I wasn't sure on this one, because I had a trans shaft to change and the suspension arms' silentblocks need replacement, but it all went smooth. The guys working there were in a very good mood (odd thing), and seems that the guy who checked my car knew something about old vw's. I had an air-cooled 911 in front of me, so I guess that was the reason for their mood.
We started the inspection and told me the battery was slightly loose. Checked the exhaust smoke on WOT, OK. Suspension and braking, OK.
Inspection results: favorable with one flaw: minor engine oil leakage.
Sounds like they can really get tough on checking one out over there. Glad it all went your way !
How much do they charge for the service ?
Is it required every year ?
How much do they charge for the service ?
Is it required every year ?
They asked 41 EUROS for that! Last year it was about 38. Quite expensive for what they do, imho.
It's required as follows: for a car over 4 years, every 2 years. For a car over 10, every year. My car just turned 21..
They do a smoke check, then test the braking, suspension and wheels, putting some stress to check for worn out (and possibly dangerous) elements. They also check every light in the car. They said my home alignment drifts 2 meters for every kilometer, which isn't that bad (max. negative camber).
41€ sounds cheap. Cheapest here is 56€, nearest locally 96€
Pretty expensive for 15 minutes work. And yes, that´s every year here too
Every bulb in/on the car - front end alignment - battery mounting - oil/fluid leaks - WOW !!!
41 euro= $50.50 usd
56 euro= $68.94 usd
In my state (North Carolina) of the USA it has to be done once a year.
1996-newer ECM scan, emissions, etc = $35 --- 28.43 euro
1975-1995 = $13 --- 10.56 euro (it was $9 (7.31 euros) until this year)
Anything 35 years or over, is Exempt.
On the 75-95 deal they usually don't check about half the things they are supposed to. Unless you go to a retail chain where the guys get paid on the clock instead of on commission.
Supposed to check all exterior lights mirrors and horn (most stop there). Then eBrake operation, jack up on lift quick check of suspension steering brakes exhaust and verify cat.vertor in place if applicable.
A few states in USA require NO safety inspection.
Florida is one of them.
Up here in Ontario we only have to get the car inspected when it changes owners. I think it also only applies to cars over 10 years old as well. They check lights, horn, brakes, alignment, holes into the cabin, tires and suspension. Typically costs around $80-$100.
And then every second year we have to get our vehicles emission tested. For light duty diesels it's a quick visual inspection to make sure it's not smoking at idle. Gasoline cars get put on a dyno and get sniffed. That's worth $35.
Part of me wishes that we had annual inspections because there are a lot of people driving some very sketchy cars but at the same time I don't want to pay another $100/ year
Jezebel had her emissions inspection yesterday... Passed quite nicely!!
Our "opacity" limit is 30% - she scored 0.58% so obviously I need to crank my fuel up. I wasn't sure if they would check for a catalytic converter or not (AAZ cars in Canada came with one), so I ended up getting a 2.5" Magnaflow diesel cat put on before I got tested. Turns out that AirCare in BC does NOT check for the presence of a catalytic converter at least on pre-TDI cars. Phooey! I couldn't get a straight answer out of them so figured better safe than sorry.