ABS sensor failed car MOT, where do i go next?

bill_the_bus

Opened a bit of a can of worms oops lol
Just to clarify. I was able to drive myvehicle away from the centre and i am able to drive the vehicle to another centre for a pre arranged appointment but other than that the new MOT failure over rules anything left on my previous MOT according to the centre.



Below is what is taken from Taken from the Gov.co.uk website
Failing the MOT
If your vehicle fails the MOT:

you’ll get a ‘refusal of an MOT test certificate’ from the test centre
it will be recorded in the MOT database
You can appeal the result if you think it’s wrong.

Driving a vehicle that’s failed

You can take your vehicle away if your MOT certificate is still valid.

If your MOT has run out you can take your vehicle to:

have the failed defects fixed
a pre-arranged MOT test appointment
In both cases, your vehicle still needs to meet the minimum standards of roadworthiness at all times or you can be fined.

You can be fined up to £2,500, be banned from driving and get 3 penalty points for driving a vehicle in a dangerous condition.


Confused?? I am

unforeseen

You shouldn't be confused. It's quite clear. You can carry on using your vehicle until the current MOT expires.

A faulty ABS sensor does not make the vehicle unroadworthy. You appear to be taking the statement about driving the vehicle or away and when you can drive it if the MOT hs run out as joined. It is two separate statements/conditions

bill_the_bus

unforeseen wrote: »

You shouldn't be confused. It's quite clear. You can carry on using your vehicle until the current MOT expires.

A faulty ABS sensor does not make the vehicle unroadworthy. You appear to be taking the statement about driving the vehicle or away and when you can drive it if the MOT hs run out as joined. It is two separate statements/conditions

Thats exactly as i read it but i am the one who will get pulled by a jobsworth lol. Will just drive if we really need to and print off a copy of that statement.
Thanks Bill

Ebe_Scrooge

As Unforeseen says, you're misunderstanding the rules. Let me see if I can come up with a cogent paradigm ...


OK, so your current MOT expires 27th Nov. On 1st Nov you take it to be tested, it fails due to a bald tyre. You drive out of the test station. A copper pulls you up for some reason. He sees you have a bald tyre and issues a fine - because you have an "unroadworthy" vehicle. He won't fine you for having no MOT, because you do have one.


In your situation, the question would be - "Does the ABS fault render the car unroadworthy ?" I don't know the answer to that one, and even if it does, then you'd only be in trouble if you happened to be stopped for something else - say, speeding for example. Whatever else, you STILL have a valid MOT certificate. And importantly, if you were zapped by an ANPR camera, it wouldn't flag up as "This car has no MOT", so they wouldn't pull you for that.


< edit > Just to add: "the new MOT failure over rules anything left on my previous MOT " - this is NOT true.


And this bit : "You can take your vehicle away if your MOT certificate is still valid. If your old MOT is still valid then you're free to drive until it runs out.

If your MOT has run out you can take your vehicle to:

have the failed defects fixed
a pre-arranged MOT test appointment" - This means, if your old MOT has already expired, and you have failed this one, then these are the only 2 circumstances under which you can drive the car.

And the bit at the end about being fined up to £2500 etc; this is really separate from the MOT issue, and means what I referred to earlier - you can be fined for driving an unroadworthy vehicle, irrespective of whether you have or haven't got an MOT.

weejangus

Just to give the OP a bit of advice, I had the ABS light on with my 2005 mondeo a few years back (I appreciate this is a different shape but could be a similar issue). Diagnostics (at a cost of £50) indicated that the rear nearside ABS sensor was faulty. You can buy new sensors built into the hub and they are very easily swapped round with the wheel off (4 torx bolts behind the hub if memory serves me right). Ebay item number 272043170197 is an example of the part I mean.

The nearside and offside HUBs (inc ABS Sensor) are interchangable so I simply swapped the Nearside HUB with the offside - expecting the diagnostics to now indicate a fault with the offside (this was a test to confirm the fault before buying parts). The fault however remained with the Nearside. I then followed the wiring from the ABS sensor back and found that it rubs against the chassis of the car and bare wires were exposed. This cable can be very easily replaced as it disconnects just under the rear seats. After swapping the cable for one out of the scrapyard (£5), the light was gone and MOT passed!

You might get lucky, worth checking it out.

Cheers,

J

EcoR1

securityguy wrote: »

Invalid MoT doesn't invalidate insurance, as has been discussed repeatedly.

In this case, the MoT hasn't expired.

There is a mechanism, which I don't think anyone has mentioned, for MoT testers to issue a red prohibition notice on dangerous cars, making it illegal to move them other than for repairs. There's no mention that this has happened.

No there isn't. I, as an MOT tester, can put a note on any 'reason for rejection' that in my opinion it makes the car dangerous to drive. It's only an extra warning for the vehicle presenter, there's no law covering it.

parking_question_chap

Those quotes are insane.

I had an ABS sensor broken when having the wheels power washed. I went to an automotive electronics specialist and they replaced the one sensor for £50 including labour.

They are taking you for a ride.

Joe_Horner

EcoR1 wrote: »

No there isn't. I, as an MOT tester, can put a note on any 'reason for rejection' that in my opinion it makes the car dangerous to drive. It's only an extra warning for the vehicle presenter, there's no law covering it.

Iirc (I'm not a tester but try to keep up) it doesn't even have to be on an RFR does it? The scheme allows for a "dangerous" note on RFRs or advisories.

About the only scenario I've been able to think up where that might apply is a completely missing windscreen - no RFR to cover it, so can't be a fail, but pretty obviously dangerous (at least without goggles!)

salubrious

abs pump is a common fault on the Mondeo that op owns, and any scanner will determine the difference between a wheel sensor and a pump fault.

The abs is a secondary safety feature, so who knows if a fault would be deemed as making a car un-roadworthy. I've tried myself to get clarity on this, so I can pass the right advice on to my customers, but it's like getting blood from a stone.

Bear in mind an mot is a minimum road worthiness check, and an abs light on is a failure of that minimum road worthiness check.

konark

OP, the clowns at that MOT centre are taking liberties. They seem desperate to charge £2k for a £400 job and everything they are telling you about driving your car is BALLCOCKS.

Get a Second Opinion at another garage. .