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I agree that vehicle inspections, when done by local mechanics, are mostly about revenue for the mechanics. Some years back, I had to title a vehicle in Maryland, and was skinned for over $1,000 to have key parts in the front suspension replaced. This for a car 5 years old that drove perfectly, showed no abnormal tire wear etc. etc.
It's unfortunate that these things go on. Economists call it "regulatory capture" where local business interests capture regulations for their own benefit. In this case, it is all too easy to spin tales of bad brakes, bad tires, bad exhausts systems that have no holes, and who knows what else, to legislators, in the total absence of data that shows that inspections avoid accidents. And that's what matters. You can still have a MV code that makes bad tires, glass, brakes and such illegal, so that when needed,someone can be cited.
I agree that vehicle inspections, when done by local mechanics, are mostly about revenue for the mechanics. Some years back, I had to title a vehicle in Maryland, and was skinned for over $1,000 to have key parts in the front suspension replaced. This for a car 5 years old that drove perfectly, showed no abnormal tire wear etc. etc.
It's unfortunate that these things go on. Economists call it "regulatory capture" where local business interests capture regulations for their own benefit. In this case, it is all too easy to spin tales of bad brakes, bad tires, bad exhausts systems that have no holes, and who knows what else, to legislators, in the total absence of data that shows that inspections avoid accidents. And that's what matters. You can still have a MV code that makes bad tires, glass, brakes and such illegal, so that when needed,someone can be cited.
You probably have a mechanic that you trust do any needed repairs...does that same shop not do inspections? If you scroll down this document to Saf-C 3211, you can see what parts must be inspected and for what defects. Mechanics are very constrained regarding the reasons they have to fail vehicles during inspections. Official Motor Vehicle Inspection Requirements
This NHTSA study shows that defective equipment was involved in 6.8% of accidents. www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811059.PDF (Page 29, Table 12.) Given that >11% of the drivers were killed or had an incapacitating injury, I think it would be difficult to justify a study randomizing vehicles to inspections vs no inspections to see if the injury rate was affected. To me, that's what matters...the potential for injury and loss of life, not a citation after the fact.
Thank you for commenting. I completely agree and glad that I'm not alone in questioning the system.
Of course there are (or should be) MV codes and LE should be citing people for many things that a safety inspection covers. It's a problem when the mechanic doing inspections have a potential for monitary gain by performing the "recommended" repairs. Does anyone else not see this as a problem?
It doesn't make sense and is a flawed system.
You probably have a mechanic that you trust do any needed repairs...does that same shop not do inspections? If you scroll down this document to Saf-C 3211, you can see what parts must be inspected and for what defects. Mechanics are very constrained regarding the reasons they have to fail vehicles during inspections. Official Motor Vehicle Inspection Requirements
This NHTSA study shows that defective equipment was involved in 6.8% of accidents. www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811059.PDF (Page 29, Table 12.) Given that >11% of the drivers were killed or had an incapacitating injury, I think it would be difficult to justify a study randomizing vehicles to inspections vs no inspections to see if the injury rate was affected. To me, that's what matters...the potential for injury and loss of life, not a citation after the fact.
An example:
Taken from IIHS.org
Motor vehicle accident fatalities per 100k population
New Hampshire - (mandatory safety inspections) 7.2
Minnesota - (no safety inspection) 6.6
New Jersey - (just eliminated inspections in 2010) 6.2
Similar adverse weather conditions. Rain, snow, ice, etc..
Why less MVA fatalities in a state with no safety inspection?
Motor vehicle accident fatalities per 100k population
New Hampshire - (mandatory safety inspections) 7.2
Minnesota - (no safety inspection) 6.6
New Jersey - (just eliminated inspections in 2010) 6.2
Similar adverse weather conditions. Rain, snow, ice, etc..
Why less MVA fatalities in a state with no safety inspection?
The biggest insult to me is that I have to take my brand new car to get an inspection 6 months after I bought it. Why are we inspecting cars 2 years old or newer?
Why are we inspecting any cars at all when data cannot show a positive correlation between mandatory vehicle inspections and lower crash rates for mechanical conditions?
The program is not worth the pain, it would seem...
Thank you for commenting. I completely agree and glad that I'm not alone in questioning the system.
Of course there are (or should be) MV codes and LE should be citing people for many things that a safety inspection covers. It's a problem when the mechanic doing inspections have a potential for monitary gain by performing the "recommended" repairs. Does anyone else not see this as a problem?
It doesn't make sense and is a flawed system.
