does steering have to self-centre for a WOF?

[rollaholic]

question for all you wof savvy folk.

my gut wants to say yes, it does. but what do you all say?

if you are going to say yes, please advise where it states this in the VIRM.

<3

[Lloyd]

Reasons for rejection:

15. During operation:

a) the vehicle veers significantly to one side, or

b) the vehicle requires unreasonable force to steer, or

c) the steering is unreasonably stiff, rough or light, or

d) the vehicle does not handle safely under normal conditions of road use, eg the suspension is excessively hard or soft, or there is excessive body roll.

http://vehicleinspection.nzta.govt.nz/v ... on-systems

[rollaholic]

e) the steering does not return to centre by itself?

[Lloyd]

I was thinking more a), though without driving the car it's hard to say.

And you could argue that it doesn't handle safely if it doesn't self centre. Out of curiosity, why doesn't it self centre anyway? Either it lacks caster or the steering is too stiff?

[rollaholic]

there is no actual car, its a hypothetical. alot of stuff in the VIRM seems to be open to interpretation / opinion.

[Lloyd]

Yep, a lot of it is.

[Crucible]

Its more likely to get failed on the fact it is dangerous and the inspector is putting his name on the checksheet, not by what the virm says.

Its all about covering your ass.

[rollaholic]

yeah fair enough.

i did the written section of my WOF ticket yesterday, (finally) that was one of two questions i got wrong. like i said i wanted to say it was a failure but couldnt prove it via VIRM. seems like a bit of a snakey question to me. its all very well to say its up to the inspectors opinion, but people have different opinions about things. how do you test an opinion?

the other was about a front mounted intercooler, which seemed to have two conflicting rules about it in different parts of the VIRM.

nevermind, a pass is a pass.

[iOnic]

What's the deal with fmic?
I've always assumed:
Factory fmic = fine
Aftermarket with no mods to factory bumper iron and no new holes for piping = fine
Aftermarket with holes and chopped/removed iron = no deal

[Lloyd]

Cert is not required for a FMIC provided that

-the front structure of the vehicle has not been modified, and
-the front bumper structure is unaltered (cosmetic changes are permitted), and
-the components do not present any forward-facing external projections, and
-none of the frontal impact components have been removed where the vehicle is required to comply with a frontal impact occupant protection standard

[Dell'Orto]

We had a customer fail a WOF for a FMIC as it was a 99 model WRX, apparently post 98 they are a lot harder on things that potentially affect the frontal impact area

[steroidcontaskie]

When I talking to a certifier about my car he suggested that I cert the front mount even though it didnt require one. He said that most WOF places will just fail you on an aftermaket front mount regardless of if it needs a cert or not.


Cheers
Edward

[rollaholic]

yes the FMIC question made me even grumpier in a way, because the question specifically stated that while it was a 2003 no structural changes had been made to the vehicle or the bumper. i said it could be passed provided external projection requirements were met. the answers sheet said it should be failed, but the guy marking the tests didnt seem to be too clued up on the ins and outs of why.

i guess the trouble is asking inspectors to make a judgement call on if the frontal impact standards of the vehicle have been affected, when they typically really have no training (or clues) in this area.

its from these dates dellorto -

The following vehicles with a GVM of 2500kg or less must comply with a frontal impact occupant protection standard:

Class MA motor vehicles manufactured on or after 1 March 1999
Class MA motor vehicles that were less than 20 years old when they were first registered in New Zealand on or after 1 April 2002
Class MB and MC motor vehicles manufactured on or after 1 October 2003.