Car failed MOT - What now?

freelancepuddle

My car failed its MOT on rust/corrosion just before Christmas (23rd of Dec). The expiry date of the previous certificate is still valid until New Years Day. Unfortunately I can't book it into repairs any time soon due to the Christmas holidays (really bad timing for the MOT for the last owner, I've only owned the car for 6 months and was expecting it to pass as it's so reliable).

Can I drive it anywhere other than garages with the previous certificate until New Years Day? The DVLA website isn't clear. I can't go to work or out anywhere due to this.

z1a

Yes, it's still OK 'til existing MOT expires.

AndyMc.....

z1a wrote: »

Yes, it's still OK 'til existing MOT expires.

As far as the mot is concerned it’s legal, however he may still be committing an offence due to the reason it failed.

Tom99

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]If its un-roadworthy you can't drive it at all. If its roadworthy you can drive it until the MOT runs out and after that you can drive it to an MOT pre booked test.[/FONT]

freelancepuddle

Tom99 wrote: »

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]If its un-roadworthy you can't drive it at all. If its roadworthy you can drive it until the MOT runs out and after that you can drive it to an MOT pre booked test.[/FONT]

How would you know if it's roadworthy or not? Would it state so on the MOT certificate? It doesn't say on the MOT, it just says that there's a lot of corrosion underneath hence the failure.

interstellaflyer

freelancepuddle wrote: »

How would you know if it's roadworthy or not? Would it state so on the MOT certificate? It doesn't say on the MOT, it just says that there's a lot of corrosion underneath hence the failure.

It's failed the MOT on corrosion, that would suggest the car is structurally compromised so not roadworthy.

Tom99

freelancepuddle wrote: »

How would you know if it's roadworthy or not? Would it state so on the MOT certificate? It doesn't say on the MOT, it just says that there's a lot of corrosion underneath hence the failure.

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]I think its a grey area but according to one council's trading standards definition:

[/FONT] “[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]If a vehicle is not satisfactory in any of the following areas it may be unroadworthy:[/FONT]

• steering and steering gear
• brakes and braking systems
• tyres
• exhaust systems
• seatbelts and seatbelt anchorages
• general condition (corrosion, suspension etc.) “

freelancepuddle

interstellaflyer wrote: »

It's failed the MOT on corrosion, that would suggest the car is structurally compromised so not roadworthy.

Okay, thank you. I'll have to wait in the house until next year to have it sorted...Fun times.

sheslookinhot

freelancepuddle wrote: »

Okay, thank you. I'll have to wait in the house until next year to have it sorted...Fun times.

Take it to a garage that does welding and let them advise about cost and driveability.

freelancepuddle

sheslookinhot wrote: »

Take it to a garage that does welding and let them advise about cost and driveability.

I'll be honest, I'm probably going to scrap it. I've only had it 6 months and it passed the last MOT in January with absolutely no faults with the previous owner. I've only added around 500-800 miles on the clock and used it very little (don't think I've driven it for longer than 30 minutes at a time) and apparently it's completely rusted on the bottom despite it looking immaculate on the top. I didn't know before purchasing it that Ford KA's are well known for rusting. So a complete waste of money, no garage wants it for trade in. Going to buy reliable Japanese from now on.

Crabman

freelancepuddle wrote: »

I'll be honest, I'm probably going to scrap it. I've only had it 6 months and it passed the last MOT in January with absolutely no faults with the previous owner. I've only added around 500-800 miles on the clock and used it very little (don't think I've driven it for longer than 30 minutes at a time) and apparently it's completely rusted on the bottom despite it looking immaculate on the top. I didn't know before purchasing it that Ford KA's are well known for rusting. So a complete waste of money, no garage wants it for trade in. Going to buy reliable Japanese from now on.

Welding isn't expensive if you go to the right places - ask around for recommendations - taxi drivers may have contacts.

As for buying Japanese - as long as you stay away from Nissan hopefully you'll be OK