Scrap the NCT

Jayop

Absolutely. I was in the motor trade for years as a service adviser at main dealers and I always told people to forget about pre-ncts. Just check your lights and levels, don't go in with bald tyres as that could piss them off and hope for the best.

I had an experience 2-3 years ago with my old 99 focus where the tester thought the RHR wheel bearing could be gone. He called over two other testers and they had a conference about it. I shouted in to them that if you have to ask another guy was it gone then it's good enough for another year, but lo and behold they failed it. Brought it to the garage I worked at which was a main Ford dealer and the lads there said it was sound. I swapped the whole hub with one from a scrapper and passed it. That's the things that piss people off.

OldmanMondeo

Sure scrap the driving test as well. Most people forget the how to drive anyway so why bother.

I have not seen 1 point that would make me agree that the NCT should be scrapped. I agree it should be reviewed regularly and improved.

whiteandlight

OldmanMondeo wrote: »

Sure scrap the driving test as well. Most people forget the how to drive anyway so why bother.

I have not seen 1 point that would make me agree that the NCT should be scrapped. I agree it should be reviewed regularly and improved.

I'm not suggesting it should be scrapped just pointing out that in its current form it is not working as one would expect a test to. Can you imagine if you were advised to sit the driving test before studying for it just to check if you passed?

ba_barabus

I'd happily scrap the NCT, and I imagine the RSA would support it's scrapping, once people in the country service their cars correctly and all mechanics perform servicing as it should be done.

As neither of these will happen I think it's safe to assume the NCT will stay. It never really effects me anyway but it's the cheapest independent safety test I can get

Jayop

IMO the RSA are a joke anyway and have been since they appointed that self righteous clown to be their main mouth piece.

cena

Maybe do somthing about the waiting list. Mother needs ntc and its march before she can get it done. She drives up to dublin a few times a month. Not sure if she can drive up now

Jayop

I could be wrong but AFAIK once you have the test booked you're covered.*


*this may be something which I have imagined!

ba_barabus

Jayop wrote: »

I could be wrong but AFAIK once you have the test booked you're covered.*

According to the lady on the booking line "you're fine for most Gardaí unless you meet one have a very bad day".

Car isn't been driven anyway as I'm whacked out on valium for an injured back. The test is on Sunday.

Regarding test dates: I've had no trouble booking dates once I don't wait for it to run out (current car excepted as it was bought without an NCT)

Jayop

That's the problem with Irish law. This thing of you being fine unless you meet a Guard that fell out of the wrong side of the bed is no use to anyone. 5 poxy points for not having an NCT so I'd rather not leave it to chance.

Also, re booking dates it's better to get it done early if possible, especially with older cars. Bear with me as this is complicated. lol

For example if your car was tested in March 2012 it's due March 2013. If you get it tested in Jan 2013 then you still get a cert up to March 2014, but you've only had 9 months driving inbetween the two tests rather than 12 so less chance of something going wrong.

Pottler

I don't really give a toss about the NCT, do away with it or keep it. I went for one once, they wouldn't take a cheque and I'd no cash or cards on me, so I left, untested. Never been back, never will.

Buy em tested, scrap em when it expires. Max budget €650. Or €55 a month. Less the scrap value. I'll stick to my method and ye can test ahead. Missus goes for hers alright, it's usually some utter guff they fail on, can't see the wheel nuts, number plate has wrong font, wrong sort of airfreshner fitted or some shyte.

Anyone with a passing mechanical familiarity knows you can stick on all the shiny parts you like and have the car tested and pass, then whip them off for the originals five minutes later. It guaranteess safety for the time it was up on the ramp, nothing more. It's just a money racket rubber stamping exercise IMO. And ye can quote the pope back at me, I will still hold that view. But then again, my idea of a car is somthing that stops my buttocks dragging along the tarmac when I go places, so maybe my view is irelevant.

Grolschevik

Jayop wrote: »

For example if your car was tested in March 2012 it's due March 2013. If you get it tested in Jan 2013 then you still get a cert up to March 2014, but you've only had 9 months driving inbetween the two tests rather than 12 so less chance of something going wrong.

If you stick it in a couple of months early and it fails, do they still make you get it retested within 28 days?

(That is, test due in March, early test in January fails, do you get till the March date to retest?)

wonski

It always is a month from test date.

Grolschevik

wonski wrote: »

It always is a month from test date.

But you could keep using the old cert till the original expiry date.

wonski

Pottler wrote: »

I don't really give a toss about the NCT, do away with it or keep it. I went for one once, they wouldn't take a cheque and I'd no cash or cards on me, so I left, untested. Never been back, never will.

Buy em tested, scrap em when it expires. Max budget €650. Or €55 a month. Less the scrap value. I'll stick to my method and ye can test ahead. Missus goes for hers alright, it's usually some utter guff they fail on, can't see the wheel nuts, number plate has wrong font, wrong sort of airfreshner fitted or some shyte.

