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I think NH inspection is a scam: I like the way Florida does it, no inspection at all, however if you are stopped by police in Florida, they perform an inspection and fine you per item which does not pass such as wiper blades, brakes, tires and lights etc.
I think NH inspection is a scam: I like the way Florida does it, no inspection at all, however if you are stopped by police in Florida, they perform an inspection and fine you per item which does not pass such as wiper blades, brakes, tires and lights etc.
Hmm....do they check the ball joints/tie rods properly at a police stop in FL? Nothing like sending a wheel a flyin' at 70 mph.
Back when I was in NH, the trick was to get in with a good mechanic... one who knew his stuff, and would look the other way for things that really didn't matter (like getting exhaust pipes over the rear axle, when there was no place to run them, and he would let you use his old (this was pre-OBDII-days cars) test equipment to get the cam that had virtually square lobes and marginal idle capability to pass emissions levels (granted, you then couldn't put the car in gear). Often had to buy him lunch
I agree it is a scam, but also a necessary evil... Most people have no idea how to work on cars.
It's not a scam until unscrupulous mechanics make it a scam. And there are many mechanics who will take advantage of people if given the opportunity unfortunately just like many other service businesses.
Not everyone knows what is wrong with their vehicle and has the ability to discern if it it safe to drive. The emissions part of the test is more of a "scam" if anything and feel lucky that NH has somewhat lenient emissions testing. Some states will rake you through the coals on emissions tests. If your check engine light is not on you should be okay in NH.
The key is to find a reputable mechanic that you can trust to not take advantage of you and if you buy a second hand vehicle have it checked to see what it needs to pass inspection. People learn the hard way with this. Find a small shop in your area that offers personalized service and wants to keep your business and refer others.
So no, it is not a "scam" but there are plenty of BS money hungry mechanics that are "scammers". A lot of the chain and dealer shops I would be wary of as they are corporate owned.
Make sure to get an estimate for the work before it is done so you know what to expect and then go somewhere else and compare.
Last edited by Know Nonsense; 01-18-2014 at 02:21 PM..
NHs inspection is a HUGE SCAM!!
I jusr relocated from WA state, where we don't have this bull:&$7!! Your cars wouldn't NEED inspections if you didn't salt the $hyt iut of your roads!! I have a mint 93 Chevy 1500 4x4 (180k) that just towed a huge heavy trailer and 2 bikes 3,400+ mi...you know what they failed me on? STICKERS in my rear window!! And non-working off-road lights. Not my main headlights-those worked...just the chrome ones on the rollbar. The ones I had on for 15 yrs simply for SHOW! OH...and even though you csn see my license plate 50 feet away, ONE
light was not there (never was!) The inspector told me I had a "drop of oil" on my muffler that could "burst into flame at any time" (?! WTF!) I told HIM it was because I just spent $2,000 to my WA mechanic before I departed to have a new headgasket put in (among brakes, etc.) This is totally a raquet here!! And WHY AREN'T GOVT VEHICLES SUBJECT TO INSPECTION?? Can't they fail like everyone else's car or truck?! Yep...check the DMV site...Govt vehicles are not required to subject themselves to inspection...hmmmmm...see why I'm mad?? Not many states have this BS anymore...but NH?? BS!!
So you'd like everyone to die come wintertime, and you're upset that your car failed due to $15 worth of lightbulbs you could fix in ten minutes? Also, it's only federal vehicles that are exempt, not state, according to Saf-C 3200.
I honestly have no idea what you're on about with the oil, I've never heard of that being an issue ever, and sounds like you may have an oil leak, fussy mechanic, or a bit of a problem communicating what happened.
You sound like you might be happier back west, the inspection stuff isn't going away any time soon, neither is the salt on the roads, or the ice and wintery conditions that make both pretty necessary. And if you don't like them, you have a state rep to talk to about it, and can even run yourself.
I had to scrap an otherwise functioning Subie because the gas tank started leaking due to salt corrosion and replacing it would take more labor (the gas tank is nearly inaccessible) than replacing the car would cost. Better to replace the car than be in a burning automobile.
I wouldn't mind if NH stopped salting roads and just used sand or cinder. I have good winter snow tires, and if no salt, would have studded snow tires, and know how to drive in slippery conditions (either slow or sideways). I would just stay off the roads after the first snow removed the non drivers from the fray.
NHs inspection is a HUGE SCAM!!
I jusr relocated from WA state, where we don't have this bull:&$7!! Your cars wouldn't NEED inspections if you didn't salt the $hyt iut of your roads!! I have a mint 93 Chevy 1500 4x4 (180k) that just towed a huge heavy trailer and 2 bikes 3,400+ mi...you know what they failed me on? STICKERS in my rear window!! And non-working off-road lights. Not my main headlights-those worked...just the chrome ones on the rollbar. The ones I had on for 15 yrs simply for SHOW! OH...and even though you csn see my license plate 50 feet away, ONE
light was not there (never was!) The inspector told me I had a "drop of oil" on my muffler that could "burst into flame at any time" (?! WTF!) I told HIM it was because I just spent $2,000 to my WA mechanic before I departed to have a new headgasket put in (among brakes, etc.) This is totally a raquet here!! And WHY AREN'T GOVT VEHICLES SUBJECT TO INSPECTION?? Can't they fail like everyone else's car or truck?! Yep...check the DMV site...Govt vehicles are not required to subject themselves to inspection...hmmmmm...see why I'm mad?? Not many states have this BS anymore...but NH?? BS!!