Okay. You are coming from California, Do you have a problem with the state inspections there? I grew up in Massachusetts and yearly state inspections are a fact of vehicle ownership. And I have never had a problem with getting my car inspected yearly. I drove my previous car for 21 years. But we should be concerned with frame rust issues because of all the road salt used in the winter time. Good brakes and suspension is important as are tires with decent treads. And the exhaust system is important for noise and emissions. Of course, all the exterior lights have to work. I hate seeing anyone driving around with one brake light working. It would be so dangerous for them when the remaining brake light fails. And who would have a problem with not replacing their cracked windshield?
So keeping up with car maintenance is really important. Not everyone has a lift in their garage or a compressor like we do. And many people lead busy lives and aren't bothering to maintain their cars until sometime breaks and the car doesn't move anymore. Or have money issues which also cause them to put off what they need to be addressing.
Whatever town you move to, talk to the locals and find that honest independent garage to get your car work and yearly inspection done at. They do exist. Change their Yelp reviews. Otherwise, those franchise shops have long had reputations in all US states for padding their bills. Also avoid all dealerships.
Until I met my very mechanically inclined boyfriend and also some mechanical savvy friends through autocrossing, I had a good relationship with an independent Honda shop in Massachusetts. 26 years ago, I was driving late 1970's Honda CVCC hatchbacks. They did all the work on my cars. And towards the end, they would only work on my CVCC's because they knew my cars so well and that I took care of them. Meanwhile, they would turn away other CVCC's for fear that they weren't maintained well and that the bill would be more than the cars were worth. Anyway, my point is that once you move to NH and find a good mechanic, don't just visit them only for your yearly inspection. Get your oil changes there and while your car is on the lift, you can have a look to see if any problems might be developing. And of course, question any issue that is preventing you from passing the inspection. And there is no reason why you can't fix the problem yourself (free labour) or take the car elsewhere for a second opinion or a cheaper fix.
My only beef with NH vehicle inspections is that they are tied in with the owner's birth month instead of the inspection being good for one full calendar year. So a car we put on the road in December has an inspection sticker that expires in June because that's when my boyfriend's birthday is. And the registration needs to be renewed also this month. So a big fat happy birthday present of inspection and registration renewal fees from the state of NH for my boyfriend!
Those are all very good suggestions. Thank you for posting that.
My state inspection consists of a visual for missing emissions equipment and connecting to my OBD2 port to check for error codes or system not ready. Also these shops have nothing to gain or upsell me on because they legally are not allowed to do repairs. A fair system, but sucks I have to pay $30 every 2 years. BTW no inspection is required until they are 7 years old.
I personally am a mechanically inclined person thank goodness and am able to do my own repairs, fluid changes and so forth. Basic hand tools, a jack, jack stands, repair manual and the Internet is all I need to do pretty much anything.
Hondas are my favorite and that's what I learned on. Easy peasy.
We have a Honda Pilot and (since you seem to like rally cars) we also have a fun AWD turbo sedan with over 400hp to the wheels on a Mustang dyno (over 500 crank).
As much as I'd love to drive it during the winter with a set of snow tires it will most likely be put to bed for the winter. It's just too pretty
I already have a specialty shop lined up for our inspection once we arrive in NH, so I'm not worried about that.
I'm not making this argument because it will benefit me honestly. It's just the principle of people being subjected to some less than honest shops and being taken advantage of. That's what really bothers me.
Last edited by Dross99_si; 06-21-2016 at 05:51 PM..
I'm not making this argument because it will benefit me honestly. It's just the principle of people being subjected to some less than honest shops and being taken advantage of. That's what really bothers me.
But that's a problem everywhere and it's not only about vehicle saftey inspections. However, it's also a situation of the consumer needing to be smarter about their cars. Mechanics have always respected and been nice to me, but that is because I love my cars and driving stick. I once changed my own radiator because I was feeling so poor. But I know a lot of people who don't care to learn about their vehicles, and well... I just don't have a lot of sympathy for them. And thanks to them, all the new cars have tire pressure sensors on them. Hopefully, I will never have to own an over-engineered car.
Otherwise, since I enjoy driving on a curvy country road, it is extra important to me that my car doesn't have any safety issues. And in our household, good brakes, tires and suspension come before upping the horsepower on our cars.
I want to try rallycrossing sometime. Autocrossing on dirt sounds like a lot of fun.
I agree with you on a lot of those points.
I'm big on brakes, suspension and tires as well. I got all that upgraded and squared away before adding the engine performance mods so that extra power was just icing on the cake
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