MOT pass with decat?

[AL3X_]

I've got a decat mani fitted on the saxo now, my MOT is in a couple of months and I was speaking to my mechanic...he said he doesn't think the guy they take it to for MOTs will pass it...I beg to differ as he's a backstreet garage and passed my insanely loud backbox on my old car and deep sunstrip, but before I go and have a quiet word with him has anyone on here passed the MOT without a cat installed and without using a leniant or bribe accepting garage lol?

If so, how?

[SnakeVTR]

nope lol, it will more than likely fail its emissions, anyone who passes it would be as bent as a £7 pound note, if you bodge the mot and something important gets missed its your life on the line (eg balljoints, suspension, corroded brake lines) up to you though :y:

[mlawlan69]

could you not get a mk1 cat? much easier to swap in/out

[stevo67]

I doubt if it`ll pass without the CAT,1 on emissions 2 on there not being a CAT visable.

[kane_15023]

it will defo fail M.O.T mate emissions will be to high

[Tontsy]

there is no failure regulations on the noise of a vehicle, its down to the testers discretion.
regards to your De-Cat - it will fail emissions, unless he fancys risking his license and loosing his career. but that would be his choice.

and as of next year, they will fail it for the CAT being missing, so if there is physically no cat on the system, it will fail.

[AL3X_]

nope lol, it will more than likely fail its emissions, anyone who passes it would be as bent as a £7 pound note, if you bodge the mot and something important gets missed its your life on the line (eg balljoints, suspension, corroded brake lines) up to you though :y:


I've heard of a lot of testers turning a blind eye, is this just bullshit then? I dont want a dodgy mot just maybe ignore the emissions side of things if that were possible?

Mlawlan, i cant really as my centre pipe goes all the way to the mani and is desilenced so i dont wanna change it for a silenced one.

It looks like i'll just have to swap it over but the garage is only open weekdays so I may struggle for time...plus it was a bit of a pain to fit right in the first place.

[Tontsy]

myself, and alot of other testers i know may turn a blind eye to small things such as emissions... for people we know.

its not worth the consequences if someone just came upto me, and say "fancy ignoring my emissions for a 5er" no. then i will find something to fail you on.

[AL3X_]

a fiver? I would happily pay £20.

No seriously though, if there is something you find unsafe to fail on...I would rather it did fail for that anyway not just if I'd put you in a bad mood....but I understand where you're coming from... i will have a quiet word with the tester my mechanic uses as my mechanic is as good as family....and I'm not an idiot who would say i got pulled 'oh well it passed an MOT like that'....but we shall see, I spose if I have to swap it over its the troub.e we go to to mod our cars.

[turbod_vtr]

ive passed decat legally and illegally. sometime they DO go through. as for the sun strip. if they say anything about that u can always put smaller wiper blades on so it is not in the sweeped area! ;-)

[AL3X_]

ive passed decat legally and illegally. sometime they DO go through. as for the sun strip. if they say anything about that u can always put smaller wiper blades on so it is not in the sweeped area! ;-)


Ah really? Any way to make this happen like taking it for a rag before hand etc?

The sunstrip is no problem anymore that was my old car and he was fine about that :/

[turbod_vtr]

a drive will help, as the hotter the exhaust gets the less UNBURNT fuel there will be. it will also clear any hc's out. u will just have to try to no for sure. mine was only just out and i didnt race mine b4 testing.

[iDale]

I've known a tester to reverse a nice new car up to the emissions machine and plug that in instead ;)

[AL3X_]

Turbod_vtr...ah I see mate...I may just swap it out i'm not too sure yet its just a pain :/

iDale...yeh i've heard people mention this...just don't know any in my area :(

[turbod_vtr]

wer u from? fancy a trip to sunny stockport i can sort it! ;) haha

[titchster]

Going for a drive doesn't really work without a cat, as the idea of going for a rag is that it gets the cat hot.


As said, there's a slight possibility it'll pass without it, but chances are it won't. And since it's computerised now, the only way they can pass it on emissions is by not actually testing that car and using a different car. Obviously not legit.



I've heard of issues with fitting shorter wipers to get away with a sunstrip too, since you end up not wiping enough of the required area. ;)

[AL3X_]

wer u from? fancy a trip to sunny stockport i can sort it! ;) haha

Really? I'm from Yorkshire so about an hour away, I might get back to you on that mate.

