In support of MOT tests

First of all, even though historic class vehicles are no longer required by law to have an MOT test, there is nothing at all to stop the vehicle owner from still having their machine tested for their own peace of mind.

VOSA brought in this change based upon the high percentage of pass rates in machines 40 years and older on their computer records. Having now retired but having spent 48 years of my life as a motorcycle mechanic/engineer, I found most of the people with old bikes are well clued up on looking after their bikes and keeping them roadworthy.

But thoughts do cross my mind of someone dragging an old bike out of a shed where it has lain for years, blowing up perished tyres, getting it running and heading off up the road.

About two years before I retired a man brought into the shop where I worked a 1960s-era Vespa scooter. He knew it didn’t require an MOT but brought it along to have it checked over anyway.

The first glaring fault was that the steering head bearings were so slack that the steering stem was rocking about in the bearing cups, while a spin on the rolling road brake tester proved the front brake to be not effective enough. The man was happy knowing that, once we had put these faults right for him, he had a safe machine to use.

An MOT is not what everybody thinks it is – “Oh well, it’s okay for another year”. As part of VOSA’s nominated tester training, you are told you are testing to the minimum required standard at the time of the test. This means that if someone brings in a machine over 50cc and a tyre is worn down to 1mm minimum legal tread depth, you can only advise on it. Even if you know he is straight off on a round-the-UK trip, the tyre passed at the time of the test.

Silly as it may sound, you can have an MOT test on your bike, drive off up the road and get pulled over by the police and pinched for a vehicle fault, as VOSA’s requirements and legal requirements are two different things.

For an MOT test you do not have to have a chain guard fitted; the only time a chain guard comes into play on an MOT is if it is loose and likely to foul the rear wheel or chain itself. The second instance is that a speedometer is not an MOT requirement … but these two things are legal requirements to use the machine on a public highway.

Despite this, an MOT is peace of mind if you have just bought a classic or have built one and want a second pair of eyes cast over it.

For those who feel more confident, I believe VOSA’s website states what is required of a motorcycle in order for it to pass an MOT.

Whatever this summer brings as far as being able to get out and about, I wish everyone safe and happy miles, and thank you Colin Humphries for your letter.

Mike Cartlidge, Hull, East Yorkshire