Anyone with a passing mechanical familiarity knows you can stick on all the shiny parts you like and have the car tested and pass, then whip them off for the originals five minutes later. It guaranteess safety for the time it was up on the ramp, nothing more. It's just a money racket rubber stamping exercise IMO. And ye can quote the pope back at me, I will still hold that view. But then again, my idea of a car is somthing that stops my buttocks dragging along the tarmac when I go places, so maybe my view is irelevant.

If one needs to get from a to b, and save some cash, this is the cheapest and easiest way. Wondering if you ever wanted to keep a car for a bit longer? And what you drive - 650 budget is very low, unless you buy some old 2-3l barges?

Jayop

Grolschevik wrote: »

But you could keep using the old cert till the original expiry date.

Totally. The old cert is valid until it expires.

Iwannahurl

SeanW wrote: »

With all due respect, that line is a crock of BS spouted by those big government statists advocating continuously more regulations and restrictions on peoples' day to day lives. "If X saves just ONE life, then it's worth it" regardless of what the cost, financially or otherwise of X.

If X saved your life, would it be worth it?

Jayop

Iwannahurl wrote: »

If X saved your life, would it be worth it?

If banning all motorised transport saved one life would it be worth it?

Solair

This sounds like an idea from a certain aspect of Kerry County Council!

I don't really see the big problem with the NCT. It's relatively efficient compared to other aspects of state services and it's a LOT more serious than the UK MOT system and it has undoubtedly kept a lot of complete bangers off the road.

You have to remember that if you're driving a clapped out car, or something with serious faults that could cause a crash, you're not just putting your own life at risk, you're potentially putting a lot of other people's lives at risk too.
There has to be some level of public accountability and control of these things and that's exactly what the NCT is.

I could think of hundreds of state run 'things' that I'd scrap before the NCT! It actually does something very useful.

If you want to complain about the cost of motoring, perhaps target your anger at the taxation of petrol/diesel, high levels of road tax and the crazy levels of tax on new cars.

Carson10

Definitely keep the NCT Test. There is lots of people who would be driving heaps of scrap only for it. I think its good especially for those people who would drive around for months with a headlight bulb gone or rear tail light, or people who wouldnt even think of looking at tyre thread etc.

Before the NCT you had careless people driving around with smashed lights, mirrors hanging off, cars never washed not being able to read plates. Definitely has cleaned the whole Irish motoring scenario up.

Cedrus

I can remember a case in the paper a long time ago, mid eighties probably, where a guy in a van was stopped by a guard because he wasn't holding a steady line on the road.
The guard was expecting a straightforward drink driving stop but was shocked to discover the van had no fixed seats and this fella was sitting on a kitchen chair with a pair of vicegrips on the steering column in lieu of a steering wheel.

I've been trying to find a report online about it but it was a looong time ago.

Keep the NCT.

Merch

2 stroke wrote: »

I check my car thoroughly for free every few weeks and before long journeys. The only surprise I ever got on a nct test was when my toyota brake pipes were "dangerously coroded". The pipes I removed have been lying in the rain for the last 2 years and still only have superficial rust.
A good reform of the nct would be reduce the cost if car passes test first time & introduce a penalty charge if car is presented in an obviously dangerous condition eg. bald tyres, no brakes, lights not working.

First paragraph, yeh that happened to me, I cleaned off a bit of dirt, checked them, minor superficial corrosion, to satisfy them, I cleaned, primed and sprayed them. Suddenly my corrosion problem went and they passed the test.
I would not agree with your second paragraph, give them an excuse to fault cars without issue if they could add penalty charges, its enough if you have to re do the test and pay for it. If someone is silly enough to turn up with bald tyres and then return again with some other glaring/dangerous/obvious fault then thats their own fault.

Jayop wrote: »

IMO the RSA are a joke anyway and have been since they appointed that self righteous clown to be their main mouth piece.

What annoys me is the NCT is to ensure cars pass a certain written down standard, then wasn't it the RSA recently bitching on about the increasing age of cars. I'm happy to have everyone comply with safety requirements but silly stuff can be annoying, but this shyte as people aren't buying enough new cars enoughs the fkuc out of me.
The age is irrelevant, can keep putting on new parts, before things turned sour nationally, didnt that german ambassador comment on all the new cars here, in other words even in industrialised, well off countries like germany dont have or need their citizens to buy new cars to prop up some segment of society.

nct tester

The rsa are a complete joke, they have added a lot of extra fail items in the last few years, minor things but all these things take extra time to check, yet they have not even batted an eye at the fact testers must now test 2 cars per hour as opposed to 3 cars in 2 hours a couple of years ago.
Id be the first to admit that nct needs an overhaul, but nowadays for every 1 car that passes and is a joy to test, theres another car that hasnt had a thing done to it in ages. Its quite obvious, when you see rust on an oil filter that the car hasnt been serviced in ages. not to mention that there are a lot of incompetent 'mechanics' out there, 'mechanics' that fit steering or suspension parts and dont do the wheel alignment after, 'mechanics' that fit dip beam bulbs incorrectly, 'mechanics' that fit front brake pads and dont replace brake discs that are worn past the minimum. And its the same with testers, we get things wrong from time to time, so if you feel you have been failed incorrectly, bring it to the testers attention, ask for a second opinion, dont just bring it back for retest, pay 28euro and then give out when it passes after doing nothing to the car.