Going for a drive doesn't really work without a cat, as the idea of going for a rag is that it gets the cat hot.


As said, there's a slight possibility it'll pass without it, but chances are it won't. And since it's computerised now, the only way they can pass it on emissions is by not actually testing that car and using a different car. Obviously not legit.



I've heard of issues with fitting shorter wipers to get away with a sunstrip too, since you end up not wiping enough of the required area. ;)

Thats what I thought mate.

And yeah i've heard the sunstrip and wipers method works...as I say though he passed the sunstrip and the exhaust which instead of a backbox(on this car the largest silencer in the system) it just had a straight through pipe) as my mechanic said to him...go easy, hes family... I asked him about the decat and he said he wouldn't entertain it...not sure why it differs but yano...

Is there a mini tester you can buy yourself or some kind of gauge I can install to check myself if its going to pass or not...I mean it is on 60k with a full history pretty much, is always warmed up and cooled down before driving so I doubt the engine is in a bad condition?

I'vealso read on a few sites...if you add a full bottle of injector cleaner to 1/4 tank of petrol, go for a spirited drive beforehand it should pass...not sure how true this is? And if the injectors are to do with it...I have a set of freshly cleaned injectors by injectortune in my room?

[joe333]

Ahhaha funny ths tread my sax's MOT is coming up in september and i got a de-cat! :n:

[AL3X_]

What you planning to do mate?

[joe333]

What you planning to do mate?

well i got someone in reading i know that said he might be able to sort me out and then i give him some extra lol im to kind :p or ill just go to some little test place and say look everything else is spot on but i have a de-cat so can you sort me out for a little extra simple lol (well i hope) :afro:

[saxova]

There's two place's around here that do 'de-cat friendly' mot's.. You just gotta ask around.

[saxo_gray]

Mk1's are so much easier when it comes to decatting etc. just a small bit of pipe in the middle to replace once a year to get it through. why risk a fail when you can put a cat on and pass.

Seems someone is just trying to break the rules a little too much and is too tight to buy a cat. Just sell it on after stating "its done like 5 miles" to get it through test.

[rich112]

I just have a whole standard cat and backbox Which I change when Mot comes up.

[AL3X_]

Mk1's are so much easier when it comes to decatting etc. just a small bit of pipe in the middle to replace once a year to get it through. why risk a fail when you can put a cat on and pass.

Seems someone is just trying to break the rules a little too much and is too tight to buy a cat. Just sell it on after stating "its done like 5 miles" to get it through test.

No mate, i'm far from 'too tight', I can easily afford a cat be it second hand or brand new, and if I couldn't I could weigh in my old cat to pay for a second hand one, the fact is to swap it over isn't as simple as a mk1, I need to swap the mani over, to do this we had to move all the radiator forward etc to get the manicat out, and even then it was a pain to seal it up correctly. I even said I wouldn't mind paying a little extra to get it through, so read my reasoning before you start mouthing off...no need to be bitter cos you struggled to pass your emissions with a cat. :homme:

[AL3X_]

I just have a whole standard cat and backbox Which I change when Mot comes up.

How much did that cost you roughly mate, that sounds like a decent option if its not gonna set me back loads for the sake of a 1 hour MOT

[saxo_gray]

No mate, i'm far from 'too tight', I can easily afford a cat be it second hand or brand new, and if I couldn't I could weigh in my old cat to pay for a second hand one, the fact is to swap it over isn't as simple as a mk1, I need to swap the mani over, to do this we had to move all the radiator forward etc to get the manicat out, and even then it was a pain to seal it up correctly. I even said I wouldn't mind paying a little extra to get it through, so read my reasoning before you start mouthing off...no need to be bitter cos you struggled to pass your emissions with a cat. :homme:

just seems you'd rather pay someone to do a dodgy MOT for you, rather than do it properly. yeah my car failed emissions due an a 12yo cat, but I went and coughed up the money for a new one, not worrying about trying to blag an MOT with a Decat pipe. Not really fair to ask a tester to turn a blind eye to something put the job on the line, just because its hard work to change the cat.

