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Drucifer wrote:You should know us southerner's think anything north of Watford Gap services is that dark, mystical land, often mentioned as "The North", not much is known about it 'cept it is up that way!
CovKid wrote:An MOT is an an MOT. Some seem to hunt for 'lenient' testers though I have no idea why. If its an unkown vehicle, pick a tester that can actually find fault. For my first two years on mine, I hunted down the most jobsworth tester I could find, corrected all the faults then two years later took it to local tester who at least understands that slight play in real wheel bearings is actually normal on these. Passed every year since (8 in all for this vehicle) but I do all the work first.
I have booked in so fingers crossed 
chuckle-bus-tom wrote:Both Brickwerks and Gasure are in the north.
slowcoach wrote:An old hand in Todmorden, alex at New Barn Garage. He drives a black crew cab too
Where do you live?
shepster wrote:http://www.brickwerks.co.uk/index.php/
Brickwerks is in Holmfirth but Gasure is near Chester so the opposite side of the Country.
Southerners eh?
lodgey62 wrote:I'm in Ripponden and use some mechanics in sowerby bridge,first rate blokes,they will get your motor MOTd though it will have to be right.one of the blokes,Matt is VW fanatic,pm me if you need their number.
Sage words of wisdom thanks !Ralf85 wrote:Spot on. Get it MOTd and find our if there are problems. If it fails for anything get a trusted garage to give your van a full service anyway and sort out any problems. The golden rule with these old vehicles is get the oil changed etc done every 5000 miles. Otherwise it will let you down at the most inconvenient time!CovKid wrote:An MOT is an an MOT. Some seem to hunt for 'lenient' testers though I have no idea why. If its an unkown vehicle, pick a tester that can actually find fault. For my first two years on mine, I hunted down the most jobsworth tester I could find, corrected all the faults then two years later took it to local tester who at least understands that slight play in real wheel bearings is actually normal on these. Passed every year since (8 in all for this vehicle) but I do all the work first.
CovKid wrote:An MOT is an an MOT. Some seem to hunt for 'lenient' testers though I have no idea why. If its an unkown vehicle, pick a tester that can actually find fault. For my first two years on mine, I hunted down the most jobsworth tester I could find, corrected all the faults then two years later took it to local tester who at least understands that slight play in real wheel bearings is actually normal on these. Passed every year since (8 in all for this vehicle) but I do all the work first.
CovKid wrote:In my experience (and prepped hundreds and hundreds of volkswagens for MOTs) is that you can go on indefinately changing/replacing things that you think 'might' be seen as a failure only to get failed on something you hadn't expected. In the end, you check for obvious rot, make sure the brakes and lights work, put it through and see what happens. Its far easier and often the cheapest solution. If you get a helpful MOT tester, and you don't have a huge mechanical knowledge, you can always ask him/her for advice on things you may need to look at in future. They're generally very good with owners that take their responsibilities seriously. The ones they hammer (and the drivers they hate the most) are the ones that have done NOTHING since the last MOT. Plenty of those on the road and many that shouldn't be.
MOT tests, even though they are set out clearly are still somewhat subjective. What one garage sees as perfectly acceptable, the next may not and its pointless arguing the case. Theres a lot to be said for a fastifious tester if you buy an unknown vehicle, but once you're assured its not a deathtrap, you can use a more pragmatic approach and find a tester that you know is more helpful (and I don't mean lenient). Roads are fast moving but packed these days. You need to be able to stop quickly and not put other road users (or passengers) at risk. The ones to really steer well clear of are those that have the potential to create work for themselves that is not even needed. In that respect, a place that predominantly does MOTs rather than repairs is to be favoured - in my view.
FregT25 wrote: I need to find a good general service / repair place as am not technical any advice welcome... cheers!
Yes I know hawarth, nice place! We are in Tod, close to that garage, You'll see 2 yellow vans nearby. Good luck!FregT25 wrote:slowcoach wrote:An old hand in Todmorden, alex at New Barn Garage. He drives a black crew cab too
Where do you live?
Cheers forthos gave booked in next week to Todmorden ....
shepster wrote:FregT25 wrote: I need to find a good general service / repair place as am not technical any advice welcome... cheers!
No mention of looking for a 'lenient' tester, just after a decent garage from what I can read.