Jayop

Great post tester. Nice to hear someone from the 'officialdom' admit to being human and making the odd error. I think people rarely blame the actual tester, more the system.

Also, I agree with you about the amount of crappy mechanics out there. I worked in main dealers for years (not any more) and I'd say 15-30% of our work was putting right f**k ups that fred in the shed mechanics had caused. Again, I'm not saying all these small operators are bad, some are great mechanics, but some are a joke and really dangerous.

ba_barabus

Everyone makes mistakes.

I've no issue with that. I missed two broken coils and a missing clip to keep a caliper from rocking round on a car I'd purchased.

I knew the rear tyres were near the limit but left them for the test as it's ownly a visual inspection.

Have to say i was happy with all the things which were picked up. All sorted now and the car is driving great. The retest is set for Sunday.

One thing though which I was a bit pissed at after the initial test (it's never happened before) was the oily/dirty handprints left all over my steering wheel, bonnet and seat. Given I gave the car a proper clean and wax before the test it would have been nice if the tester tried to keep it that way.

As said it's the first time it happened so I wasn't that fussed

Dr Turk Turkelton

nct tester wrote: »

The rsa are a complete joke, they have added a lot of extra fail items in the last few years, minor things but all these things take extra time to check, yet they have not even batted an eye at the fact testers must now test 2 cars per hour as opposed to 3 cars in 2 hours a couple of years ago.
Id be the first to admit that nct needs an overhaul, but nowadays for every 1 car that passes and is a joy to test, theres another car that hasnt had a thing done to it in ages. Its quite obvious, when you see rust on an oil filter that the car hasnt been serviced in ages. not to mention that there are a lot of incompetent 'mechanics' out there, 'mechanics' that fit steering or suspension parts and dont do the wheel alignment after, 'mechanics' that fit dip beam bulbs incorrectly, 'mechanics' that fit front brake pads and dont replace brake discs that are worn past the minimum. And its the same with testers, we get things wrong from time to time, so if you feel you have been failed incorrectly, bring it to the testers attention, ask for a second opinion, dont just bring it back for retest, pay 28euro and then give out when it passes after doing nothing to the car.

Sorry ncttester while I wholeheartedly agree with the nct yous shouldnt get things wrong "from time to time".
It should either pass or fail on merit no inbetween.

That's the problem most people have with the nct.

Also I do appreciate your input into this thread.

Jayop

Cuchulainn1. wrote: »

Sorry ncttester while I wholeheartedly agree with the nct yous shouldnt get things wrong "from time to time".
It should either pass or fail on merit no inbetween.

That's the problem most people have with the nct.

Also I do appreciate your input into this thread.

Some things are subjective and impossible to give a precise yes or no answer.

Rust for example, how is it either a pass or a fail unless a tester has to judge it? A noisy wheel bearing is another, a tester has to use his experience to try to judge is it a pass or fail. While one guy may pass it another will fail it. That's unfortunately the nature of the beast.

colm_mcm

Indeed, if testers weren't allowed to use a certain amount of discretion, you'd be seeing a lot more fails.

Anyone expecting every component of their car to be X-ray'd, taken apart and put back together for €55 is a bit unrealistic.

nct tester

Cuchulainn1. wrote: »

Sorry ncttester while I wholeheartedly agree with the nct yous shouldnt get things wrong "from time to time".
It should either pass or fail on merit no inbetween.

That's the problem most people have with the nct.

Also I do appreciate your input into this thread.

i hear what you're saying but everyone makes mistakes, the man who never made a mistake never made anything.

nct tester

on the one hand a tester may try to give benefit of the doubt on a wheel bearing, corroded brake lines etc and then on the other hand you have a AA man waiting in a van away from our view, waiting for us to finalise the test result so he can arrive into the test center and do a full recheck on the car you just tested. and if you've given benefit of the doubt to a customer and he thinks it should have failed , then you've got questions to answer.

NobodyImportant

No way should it be scrapped. Its taken many heaps off the roads and ensures a far better rate of compliance with tyre safety and notifies owners of faults that could be dangerous.

Its especially important these days as peopel are skimping on servicing/repairs.

Sure, it could do with the odd tweak, but nothing is perfect and it serves a much greater good.