Vehicle Safety inspection - ???

[Jonah K]

Originally Posted by OpenD

Here's the checklist from Lex Brodie's...

http://www.lexbrodies.com/Files/Docu...inspection.pdf

Here's the official manual for inspectors of passenger cars and light trucks from the State of Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation…
http://hidot.hawaii.gov/highways/fil...ght-Trucks.doc

And, here's the one for motorcycles…
http://hidot.hawaii.gov/highways/fil...otorcycles.pdf

[whtviper1]

Originally Posted by Jonah K

Here's the official manual for inspectors of passenger cars and light trucks from the State of Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation…
http://hidot.hawaii.gov/highways/fil...ght-Trucks.doc

I flipped quickly thru that manual - has anyone had a safety check of that rigor?

I never left the car in mine (granted a couple of years ago, but not THAT long ago). The basics - turn on wipers, turn signals, headlights, brake lights, look at tires - make sure no broken windows/light coverings. I'd never leave the car. Maybe because my cars are always relatively new, but that manual seemed like overkill and not realistic.

[Jungjohann]

It's more to verify proof of insurance than anything else. What they REALLY need, especially here on Maui, (given the number of fatal accidents in the past few months), is some sort of a brain scan to sort out the idiots who shouldn't be on the road steering anything other than a pair of slightly balding rubber slippers.

Aloha

[Jonah K]

Originally Posted by whtviper1

I flipped quickly thru that manual - has anyone had a safety check of that rigor?

Nope -- quite the opposite. Years ago, I had an old Volkswagen that should have failed the safety check. It had no seat belts, the windshield wipers didn't work, the speedometer and gas gauge didn't work, the master cylinder was leaky and needed replacing, and the passenger door was held closed with a bungee cord. The guy doing the safety check laughed, asked if I drove it there, charged me $12, and put a new safety inspection sticker on the bumper.

[KennyStevens]

Originally Posted by whtviper1

Quite odd, I've never opened the hood of my car for a safety check.

That being the case, how would any inspector determine if 'vital' items are in order - such as brake fluid level and condition, leaks, etc., and if hood latches are in good order (primary & secondary), and if fuel systems are in good order, also if everything is secured so it/they can't move around, causing possibly dangerous conditions (battery, fluid containers, electrical connectors, etc. etc. etc?

Anyone have the current main office of Safety Inspection address/phone number?

[Dreaming of Hawaii]

Originally Posted by KennyStevens

That being the case, how would any inspector determine if 'vital' items are in order - such as brake fluid level and condition, leaks, etc., and if hood latches are in good order (primary & secondary), and if fuel systems are in good order, also if everything is secured so it/they can't move around, causing possibly dangerous conditions (battery, fluid containers, electrical connectors, etc. etc. etc?

Anyone have the current main office of Safety Inspection address/phone number?

I don't know the phone number, but I've been through eight years of safety inspections at different locations around the island.

They don't check any of the things you list here in Hawaii. They check that the turn signals work (although half of the people don't use them), brake lights, wipers, horn, and I can't remember anything else. We were turned down once because the light over the rear license plate was inoperable.

Even when there were more stringent safety inspections in Colorado, they didn't inspect any of the things that you list. Does your state?

BTW, way to resurrect a four-year-old thread.

[whtviper1]

Originally Posted by Dreaming of Hawaii

They check that the turn signals work (although half of the people don't use them), brake lights, wipers, horn, and I can't remember anything else. We were turned down once because the light over the rear license plate was inoperable.

They'll also check window tint - which can disqualify you, vehicle modifications such as lifts, cracked windshields, missing a bumper - you'll fail.

Lex Brodies has a good list:

https://www.lexbrodies.com/Files/Doc...inspection.pdf

[KennyStevens]

Originally Posted by Dreaming of Hawaii

I don't know the phone number, but I've been through eight years of safety inspections at different locations around the island.

They don't check any of the things you list here in Hawaii. They check that the turn signals work (although half of the people don't use them), brake lights, wipers, horn, and I can't remember anything else. We were turned down once because the light over the rear license plate was inoperable.

Even when there were more stringent safety inspections in Colorado, they didn't inspect any of the things that you list. Does your state?

BTW, way to resurrect a four-year-old thread.

Yep... brought the thread back up because I just had an entanglement with a different inspector than the one I had.
"They" are supposed to check the things I listed. I was once informed by one of the inspectors of the inspectors that no vehicle should ever pass inspection, and that if you, as an inspector looked long and hard enough, there's something wrong to be found on each and every car out there - even ones straight off the assembly line. I spent 20 years in safety inspection in Hawaii. I won't say I've 'seen it all' but I saw a lot. Just like everything else, it's who you know that will get you through a tight spot every time.