Sending car for MOT after being off road for a year

withey391

I'm just looking for a bit of advice really.

My father passed away in August 2013 leaving his car to me. As a non-driver, knowing very little about cars, the car has been untouched since then and the battery has been dead for the last 10 months. As I have no driveway or a place to store the car while I'm learning to drive (test coming up in a matter of weeks) it has been fully taxed and insured since then.

The MOT is coming up at the end of this month and I obviously need to get the car to a garage to carry out the test. What I was wondering was whether I will need to replace the battery myself or if it would be better to get the car serviced before MOT and ask them to replace it for me? I have no idea what to do in terms of replacing one and I have nobody else to do it for me.

I also wondered whether anyone would have a good guess at how much the MOT will cost me after the car being unused for so long? I'm obviously expecting it to fail but was just hoping for an estimated figure.

I'm sorry if this all seems very obvious to a lot of people, I'm just very new to the driving scene and feel a bit lost in the deep end with everything.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated, thanks!

straighttalker

It's difficult to give an answer without knowing your level of mechanical skill. To some people, changing a battery is as easy as abc, to others, it might be a daunting prospect. Try and have a look for some guides on Youtube. It's a case of loosening the two clamps which clamp a live and earth cable onto the two posts on the battery and then there will be some type of clamp or fixing which bolts the battery down into the engine bay. They will probably be loosened off by nuts too.

Alternatively, have you tried charging the battery to see if it starts the car?

MOT wise, it's difficult to give an estimate for the price. It all depends on what work needs doing. Try and check the basics for yourself. Tyres should have at least 1.6mm of tread. Check the wipers and the lights. Easy things to change if you look for guidance on the internet.

Longshot but if you're local to Manchester, I could have a look for you. I'm not a mechanic but I'm handy with a spanner!

DUTR

withey391 wrote: »

I'm just looking for a bit of advice really.

My father passed away in August 2013 leaving his car to me. As a non-driver, knowing very little about cars, the car has been untouched since then and the battery has been dead for the last 10 months. As I have no driveway or a place to store the car while I'm learning to drive (test coming up in a matter of weeks) it has been fully taxed and insured since then.

The MOT is coming up at the end of this month and I obviously need to get the car to a garage to carry out the test. What I was wondering was whether I will need to replace the battery myself or if it would be better to get the car serviced before MOT and ask them to replace it for me? I have no idea what to do in terms of replacing one and I have nobody else to do it for me.

I also wondered whether anyone would have a good guess at how much the MOT will cost me after the car being unused for so long? I'm obviously expecting it to fail but was just hoping for an estimated figure.

I'm sorry if this all seems very obvious to a lot of people, I'm just very new to the driving scene and feel a bit lost in the deep end with everything.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated, thanks!

Sorry about your loss, Dad's are great,
when you say the car is insured, in who's name?
The battery maybe ok, but for the possible agro, perhaps get the car transported to the MOT station, if you have not yet got a full licence, the car may need little or nothing to go through the next mot if it has not been driven.

[Deleted User]

My old MOT failure car that has sat on drive since last November, which I sold last week, is showing as having just passed a new MOT this weekend according to the MOT Info site.

Yes I'm nosey :rotfl:

Ectophile

If it were me, I'd try to find a garage I can trust to have it serviced and MOT'd. If it's been sitting that long, it's due for a service anyway.

It's anyone's guess how much money will be required to pass an MOT. I have had old cars sail through without even an advisory, while newer cars may need work done.

Changing the battery should be easy if nothing has seized or broken. All you usually need is a few spanners. Disconnect the negative terminal first, then the positive. Loosen the battery clamp and wiggle out the old battery. Wiggle in the new battery and tighten the clamp (but not too much). Re-fit the positive terminal, then the negative.

welfayre

I don't know where your based but I'm a mechanic and we offer our customers a free pre-mot check, might be worth asking your local garages if they offer this service?


The going rate around my area (Fife) is around £35-40. I'd be wary of anywhere offering discount MOTs (£10,£15,£20 etc) unless you know the garage, you'll tend to find they use these offers to get you in and then find work elsewhere to make there money back. Price wise for repairs your best to just put it in for MOT and see if it passes or fails. If it fails you can phone round a few places and get a proper quote to fix the failure(s).

If your just wanting to put it straight in for a MOT then there are a few things you can do yourself to help your car pass, or at least not fail on as much.

Obviously get it started first, there's a chance the battery will just need a good charging (can use jump leads to another vehicle or pick up a trickle charger from Halfords etc).


Once you've got a working battery check that the battery is secure (can't be wiggled about easily) check all your lights are working, the only one that doesn't come into the MOT test currently is the reverse light. So check side lights, dipped beam, main beam, fog, indicators, brake and number plate lights.

Check your windscreen wipers aren't torn and that they clear the screen (rear wipers aren't a failure), check that the washer jets squirt water onto the windscreen. Check there's no cracks in the windscreen (anything over 10mm in the drivers line of vision is a fail)

Check your horn is working, that your mirrors aren't broken, that you have a proper fuel cap (temporary ones fail)

Check your oil and coolant levels are correct, tyres above 1.6mm (should be raised wear bands around the tyre so it's easy to see)

Sounds a lot but should only take a few minutes to check.


Other things to do is on the way to the MOT station get who ever is driving it there to work the brakes slightly harder/more often than normal. This will help free them off since it's been sitting for a while. If there are drum brakes and they're sticking on a good trick is to reverse and pull up the hand brake hard, this shocks the shoes and drums and can help free them.


Also if possible get on a road with a speed limit of 60mph+ and drive for a few miles at 60-70mph in 4th gear. This helps get the exhaust system up to optimum temperature and will help reduce the emissions for the test.

Hope this helps.

arcon5

No point servicing it if its just gonna be sat there after the mot. It won't help get it through the mot so don't waste your money. Get it serviced when you will be using it regularly again.

No point asking us for an estimate either. We can't see the car or the last mot or its history.

But a charger on the battery for a few hrs to get some life back in it. If your not gonna drive it after then a new battery is a waste of money anyway. It'll just trickle down post-mot and may even need changing again when you pass your test.
At worst if it is truly knackered then get a used one for dirt cheap just to get you to the mot.

What car is it?

Norman_Castle

I also wondered whether anyone would have a good guess at how much the MOT will cost me after the car being unused for so long? I'm obviously expecting it to fail but was just hoping for an estimated figure.

This depends how good the car was before being unused. I left an older car parked for over a year. The battery was completely flat but recovered with charging. The car failed its MOT mainly on faults that were there before being stored except for the brake discs which had become pitted from lack of use. These are cheap to replace.
If your dad used a local garage for his MOT try using the same garage. Explain the battery is flat and ask if they can collect the car for its MOT.

If you expect the car to be unused renting a garage or finding off road storage may be cheaper than keeping it taxed and insured.

specialboy

Who's name is it insured under OP? If you are a non driver is it worth spending money on the car just to sit there for another year?