Every car failing every other WOF

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IlDuce

769 posts

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Topic # 98822 7-Mar-2012 10:32
My car failed a warrant of fitness yesterday, both lower ball joints. Apparently to meet WOF standard they are to have NO play at all, ie a millimetre is a fail. Anyone know the truth to that? I've gone to the same garage for 16 years, and in the last 7 or so years they have failed every single Honda car I have owned on the lower ball joints, and even after fixing them, will fail them again a few warrants down the track. To me this does not sound right.

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Reply # 591562 7-Mar-2012 10:42
Perhaps the problem is Honda cars then. :-) I have had one fail with that, also torn CV boots. Both are simple normal wear and tear. But if they're only lasting you 6 months rather than 100,000km something is not quite right. iPad + iPhone 4S + 2degrees 3G data 4tw! These comments are my own and do not represent the opinions of 2degrees.

crackrdbycracku

883 posts

Ultimate Geek

Reply # 591563 7-Mar-2012 10:43
I hope you don't take offense but I have to ask this. The same garage that fails your warrant then fixes your car? Then fails you the next year and fixes the same problem again? Have you considered getting it checked at the VTNZ station? They don't fix cars. I am not saying this to stir. Didn't anybody tell you I was a hacker?

RunningMan

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Reply # 591568 7-Mar-2012 10:47
IlDuce: and even after fixing them, will fail them again a few warrants down the track. To me this does not sound right. Assuming they haven't been impact damaged (crash etc.), then ask Honda what the anticipated lifespan is for the joint under normal operating conditions, and assuming you are operating it within these conditions, look at requesting replacement free of charge pursuant to the Consumer Guarantees Act. Having said that, have you spoken to the workshop about your concerns?

itxtme

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Reply # 591570 7-Mar-2012 10:50
crackrdbycracku: I hope you don't take offense but I have to ask this. The same garage that fails your warrant then fixes your car? Then fails you the next year and fixes the same problem again? Have you considered getting it checked at the VTNZ station? They don't fix cars. I am not saying this to stir. Agreed, take it to an VTNZ

scuwp

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Reply # 591571 7-Mar-2012 10:51
You don't say what year/model car? Early model Honda's only had a nylon fitting that were prone to wear out. That said the manufacturers specifications from memory allowed a certain amount of play up and down but nil sideways. WoF inspectors must judge this component based on manufacturers specifications/tolerances, so I suggest a visit to Honda, get the specifications for the part and if you think it falls within manufacturers tolerance then discuss with the inspector. Not standing up for the inspector but we only have 1 side of the story, it is impossible for them to know everything about every car, and they will err on the side of caution...prove the component is within manufacturers spec's and I am sure the outcome will be different. Other option could be to take it to the Honda dealer for a WoF instead, or just to check that component to see if the inspector is right. Artificial intelligence is no match, for natural stupidity!

kingjj

Baby Get Shaky!
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Reply # 591576 7-Mar-2012 10:53
crackrdbycracku: I hope you don't take offense but I have to ask this. The same garage that fails your warrant then fixes your car? Then fails you the next year and fixes the same problem again? Have you considered getting it checked at the VTNZ station? They don't fix cars. I am not saying this to stir. VTNZ don't fix cars but they do break them. I took may car to a VTNZ last year and it was failed on a hole in the exhaust (fair call, happy to get fixed). Down the road I went and they fixed it in about 30 minutes. Back to VTNZ, the testing guy put the car on the hoist, shoved has hand over the exhaust outlet and blew out the repair. When I called him on it he denied it, failed the car again as the hole had not be fixed and sent me packing. The repair guys where fuming, repaired it again for free (champions) and then called the VTNZ to have a go at the tester. Got it checked again that day by the same inspector (after he agreed to free recheck) and this time he did visual inspection only and it passed... Moral of the story, getting a wof on an older car sucks, if they can't find something to fail you on then they'll create one to get it off the road.

scuwp

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Reply # 591583 7-Mar-2012 10:57
kingjj: crackrdbycracku: I hope you don't take offense but I have to ask this. The same garage that fails your warrant then fixes your car? Then fails you the next year and fixes the same problem again? Have you considered getting it checked at the VTNZ station? They don't fix cars. I am not saying this to stir. VTNZ don't fix cars but they do break them. I took may car to a VTNZ last year and it was failed on a hole in the exhaust (fair call, happy to get fixed). Down the road I went and they fixed it in about 30 minutes. Back to VTNZ, the testing guy put the car on the hoist, shoved has hand over the exhaust outlet and blew out the repair. When I called him on it he denied it, failed the car again as the hole had not be fixed and sent me packing. The repair guys where fuming, repaired it again for free (champions) and then called the VTNZ to have a go at the tester. Got it checked again that day by the same inspector (after he agreed to free recheck) and this time he did visual inspection only and it passed... Moral of the story, getting a wof on an older car sucks, if they can't find something to fail you on then they'll create one to get it off the road. If it failed that easily (and a pressure test is valid to check for leaks) then it was going to fail soon anyway, and then you would have been up for a ticket had a cop stopped you. I reckon he did you a favour and highlighted some shoddy workmanship. Artificial intelligence is no match, for natural stupidity!