It's the price we pay to help keep from getting killed by the guy who's brake lines finally rusted through right before he hopped on the highway. Personally the $30 or so it costs me a year isn't anything to get upset about. If you don't like it feel free to go back where you came from.
Granted some of the failures are a bit much, if they bother you, lobby to change them.
The plains states where there is no inspection are an exception, not the rule. Pretty much the entire east coast has mandatory inspection.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lowellirish
you know what they failed me on? STICKERS in my rear window!! And non-working off-road lights. Not my main headlights-those worked...just the chrome ones on the rollbar. The ones I had on for 15 yrs simply for SHOW!
Just guessing, maybe your mechanic didn't like your attitude?
Yes, rear window stickers will cause you to fail inspection. IIRC, aftermarket lights do not have to be functional to pass inspection, all factory exterior lighting must work.
If you get to know a mechanic and use him for routine work (oil changes, etc) and repairs, you will find that most independent auto shops are, shall we say, flexible, on the non-safety-critical aspects of the annual inspection.
NHs inspection is a HUGE SCAM!!
I jusr relocated from WA state, where we don't have this bull:&$7!! Your cars wouldn't NEED inspections if you didn't salt the $hyt iut of your roads!! I have a mint 93 Chevy 1500 4x4 (180k) that just towed a huge heavy trailer and 2 bikes 3,400+ mi...you know what they failed me on? STICKERS in my rear window!! And non-working off-road lights. Not my main headlights-those worked...just the chrome ones on the rollbar. The ones I had on for 15 yrs simply for SHOW! OH...and even though you csn see my license plate 50 feet away, ONE
light was not there (never was!) The inspector told me I had a "drop of oil" on my muffler that could "burst into flame at any time" (?! WTF!) I told HIM it was because I just spent $2,000 to my WA mechanic before I departed to have a new headgasket put in (among brakes, etc.) This is totally a raquet here!! And WHY AREN'T GOVT VEHICLES SUBJECT TO INSPECTION?? Can't they fail like everyone else's car or truck?! Yep...check the DMV site...Govt vehicles are not required to subject themselves to inspection...hmmmmm...see why I'm mad?? Not many states have this BS anymore...but NH?? BS!!
LOL your upset no doubt, what shop did you go to anyway? And yeah the state salts the hell out of these roads in summer too if the road is dirt. Don't use that rig in winter if you value it like i think you do.
How many stickers were on the rear glass? And yeah any lights must work whether you use them or not. And last you got a real dingbat wizard of a inspector. My bet is the inspector was fishing. You need to find a shop that will do right by you and not allow a new tech that just passed the state BORING to DEATH Class Given by the most BORING State Techs they can find. All so called inspectors have to go take a BORING Class in Concord. I have been 3 or 4 times myself when in the past i changed shops.
You are wrong in the state backs up mechanics. The state forces shops to BUY so called test computers and decibels devices at high expense to do stickers. Your before 1995 so you got off cheap too. After that the main frame down in concord does pass fail and reads back your last 30 minutes. When that system can read back more they will you can bank on it.
NHs inspection is a HUGE SCAM!!
I jusr relocated from WA state, where we don't have this bull:&$7!! Your cars wouldn't NEED inspections if you didn't salt the $hyt iut of your roads!! I have a mint 93 Chevy 1500 4x4 (180k) that just towed a huge heavy trailer and 2 bikes 3,400+ mi...you know what they failed me on? STICKERS in my rear window!! And non-working off-road lights. Not my main headlights-those worked...just the chrome ones on the rollbar. The ones I had on for 15 yrs simply for SHOW! OH...and even though you csn see my license plate 50 feet away, ONE
light was not there (never was!) The inspector told me I had a "drop of oil" on my muffler that could "burst into flame at any time" (?! WTF!) I told HIM it was because I just spent $2,000 to my WA mechanic before I departed to have a new headgasket put in (among brakes, etc.) This is totally a raquet here!! And WHY AREN'T GOVT VEHICLES SUBJECT TO INSPECTION?? Can't they fail like everyone else's car or truck?! Yep...check the DMV site...Govt vehicles are not required to subject themselves to inspection...hmmmmm...see why I'm mad?? Not many states have this BS anymore...but NH?? BS!!
If you lived on the west side of Washington, the roads don't need salt. Totally different winter driving conditions. After 2 winters here (we came from Washington as well), I appreciate the salt even though it means that we have to wash our cars diligently in the winter and maintain them much better or they will never hold up. There are a lot of cars on the road in Washington that would never survive a season here. The ice is hard on the roads and even summer driving can wreak havoc on the shocks and tires. My husband is totally changing his car maintenance program after seeing what last winter as well as 6 months of driving over the frost heaves on 3A did to the vehicles.
I'm not a huge fan of forced inspections either. Well maintained vehicles are a must here and I guess we all pay the price of the 1% of idiots who would put a POS on the road. Washington does have emissions inspections in some counties and I envision the entire state will go that way eventually.
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Nothing like sending a wheel a flyin' at 70 mph.
