions. The mechanic reckons the new exhaust will fix it but he can't be sure as there is also some injector knock. It's £600 to recode the injectors, no way can I afford that on top of the other costs!

4. There's a couple of other fairly minor issues, total bill including the test itself is going to come out close to the £400 mark.

The car is practically worthless if I were to sell it, although it has been an excellent car over the 3 years I've had it, clocking up over 90k and it's never let me down. It's still cheap to run, averaging over 50 MPG and there's no way I could get something to replace it for anywhere under a grand.

So, I am looking to bite the bullet and pay up, my main concern is it could still fail on the emissions test. The mechanic has said he'd put the exhaust on and then do the emissions before the rest of the work so it would "only" be £200 odd down the drain!

I paid £160 for two new tyres recently as I knew it would fail on that but thought everything else was pretty much OK.

Just a bit of a rant really, I'm unemployed at the moment and can't really afford the cash, but I can't afford to be without a car either as I need one to get to interviews etc.

Fingers crossed I pay up, it passes and I get another year out of the old beast!

[Deleted User]

scaredofdebt wrote: »

2. Front suspension ball joint needs replacing. The part is around £75 but it's an hours labour so he's charging me around £150, is that reasonable?

£75 for the ball joint seems way over the odds (I'd expect to pay about £30), so unless he's quoting for top and bottom?

It's also not a massive job.

Do you not have a friend, who can wield spanners?

harveybobbles

Exhausts are sold in sections. so get a 2nd opinion.

Ball joint should cost that much and is easty enough to do if you have a crow bar...

I'd leave the injectors for now unless they start giving error codes?

atrixblue.-MFR-.

the original exhaust will be a complete unit so sectional ones will be fitted back on.

ball joints dont cost that much on a mondy http://www.eurocarparts.com/ecp/c/Ford_Mondeo_2.0_2004/p/car-parts/suspension-and-steering/suspension/suspension-arm-and-suspension-joints/?617590490&1&53b6574d79df1e6ea9f57e030cb053e36a25a597&000019

or for the whole wishbone http://www.eurocarparts.com/ecp/c/Ford_Mondeo_2.0_2004/p/car-parts/suspension-and-steering/suspension/suspension-arm-and-suspension-joints/?615590530&1&139d9f302d04e6d6efd9a2c543cc7fa1ffb31faf&000320

track rod ends http://www.eurocarparts.com/ecp/c/Ford_Mondeo_2.0_2004/p/car-parts/suspension-and-steering/steering/track-rod-and-track-rod-end/?606590590&1&194e879a624a118ed823b84d743c6f9f265c73b1&000349

scaredofdebt

I did ring another garage about the exhaust and they told me replacements came in 4 parts and it was around £160 for all the bits fitted. But if the original exhaust is one unit I'd need all 4 bits to replace it wouldn't I? In which case the price he's quoting me is reasonable.

I'll double check the ball joint it might have been some other suspension item.

patman99

For diesels the correct MOT procedure is a smoke test only. It should not have an emissions test as this is not required.
I had my van MOT'ed at the local Fire brigade workshop and they do the job properly. When I had it done at the Council workshops in the past the tester told me that no exhaust readings are taken for diesels, only for petrol.

As for ball joints, it is usually cheaper to replace the whole wishbone as it is only a few quid more to buy, but you will save more than the extra outlay in the time saving as the mechanic has no need to push-out the joint (and risk bending the wishbone arm at the same time).

If you have a mate with a welder, then he should be able to weld the exhaust for around £25.

red_eye

scaredofdebt wrote: »

My car failed the MOT today, it's an '04 plate Mondeo diesel with 183k on the clock.

1. Exhaust - there's a crack around the whole exhaust, it's still on the original exhaust and the garage tells me they come in a complete unit so the whole thing needs replacing. He's charging £150 for that including labour, seems reasonable but is it?

2. Front suspension ball joint needs replacing. The part is around £75 but it's an hours labour so he's charging me around £150, is that reasonable?

