Potty
Enthusiast
- Messages
- 36
- Location
- Portugal
Yesterday was MOT time and here in Portugal it is a very simple straightforward process, you turn up at a centre which just does MOT's join the queue and wait your turn. Whilst waiting I'm starting to think what I'm going to fail on, even though I passed with no problems last year, this is a 30 year old car and I've done 12,000 kms since the last test.
When having the test you stay with the car most of the way, it works like a conveyor belt system, so when my time comes I drive to the first part the emissions test, the sensor goes up the exhaust pipe the bonnet is opened and a laser is aimed at the engine ( I don't know what that was for, I didn't ask i was too busy looking at the emissions screen).
Next up I drove to the light test section, windscreen wipers etc, then I had to get out so the tester could drive on to the bit where the shocks are shaken about. He gets out and I'm instructed to drive over to the inspection pit. I wait here for a couple of minutes while he prods about underneath, by this time I have got everything crossed and saying my prayers.
The tester then climbs out of the pit with his thumbs up saying everything was perfect!...Whilst I'm cheering and congratulating the old car I'm told to drive around the corner to pick up the pass certificate,
then it happens.......as I'm about to drive off I notice steam coming from underneath the bonnet.
I turn the engine off and elation quickly turns into despair. It's now dark so I can't see underneath the bonnet, so the breakdown service is called. I collect my pass certificate and I'm told that was a first for the test centre, never before has a car had a perfect MOT and broken down before the certificate has been printed.
So the R4 is taken to my local garage, just before it closes and I'm told to back today, worst case scenario 300 euros to fix, I was expecting half that in case of any MOT problems.
So this morning I turn up with my glum face expecting the worse.....despair then turns into elation, whilst going the shock absorber test the two cables connected to the radiator fan had shook loose so the fan didn't kick in, so a quick fix, system flush new coolant only came to 20 euros!
My R4 is known around here as " the Banana" ( it being bright yellow ), due to the extreme emotions it went through it's will now be known as " the Bipolar Banana".
When having the test you stay with the car most of the way, it works like a conveyor belt system, so when my time comes I drive to the first part the emissions test, the sensor goes up the exhaust pipe the bonnet is opened and a laser is aimed at the engine ( I don't know what that was for, I didn't ask i was too busy looking at the emissions screen).
Next up I drove to the light test section, windscreen wipers etc, then I had to get out so the tester could drive on to the bit where the shocks are shaken about. He gets out and I'm instructed to drive over to the inspection pit. I wait here for a couple of minutes while he prods about underneath, by this time I have got everything crossed and saying my prayers.
The tester then climbs out of the pit with his thumbs up saying everything was perfect!...Whilst I'm cheering and congratulating the old car I'm told to drive around the corner to pick up the pass certificate,
then it happens.......as I'm about to drive off I notice steam coming from underneath the bonnet.
I turn the engine off and elation quickly turns into despair. It's now dark so I can't see underneath the bonnet, so the breakdown service is called. I collect my pass certificate and I'm told that was a first for the test centre, never before has a car had a perfect MOT and broken down before the certificate has been printed.
So the R4 is taken to my local garage, just before it closes and I'm told to back today, worst case scenario 300 euros to fix, I was expecting half that in case of any MOT problems.
So this morning I turn up with my glum face expecting the worse.....despair then turns into elation, whilst going the shock absorber test the two cables connected to the radiator fan had shook loose so the fan didn't kick in, so a quick fix, system flush new coolant only came to 20 euros!
My R4 is known around here as " the Banana" ( it being bright yellow ), due to the extreme emotions it went through it's will now be known as " the Bipolar Banana".