Klipspringer

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Reply # 591585 7-Mar-2012 10:58
kingjj: the testing guy put the car on the hoist, shoved has hand over the exhaust outlet and blew out the repair. When I called him on it he denied it, failed the car again as the hole had not be fixed and sent me packing. Hand over exhaust blowing out a repair? That sounds to me like a fail. They did not break your car. It was broken already If it was a cheap fix with some putty then this will most probably happen in all cases. Cant blame VTNZ. Offense can never be given, only taken ...

Linuxluver

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Reply # 591587 7-Mar-2012 11:00
scuwp: If it failed that easily (and a pressure test is valid to check for leaks) then it was going to fail soon anyway, and then you would have been up for a ticket had a cop stopped you. I reckon he did you a favour and highlighted some shoddy workmanship. +1 If you're not curious, your brain is already dying...if not dead. My blogs: Eyes Wide Open /Android Luver / 3D Luver / Truth Seeker Handhelds: LG Optimus 3D Max / LG Optimus 3D / HTC Sensation / VFNZ 845 / Samsung Galaxy Tab / Lenovo IdeaPad K1 32GB / iPod Touch PCs: Home made Linux boxen from parts mainly from PB Tech.

IlDuce

769 posts

Ultimate Geek

Reply # 591588 7-Mar-2012 11:00
I have had weird and wonderful WOF fails before at other places that don't do repairs, so in my experience it still seems to happen. For example my motorbike failed WOF on "leaking brake fluid", the guy actually wiped the fluid onto his finger and licked it and said thats brake fluid, however it turned out it wasn't a brake leak (or fluid) at all, but fork oil which somehow got splashed on the line during fork seal replacement. Another was fail for not having pillion footpegs on a bike not designed to have pillion footpegs from factory - so failed it and was talking about making footpegs/brackets and welding them onto the frame. Another fail was my licence sticker (rego sticker) was the style that had the extra 1 cm with ad like majority of them do, apparently the rules state thats a fail. Factory towbar, factory licence plate spot, overlapped by a few cm, got warrants for 12 years then suddenly it wasn't acceptable and had to remove bumper and gas cut off tow bar, so could no longer tow with that car.

kingjj

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Reply # 591592 7-Mar-2012 11:03
scuwp: kingjj: crackrdbycracku: I hope you don't take offense but I have to ask this. The same garage that fails your warrant then fixes your car? Then fails you the next year and fixes the same problem again? Have you considered getting it checked at the VTNZ station? They don't fix cars. I am not saying this to stir. VTNZ don't fix cars but they do break them. I took may car to a VTNZ last year and it was failed on a hole in the exhaust (fair call, happy to get fixed). Down the road I went and they fixed it in about 30 minutes. Back to VTNZ, the testing guy put the car on the hoist, shoved has hand over the exhaust outlet and blew out the repair. When I called him on it he denied it, failed the car again as the hole had not be fixed and sent me packing. The repair guys where fuming, repaired it again for free (champions) and then called the VTNZ to have a go at the tester. Got it checked again that day by the same inspector (after he agreed to free recheck) and this time he did visual inspection only and it passed... Moral of the story, getting a wof on an older car sucks, if they can't find something to fail you on then they'll create one to get it off the road. If it failed that easily (and a pressure test is valid to check for leaks) then it was going to fail soon anyway, and then you would have been up for a ticket had a cop stopped you. I reckon he did you a favour and highlighted some shoddy workmanship. The place I got the repair done also did a pressure test and did a great job on the welds (it was a small hole to start with so not a difficult fix). The difference was the testing officer spent several minutes (3-4) revving the engine while blocking the exhaust until the weld popped. This same testing officer previously failed me for having a dirty windscreen. There has been no leaks since after several more wofs. That VTNZ is now closed. Edit: also it was welded twice, not a cheap putty repair. My personal mechanic was shocked when he heard how long they blocked the exhaust for before it popped. But water under the bridge a.

IlDuce

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Reply # 591593 7-Mar-2012 11:04
scuwp: You don't say what year/model car? That said the manufacturers specifications from memory allowed a certain amount of play up and down but nil sideways. Late 80s, early 90s, late 90s. They are failing on up and down play, by using pinch bar between wheel and bottom of ball joint, giving it big push until it moves a matter of millimetres.

shrub

168 posts

Master Geek

Reply # 591596 7-Mar-2012 11:07
VTNZ are fair as they only fail on warrant issues. Local garages fail on we things that are not warrant problems like CV boots. Just so they can get some work. For example I apparently I had split brake lines now the brakes would not work if I did and they quoted me $350 to fix I went a purchased new ones for $40 and spent 30 mins swapping them out and bleeding them in and took the old ones in to find out where the split was. They gave me my money back I paid for the warrant and put a sticker on my windscreen.

stevenz

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Reply # 591599 7-Mar-2012 11:10
I had a late 80s motorbike which got warrants fine for about a decade before someone finally failed it on the fact that it was an import and had an American headlight that dipped in the wrong direction. I trust my local mechanics, they've never put me crook so far, but there's plenty of dodgy blokes out there. "You are" = "You're" - Not "Your". "They are" = "They're" - Not "Their" or "There". You probably mean "lose" not "loose". There's no such word as "Alot". On the internet, wasting time, since '89.

IlDuce

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Reply # 591600 7-Mar-2012 11:11
shrub: Local garages fail on we things that are not warrant problems like CV boots. I've also numerous WOFs failed on CV boots, which I'm now told are not a WOF issue?

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