3. Failed emissions. The mechanic reckons the new exhaust will fix it but he can't be sure as there is also some injector knock. It's £600 to recode the injectors, no way can I afford that on top of the other costs!

4. There's a couple of other fairly minor issues, total bill including the test itself is going to come out close to the £400 mark.

The car is practically worthless if I were to sell it, although it has been an excellent car over the 3 years I've had it, clocking up over 90k and it's never let me down. It's still cheap to run, averaging over 50 MPG and there's no way I could get something to replace it for anywhere under a grand.

So, I am looking to bite the bullet and pay up, my main concern is it could still fail on the emissions test. The mechanic has said he'd put the exhaust on and then do the emissions before the rest of the work so it would "only" be £200 odd down the drain!

I paid £160 for two new tyres recently as I knew it would fail on that but thought everything else was pretty much OK.

Just a bit of a rant really, I'm unemployed at the moment and can't really afford the cash, but I can't afford to be without a car either as I need one to get to interviews etc.

Fingers crossed I pay up, it passes and I get another year out of the old beast!

The only time i have seen a one pc exhaust is on new cars on their first pipe. The rest I have seen are in sections, the faulty section is cut out of your one pc and the new section slides on. you can use repair tape to fix the crack but as you have a crack alll the way around it will just crumble away I would use quick steel http://compare.ebay.co.uk/like/190637086801?var=lv&ltyp=AllFixedPriceItemTypes&var=sbar&adtype=pla at least it would only cost you £10 if it fails.

for the ball joint look it up on eurocarparts, if the front is mcpherson strut (http://autorepair.about.com/library/a/1a/bl690a.htm) with a bolt on ball joint then he is taking the urine, part should be no more then £20 if not then it could well cost £75 possible even more if he does not pass on trade price to you.

Notmyrealname

scaredofdebt wrote: »

My car failed the MOT today, it's an '04 plate Mondeo diesel with 183k on the clock.

1. Exhaust - there's a crack around the whole exhaust, it's still on the original exhaust and the garage tells me they come in a complete unit so the whole thing needs replacing. He's charging £150 for that including labour, seems reasonable but is it?

Go to an independent. I got the rear section replaced on mine. Although the originals are a single piece, aftermarket ones come in three parts.

2. Front suspension ball joint needs replacing. The part is around £75 but it's an hours labour so he's charging me around £150, is that reasonable?

Part is a little steep. It'll be the whole lower front arm.

3. Failed emissions. The mechanic reckons the new exhaust will fix it but he can't be sure as there is also some injector knock. It's £600 to recode the injectors, no way can I afford that on top of the other costs!

Get some injector cleaner in, block off the EGR valve and give it a damned good thrashing.

[Deleted User]

red_eye wrote: »

with a bolt on ball joint then he is taking the urine

...Quite...

arcon5

I have 2 ball joints sorted on an 06 plate Mondeo last month at £80 all in. It's not a particular hard job but requires some skill to get he joint out

Tobster86

Emissions test is for smoke opacity only. The exhaust will make no difference to it, except for the DPF which reduces the reading by at most 1%.

I think when they say 'comes as one unit' they mean 'cheaper to buy all sections together'.

To actually fail a diesel emissions test the car would have to be beltching smoke. If this is the case, I'd suggest the injector knock is related. As other posters have said, a double shot of injector cleaner and a damn good thrashing would be required.

Incidentally, it's difficult to overdose on injector cleaner and a double-shot won't hurt it, though any more would be of questionable benefit. The active chemical is called 2-ethyl hexyl nitrate and works by raising the cetane number of the fuel. I used to buy the stuff in bulk for adding to 'winter mixtures' of 90% recycled vegetable oil to 10% petrol in my old veg oil burning diesels.
Don't get it on your hands though or leave the empty container in the car, it smells wretched!

The garage does sound a bit dubious & I'd be tempted to take the fail paperwork and go elsewhere.