Just had my pre MOT checkup . . .

[Funnybear]

I knew some work needed doing with bushes and corroded shocks But I wasn't expecting this :-

Headgasket gone.
Fuel leak on the injector
Black brake fluid.
Manifold studs Broken.
REar discs shot.
Various engine oil leaks.
Prop Coupling split.
Rear asle mounts shot.
Gearbox leaking.

I Cried a little. Basically got recommended to write it off. Won't make it through the MOT without some major work done. Pretty gutted as I've poured a couple of thousand into it already just to keep it alive for the 5 years I've had her.

Anyone want a pretty sound (bar that little list obvoiusly) good looking cabbie?

Poor thing, I do love her so.

[Rav335uk]

Headgasket gone.
Fuel leak on the injector
Black brake fluid.
Manifold studs Broken.
REar discs shot.
Various engine oil leaks.
Prop Coupling split.
Rear asle mounts shot.
Gearbox leaking.

All the above is fixable.
If you've already thrown money at her, I would kepp the car and fix the above, rather than buying something else that may nee more money spending on it.

[Funnybear]

I'm sure they are fixable. But I can't do it on my driveway. And it's going to cost a pretty penny.

I am toying with the idea of getting it all done. It's going to cost me though.

[threelander]

whats the POINT in a pre mot.a mot is either pass or fail yeh

[G-Bear]

Headgasket gone.
Fuel leak on the injector
Black brake fluid.
Manifold studs Broken.
REar discs shot.
Various engine oil leaks.
Prop Coupling split.
Rear asle mounts shot.
Gearbox leaking.

All the above is fixable.
If you've already thrown money at her, I would kepp the car and fix the above, rather than buying something else that may nee more money spending on it.

This..

Plus the more you fix, you the more you know what (in theory) shouldn't need doing in the future.. or least how long until certain components will need replacing again. As Rav says.. a new car comes with new unknown problems..

[capnmchl]

Headgasket gone. - Is it gone? Or are they just trying to scam you. I believe pre MOT's are a scam anyway
Fuel leak on the injector - New injector off a scrap car, not expensive.
Black brake fluid. - New fluid, 5er for a litre, should't need any more than 2
Manifold studs Broken. - Bit of a bugger. If the head gasket is shot, you might as well do them with that, if not, it's a bit of a PITA but it's doable.
REar discs shot. - £40 for a pair of pagid disks from CP4L. I'm sure you can get some eicher ones or a better deal if you look, and £12.55 for eicher pads for the rear from CP4L
Various engine oil leaks. - Wipe them down. If they're real bad then you might have to look into them more, but they're probably weeps, not leaks.
Prop Coupling split. - No more than £20. Not the easiest job but it's doable.
Rear asle mounts shot. - Twat of a job, but £20 each
Gearbox leaking. - Leak or weep?

The thing with pre mot's, is they'll try and get work out of you that's not in the MOT. They probably think the headgasket is gone because there's a bit of emulsification on the oil filler cap. Rarely a sign of headgasket faliure, more likely the result of short journeys.

Oil leaks. Do they mean full on torrential downpour of oil, or oil weeps. It's only a faliure if it's pissing out everywhere.

Most of it's consumables that'll have to be changed anyway. Do it yourself and it's not going to cost you much more than £100. If you don't feel confident doing it all, get someone else to do it.

Or if the cars really not worth it, then maybe scrap it.

At least it's not rust.

[Rav335uk]

To check if the H/G is gone, have a "Sniff" test done, it'll tell you if you have gases in the water.

[bmw9818]

What engine is it? Bushes could be extended with void fillers?

Apart from the rear sub and prop, should be easy, tbh I'd just put a grand into it and just go for it, drop in a new low mileage m20 or if m40 I have a gbox for sale
Or just do an engine swap and refurb the lot new bushes and seals n gaskets In one go I've just come to an end after 3 months on and off I stripped
And rebuilt two cars as I had a donor obv giving mine more attention, but if you can get a couple mates round its doable in a few weekends

[Jim320i]

I'm guessing one of the lads at the garage did offer you some money for the car but at a lower rate due to all the work needing to be done?

If your near Leicester and want it looking at, your more than welcome to bring it up to mine and I'll have a poke around.

I wouldn't bother with pre mots in the future, put it in for it's test, if it passes, great, if it doesn't, you still get to find out what needs sorting.
And take it somewhere that will appreciate older cars rather than you national sort of company and they are all coooont.

[greg124]

Good point Jim. I never have a pre-test.
You can take a car for it's MOT up to a month before the expiry date, and get a ticket up to the expiry date (effectively 13 months) if it passes, or plenty of time to fix if it doesn't.
Some of these items shouldn't be on the MOT anyway - like various engine/gearbox leaks.

It's so hard to find a garage you can trust, but when you do, stick with them.

[Funnybear]

It wasn't a 'pre test' Pre test. If you know what I mean. Took it too a bloke local who's a bimmer specialist, I knew I needed the bushes done so he gave it a once over. I was actually more concerned about the tin rot, but that never came up.

I was going to wang it in for an MOT anyway . . . At a different garage, my normal . . . just to see what the crack was.

We shall see.

[daimlerman]

I use a local 'we only do MoT's' place,that way,they just tell me what needs fixing,I fix it,they pass it...Result!

[capri_rob]

Have all these issues appeared since the last MOT ?

All of that is fixable - although the headgastket/manifold studs will be a biggie if it is shot - if youre going to fix it to do it properly you're looking at the thick end of £500 to include pressure test/skim, valve guides, rockers and all the other bits you might as well do whilst the head is off

[Funnybear]

Thats also something I want to consider. If I'm doing some of this major stuff, what else is actually easier to do whilst I/or they are doing it.

Bearing in mind, all this will be garage work, i have neither the time/place/skill/knowledge to be able to do any of this myself and also can't afford for it to be off the road for more than a week or two becuase it's used to pick up my daughter.

[Nobby_N]

I will bring my trailor and 100 squid if u want rid

[Jim320i]

I can offer more but it depends on location.

Personally, I would visually look at those issues and see if they look to be at fault. Clean up any leaks and take it for an mot elsewhere. And like daimler said, somewhere that doesn't do repais. I use a local garage that just do mots and like old cars. Not that they overlook things, but they also don't try and bum you dry of money...

[hennabm]

Headgasket gone. - not part of the MOT unless affecting emissions
Fuel leak on the injector - leaking fuel is a failure
Black brake fluid. - not a fail item as long as it works and doesn't leak
Manifold studs Broken. - only a problem if there is a major leak of exhaust gasses
REar discs shot. - only a failure is seriously weakened or insecure. Corroded discs are NOT a failure
Various engine oil leaks. - not MOT items
Prop Coupling split. - propshaft not part of the test
Rear asle mounts shot. - will fail if shot
Gearbox leaking. - not part of the MOT

Does it look so bad now?

Yes they all may need doing for the car's survival and reliability but not necessarily for the MOT

To read up on MOT requirements, follow link below;
http://www.transportoffice.gov.uk/crt/d ... guides.htm

[Funnybear]

Cheers for the info guys. I know you all know about the ins and outs of this sort of stuff, but I ain't got a scoobies. It's all good info.