Roadtesting

[Guest mcgrailtony]

Here is the problem.

 

My RH was due for its IVA test in December (which it failed miserably but I'm working on this) and not wanting to turn up with a car that has never been road tested I started looking for a test track with the following results. Although I live in an area with lots of ex WW2 airfiels and two major airports, there are absolutely no venues for hire or use whatsoever. They are all stitched up tight. So I looked track days only to find that a) they are expensive (plus the cost of the trailer hire) but more importantly ( no circuits or organizers welcome testing. They want you to stay with a very controlled fleet who are told drive around (preferably at the same speed) staying out of everyone elses way. In fact they don,t allow you to go off and come on at random which is precisely how testing works. So track days are out then. I thought about big industrial estates of which there are an abundance around here but these are either policed by private firms and / or have speed ramps everywhere. So no use. Farms have unmade or rough tacks. Housing estates? (Joke).

 

Fact. I can take the car to the test without tax or number plates (which obviously can't be aquired until a post IVA test log book is issued), provided the car is insured (Specialist firms will issue cover no problem) but I cannot deviate from the shortest direct route between my home and the centre on the same day. Also I had to be there at 8am, leaving at 6 30 am. So my only real option was to use the IVA trip as a road test but who wants to take the risk of a probem on route and miss the test altogether? No thanks. I trailered it instead.

 

While preparing the RH for a re-test, I still fancy the idea if anyone can help. I built kit cars and motorbilkes 40 years ago as teenager and never had the lack of facility problems then. In fact we never had the IVA test then and were allowed to run on donor plates. Is the world a better place?

[Bob Tucker]

When I was ready for SVA (back in 2002) I arranged for an MOT test at a garage that specialised in kit cars.....it wasnt exactly the closest one, but that one didnt want to do the MOT on an unregistered car. The one I used set up the tracking, checked brake balance, & set the emissions for me. The one downside is that having had an MOT, you need an MOT every year after SVA. Sometimes you get 3 years grace. So a slightly devious route there & back covered 20 miles, & helped get a first time SVA pass.

All legal too....mostly.

HTH Bob

[agent_zed]

As bob says suppose you are booked into a local friendly garage for an MOT (but you get everything else done instead) and oops they can't do the mot for some reason - couldn't get onto the ramps perhaps. So you had to come home with no MOT what unfortunate luck as it won't even show as a fail. Good job though your MOT appointment was logged into the garages appointments book for when the police ring through to check. shame you couldn't get on the ramps!

 

this is of course all theoretical as i have no idea of the law to this level so i'm not suggesting you do this

[johnhetherington]

There was a thread on this a while back and if I remember rightly, you are not allowed to drive to an MOT if the car has not passed its IVA and is regisiered.

The only time you are allowed to drive the car on the road before it is registered is to the IVA test.

The MOT does not form part of the IVA, if you want it MOT'd you will have to trailer it to the garage and back.

That's my understanding.

Cheers

John

http://www.johnskitcar.com