[M1TTJ]

I got my S2K Mot'd last week with a de cat, J racing Titanium exhaust and even got an emissions print out ;)

They also passed my illegal number plates!

[AL3X_]

just seems you'd rather pay someone to do a dodgy MOT for you, rather than do it properly. yeah my car failed emissions due an a 12yo cat, but I went and coughed up the money for a new one, not worrying about trying to blag an MOT with a Decat pipe. Not really fair to ask a tester to turn a blind eye to something put the job on the line, just because its hard work to change the cat.

Again, read what I said....I don't want a dodgy MOT, I would rather a slightly strict MOT rather than slack...in regards to safety, a cat does not affect the safety of the vehicle, and I often read of people on here saying they're tester turned a blind eye, I just wanted to know if it was something that was often done by testers or not, as it would save me a lot of hassle, like I say I assumed this was quite an often done thing judging by posts on here, if I have been mislead then fair enough I shall refit the cat.

[deks36]

Again, read what I said....I don't want a dodgy MOT, I would rather a slightly strict MOT rather than slack...in regards to safety, a cat does not affect the safety of the vehicle, and I often read of people on here saying they're tester turned a blind eye, I just wanted to know if it was something that was often done by testers or not, as it would save me a lot of hassle, like I say I assumed this was quite an often done thing judging by posts on here, if I have been mislead then fair enough I shall refit the cat.

You will not get an mot tester to turn a blind eye unless you know him well
think of the scenario man turns up a garage and says mate its that important is it etc he passes it then the man say thanks I am from the ministry we are shutting you down
Anyone that says yes my passed with this or this either know the tester or has a dodgy ticket

If you want a fair a resonable suggestion, check with the garage you are going to get it MOT'd at and ask if they charge for retests if it fails, most don't then put it in and see what happens

[dan-]

wer u from? fancy a trip to sunny stockport i can sort it! ;) haha

Haha Stockport the home of dodgy MOTS

[chinkostu]

I need to swap the mani over, to do this we had to move all the radiator forward etc to get the manicat out, and even then it was a pain to seal it up correctly.

erm, you do realise you can take the cat away from the top of the manifold? its 4 bolts, 20 minute job. i've had to do mine.

as for friendly mot testers, best idea is ask people around you with cars that seem to flout the rules and see where you can go

not that i advocate any of this

[AL3X_]

I got my S2K Mot'd last week with a de cat, J racing Titanium exhaust and even got an emissions print out ;)

They also passed my illegal number plates!

I've had import plates passed on my old non import plate car...but like I say i've been told the guy won't pass this.

You will not get an mot tester to turn a blind eye unless you know him well
think of the scenario man turns up a garage and says mate its that important is it etc he passes it then the man say thanks I am from the ministry we are shutting you down
Anyone that says yes my passed with this or this either know the tester or has a dodgy ticket

If you want a fair a resonable suggestion, check with the garage you are going to get it MOT'd at and ask if they charge for retests if it fails, most don't then put it in and see what happens

Good point mate, and a good suggestion, I might try that :y:

erm, you do realise you can take the cat away from the top of the manifold? its 4 bolts, 20 minute job. i've had to do mine.

as for friendly mot testers, best idea is ask people around you with cars that seem to flout the rules and see where you can go

not that i advocate any of this

Yeah I knew that was possible, but it doesn't look easy in situ, iirc we tried it and couldn't get anything to reach the bolts?

I'll probably just swap it back or ask a guy at one of the garages i've worked at...not spoken to them for a couple of years though :/

[titchster]

Borrow a mk1 cat and exhaust. Job done, no need to swap manifolds then. ;)

[toxic]

give him a back hander then it will pass lol

[AL3X_]

I don't have any mates with saxo's unfortunately...if theres a cheap one local id buy it...as like you say its easier to swap that...

[chinkostu]

Yeah I knew that was possible, but it doesn't look easy in situ, iirc we tried it and couldn't get anything to reach the bolts?

I'll probably just swap it back or ask a guy at one of the garages i've worked at...not spoken to them for a couple of years though :/

a very, very long extension bar on the end of a ratchet ;)

[AL3X_]

a very, very long extension bar on the end of a ratchet ;)

Ah fair enough, ill look out for a cat and do this more than likely then.

[Saxobea]

Never pass wi out cat