Electric window not working, will it affect MOT?

Minerva69

My car is due for its MOT next week but the driver's side front electric window isn't working, it won't go down and makes a horrible grinding noise when I press the button. Will it fail the MOT because of this?

I can't afford any expensive repairs this year and if the car fails its MOT will they allow me to drive it home and leave it on the drive until I've saved up enough to get it fixed? I only live 5 mins drive away from the garage.

salubrious

No it isn't part of the mot test.

Car_54

salubrious wrote: »

No it isn't part of the mot test.

But it might fail for something else.

If your previous MOT hasn't expired, you can drive home legally, at least as far as the MOT regs go. However, you might be driving an unroadworthy car, which is a different offence.

Strider590

salubrious wrote: »

No it isn't part of the mot test.

Correct!

But if your in an accident where the door mechanism gets damaged, you might wish you'd got it fixed.


If the tester spots it, he may be more inclined to fail anything on the car that was a borderline pass, purely because a car with obvious faults, tells the tester you don't look after the vehicle.

HappyMJ

Strider590 wrote: »

Correct!

But if your in an accident where the door mechanism gets damaged, you might wish you'd got it fixed.


If the tester spots it, he may be more inclined to fail anything on the car that was a borderline pass, purely because a car with obvious faults, tells the tester you don't look after the vehicle.

If there's a serious accident where all the doors of the vehicle were so damaged that escape by simply opening the doors is impossible then the electric windows would be unlikely to work anyway. They do usually need the car to be running or at least have power...if the electrical lines were cut the fuses would have blown and the windows won't work.

Strider590

HappyMJ wrote: »

If there's a serious accident where all the doors of the vehicle were so damaged that escape by simply opening the doors is impossible then the electric windows would be unlikely to work anyway. They do usually need the car to be running or at least have power...if the electrical lines were cut the fuses would have blown and the windows won't work.

A lot of cars are fitted with a system that winds the windows down if the vehicle ends up under water, the ability to open them in the event of an accident is considered to be "safety critical" regardless of what the MOT requires.

It only takes a slight bend of the chassis to stop a door mechanism working, try jacking a car at one corner and then opening/closing a door, you'll notice it pings/rattles when opened and sometimes (car dependant) won't shut at all and that is JUST from the chassis and bodywork flexing by a tiny amount.

kripel

Take it to council MOT garage, they have no reason to fail you to hit with large repair bill later on..
Most of the MOT stations just see what you had past year and copy&paste it without even much looking, damn scum of an industry.. wish this was government done not by privates

Minerva69

Strider590 wrote: »

If the tester spots it, he may be more inclined to fail anything on the car that was a borderline pass, purely because a car with obvious faults, tells the tester you don't look after the vehicle.

I will have to tell them about the window when I take it in, so they don't try to open it (they did last year as it was open when I got the car back). I normally do look after the car and have had it serviced every year by the garage who does the MOT, I just can't afford to get the window fixed or pay for expensive repairs at the moment.

BeenThroughItAll

kripel wrote: »

Take it to council MOT garage, they have no reason to fail you to hit with large repair bill later on..
Most of the MOT stations just see what you had past year and copy&paste it without even much looking, damn scum of an industry.. wish this was government done not by privates

OP. This is mostly irrelevant and untrue.

Strider590

Minerva69 wrote: »

I will have to tell them about the window when I take it in, so they don't try to open it (they did last year as it was open when I got the car back). I normally do look after the car and have had it serviced every year by the garage who does the MOT, I just can't afford to get the window fixed or pay for expensive repairs at the moment.

If they know the car then you'll probably be ok, do give it a clean a few days before hand though, it can't hurt.

BeenThroughItAll wrote: »

OP. This is mostly irrelevant and untrue.

In that they can't see what failed or was an advisory last year. Not according to the guy that did my last MOT anyway.

salubrious

Strider590 wrote: »

If the tester spots it, he may be more inclined to fail anything on the car that was a borderline pass, purely because a car with obvious faults, tells the tester you don't look after the vehicle.

A decent tester will not do any such thing, maybe you would if you tested cars, good job you don't then huh