Top 5 Reasons Why Cars Fail Their MOTs
What’s most likely to cause you trouble at the MOT centre and what can you do to avoid it?
5. Drivers view of the road - The cause of 8.80% of MOT failures
The 5th most frequent reason for an MOT failure is due to issues blocking the drivers forward view of the road. This can cover a lot of issues, such as poor windscreen wipers, lack of washer fluid, broken sun visors, big cracks in the screen and even things like poorly placed sat-navs and dashcams! Protect yourself from this MOT failure by replacing your wiper blades or sun visors in advance (which can be sourced most-affordably over the internet) and by removing or relocating your sat nav/ dash cam.
A cracked windscreen may seem like an expensive fix but most insurers will include windscreen cover in their policy so you will only have to pay the excess but check with your insurer first.
Lastly, the washer fluid issue is easy to avoid, but most MOT centres should top up the liquid themselves but at a small cost so its best to do this yourself - it’s only a 2-minute job.
4. Tyres - The cause of 10.50% of MOT failures
The fourth most frequent MOT failure is faulty tyres. A set of tyres can be an expensive outlay, but a car with fresh rubber really does feel worlds apart from a car with worn, uneven and damaged tyres. The UK laws require a minimum tread depth of 1.6mm throughout the central 3 quarters of the tyre, but tyres can fail an MOT for more reasons than just the tread depth. For example, if the tyre walls show cracks on the inside or the outside, if there is any sign of bubbling or if there are large scars of uneven tread then you should expect your car to fail.
3. Brakes - The cause of 17.20% of MOT failures
The 3rd most frequent MOT failure is for faulty, damaged or inefficient brakes. The testers will measure the amount of life left on your brake pads, and if they’re running low then you can expect to have to pay out for new pads, or if you’ve let them run too low and there has been metal-on-metal contact then you may have scoured your discs, which will then also need to be replaced. The brakes will also be inspected to make sure the ABS (anti-lock braking system) and ESC (Electronic Stability Control) functions are working suitably, but if your car was built before these were obligatory then you needn’t worry. It is possible to replace things like the brake pads and discs at home on your own, however, if you are inexperienced with this then we’d seriously recommend getting a professional on the job, for obvious reasons.
2. Suspension - The cause of 19.40% of MOT failures
Your suspension system is built to take a hammering throughout its lifetime, so it’s no real surprise that faulty suspension makes this list. The bushes at the top and bottom end of each suspension arm have absorbed and endured every pothole you’ve encountered and curb you have mounted. Understandably, they wear away over time and will leave room for wobbling in the steering or suspension. If this gets too much then the suspension coils can also snap. Bushes are generally cheap to replace but, like the brakes, often require a professional to do the job.
1. Lighting and signalling - The cause of 29.70% of MOT failures
And finally, the most common reason for MOT failures is faulty lighting and signalling. We all know that bulbs die out eventually, and there are countless bulbs required for a vehicle to pass it’s MOT. Furthermore, every car needs to have operating indicators, hazard lights, and so on, and it’s also particularly important that the full-beams work as desired and the main, dipped-beams aren’t pointing up and across the road, which would risk blinding oncoming traffic. Then, lastly, certain modern car owners will need to be aware that their self-levelling and steering-responsive headlights need to be operating to their full potential, but this is only applicable on cars with these features fitted. Repairing and replacing the responsive and self-levelling motors in modern cars can be a pain and will usually require a professional but replacing dead bulbs yourself is usually a simple job with most mass-produced cars. Again, replacement bulbs are sourced most affordably via the internet and if you’re struggling then you’ll probably find a good few ‘how-to’ guides for your specific car on youtube. However, if the headlights or indicators still aren’t working after you’ve replaced the bulbs then there may be a wiring issue which will require an experts assistance.
