Riverside Vauxhall - Scamsters Alert!

Wife took car for service and MOT. Riverside decided that the exhaust was an
MOT failure. Even wrote price of replacement on MOT failure sheet!

Took the car to an independent garage, and their MOT tester confirmed that
it was not an MOT failure at all. Tiny pin prick of a hole.

Riverside's response? "If your not happy with our service - take your car
elsewhere!"

So we will not allow these chancers anywhere near wife's car in future.

Amongst our family and friends we worked out that they have 8 Vauxhalls -
none of them will be using Riverside Vauxhall in the future either.

Anyone know of a trusted Vauxhall main dealer in the Mid Beds area?

**SS**

 

Playing 'Devils Advocate', I understand your disappointment in the service
you received, but from what I've always understood, and been told by very
trusted MOT examiners, is that if they find anything which may become an MOT
failure they should bring this to your attention.

Now I had my car MOT'ed at a very good garage in Ipswich, and they told me
the Off side sill was going to need repairs before the next MOT. This was
last year, and I got the repairs done last summer, this year it sailed
through. The damage was just a very small bit of rust, and as the examiner
stated although he could not put his finger through the sill at this time,
it would be a fault very soon. so rather than fail it he suggested it be
done ASAP.

Now I am not saying they were correct, or are the best but YOU did say Your
exhaust HAD a very small hole in it, and by definition was not FULLY
COMPLETE, so maybe their diplomacy was poor, in that they should have said
it was a very small hole and by rights should be fixed now, or possibly in
the VERY near future, but with the DVLA being as hot onto bad MOT's as they
are, they probably didn't want to take any chances.

There is a very poor statement in the MOT, which says that if there is
ANYTHING they feel will take the attention form the road by the driver they
can fail this. This even goes as far as the car radio being a little loose
in its fixings, so I believe they were well within their policy to fail your
car.


Now having put the white horse charger to bed, it is hard to find a good
garage as there does seam to be so many after a quick cash pay off, but all
the best in your look for a better one.

Cheers Vaughn

 

as below
http://www.motuk.co.uk/manual_710.htm

the full test
http://www.motuk.co.uk/manual/contents.htm

 

Quite correct, but as stated, I believe the test also states that if the
examiner thinks this may get bad enough, before the next test, they should
report it at least, BUT maybe here not fail it.

Not seeing the fault first hand hard to say, just trying to show that MOT's
do often seem to be how the examiner feels on the day sometimes.

Cheers for the links, very helpful, will digest later. ;-)

Vaughn

 

"Note: A minor exhaust leak from, for example, a connection joint or a pin
hole, is not a Reason for Rejection"
They failed the MOT based on a pin prick of a hole, that another MOT
examiner said was not a reason to fail the MOT. They wrote on the failure
sheet the cost of a replacement. At best very sharp practice, at worst
looking to make money doing unnecessary work. Their whole attitude was if
your not happy - F**K off. So that's what we're doing.

The whole experience has left us wondering if it was all because this was a
woman taking her car in to them. I would have expected a more professional
approach from a main dealer. They were not even prepared to discuss the
matter.

**SS**

 

Point taken, please accept all my luck in finding a good garage in your
area. I've always been lucky there.

Vaughn

 

If you are not happy with the 1st mot you should have followed the appeal
proceedure :
probably too late now:

http://www.motuk.co.uk/appeals.htm


"but with the DVLA being as hot onto bad MOT's"
it has nothing to do with the dvla its:

Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA)

I work for the MOD and when we submit for a test we always over engineer(not
any safer).
Vosa work to exacting standards as per the manual and for what some of our
mechanics may think is not up to scratch, the vehicle can pass with flying
colours.

Any way i dont want to get embroiled into any arguements but you need to
work with a garage that you can trust and get on with.
I dont fix my own car (city & guilds in mechanics) i have a garage local to
me who I trust and have done for the past 20 years. (never feel as though i
ve been ripped off) even though some parts can seem to be costly.


dave