ALTHOUGH safety warnings have been issued by mechanics across the country as lockdown eases further and car usage is being encouraged, compulsory MOT checks are not required until August 1.
In a bid to help car owners until then, Click4Reg were interested to discover which requirements featured on the MOT checklist worry/confuse Brits the most.
The results were as follows: Unsurprisingly, the biggest MOT-related question was ‘How to check my car tyres’ as over 30,000 Brits struggle to understand the basics of their own car.
According to Halfords, 10 per cent of all MOT faults are related to tyres, so it is extremely important to keep these in shape.
The second largest query was ‘How to check my car battery’ with 5,880 searches. As people have been encouraged to start using their cars again and get back to normal, many haven’t kept their car in good condition over the last few months and are beginning to worry.
‘How to check my car lights’ is the third most asked MOT-related question, with 2,640 people searching for answers in the past 30 days.
Interestingly, 30 per cent of all MOT faults are related to lighting and signalling, so the thousands of searches made by Brits are not promising and are likely to raise concern among mechanics.
‘How to check my car steering’ follows in fourth (2,040 searches), ‘How to check car power steering’ in fifth (1,620 searches) and ‘How to check my car suspension’ in sixth (1,390 searches).
Due to the fact that MOTs are not compulsory and have been postponed, Elie Fakhoury, spokesperson from Click4Reg, was keen to provide some answers to the most asked MOT-related questions.
How to check my car tyres
The simplest way to check your car tyre tread is to insert a 20p coin into the lowest depth of your tyres.
To know that the tyre has the required 3mm tread depth, make sure that you cannot see the outer edge of the coin. If you can, it means that your tyre tread is less than 3mm and you should change your tyres urgently.
How to check my car battery
Signals that indicate your car battery needs charging include a slow starting engine, dim lights, electrical issues, engine light showing and a bad smell.
To test a car battery, you must turn your ignition off, remove the battery’s positive terminal cover (making sure it’s clean), connect your voltmeter’s positive and negative lead to the correct battery terminals and check the voltmeter.
The voltage shown on the meter should be between 12.4 and 12.7 volts - if it is lower than 12.4, it means your battery is low and needs to be charged.
How to check my car lights
Checking your car headlights is among the easiest jobs. You should turn your car on, switch on the headlights, walk around the vehicle and make sure all lights are bright and working.
How to check my (power) steering
The majority of cars have power steering as it was introduced in the 1960s/70s.
A failing power steering pump will lead to a stiff steering wheel, slow steering response time and unpleasant noises when the car starts.
When reviewing your power steering you should check the fluid level in the reservoir on the driver’s side, keeping an eye out for leaks and low fluid. If the fluid is too low, remove any dirt or grime from the reservoir and fill it to the ‘max’ mark, tightening the cap once finished.
If you do have any of these issues and are not confident, the safest option is to visit a mechanic as soon as possible.
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