MOT fail list - any advice/ideas appreciated - esp costs..

[theslingerland]

Despite spending a bloody fortune on the Bongo recently, the MOT has come back with a massive list of issues - some of which we're not happy with but over all can anyone actually

a) explain what any of this means as the woman at the MOT station refused (or couldn't) to explain in layman's terms what any of this meant.

b) shed any light on any of the work that needs doing here in terms of options - if we can do as much as possible ourselves and do some work at the cheapest possible places - tyres for example - we need to save as much as possible as I fear this is going to be crippling...)

c) give any indication of cost for part and labour ..?


Reasons for refusal of a test certificate:

001 Nearside rear brake binding
002 Offside rear brake binding
003 Offside front (outter) front constant velocity gaiter damaged to the extent that it no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc (this is the one we're contesting as we had the CV joints replaced less than 3 months ago...)
004 Offside rear (inner sill) vehicle structure has excessive corrosion, seriously effecting it's strength within 30cm of the body mountings
005 Nearside front (edges) tyre tread below requirements of 1.6mm (I understand these 005 and 006 - despite being told by the garage that did some repair work on it within the same week - it hadn't been driven anywhere - that they still had 200 miles on them...)
006 Offside front (edges) tyre tread below requirements of 1.6mm

Advisory items
Warning: In my opinion, the vehicle is dangerous to drive because of defects marked as such on the failure and/or advisory documents.

007 Oil leak
008 Diff leaking at O/S/R wheel **DANGEROUS**

[BongoBongo123]

Sorry to hear about your Bongo problems there mate.

I would just change tyres immediately after getting a quote off a garage for the work, your life and others may depend on them. I never let them get anywhere near the legal limit.(£500.00 fine per tyre if old bill pull you over) The difference in stopping distances between new Euro wet A rated tyres and Something like a worn wet D European rating will be so different you would not believe it ! Probably 25 meters or something. The difference could be between serious collision and no collision at all.

The other issues.. if you do not understand what the faults are, even on paper, how will you repair them ? You need to take the vehicle to one of the Bongo conversant garages in any event and let them look it over and price the work. Then see if you can obtain the parts yourself saving some cash and let them do the repairs.

No one wants a Bongo without an MOT and a big bill but we should all have working brakes and tyres.

If you let people know your location there is sometimes a local Bongo enthusiast who could confirm how serious or not the binding brake issue is, could be something simple or part of the job done by someone who's up for it. Good folks on here.

[theslingerland]

Thank for the reply - in terms of us dealing with some issues, my step dad is a car expert having designed the steering for many power steering systems over the years and is a notorious fettler - he also only speaks 'car' so I was trying to get some idea of what we're dealing with here so I can at least have some insight into what he's going on about...

As for the other points - yes, of course we want safe vehicles - but I'm also fed up with paying through the nose to get things fixed which always seems to be the case. I'm trying to be a little ahead of the game here, that's all...

[dave_aber]

001 Nearside rear brake binding - The brake is binding - either the handbrake or footbrake mechanism is sticking. THe Handbrake on these is a wee drum in the middle of the disk hub. Repair will require a strip down, inspect, lubricate and rebuild of the rear brakes. Estimate 3-4 hours.
002 Offside rear brake binding - As above.

003 Offside front (outter) front constant velocity gaiter damaged to the extent that it no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc (this is the one we're contesting as we had the CV joints replaced less than 3 months ago...) - A stone could have been chucked up from the road and damaged this, or a CV joint fitted with a cheap boot which hasn't lasted. Is it just "worn out" or has it been hit / punctured by something?

004 Offside rear (inner sill) vehicle structure has excessive corrosion, seriously effecting it's strength within 30cm of the body mountings - If this is around the rear heater matrix area, it's a spot which is prone to rust. If it's just the inner sill, it can be a simple enough repair (4 hours or so), But, if the floor is corroded too as is common, the rear heater has to come out, complex multi-panel repairs fabricated, welded in, heater refitted, coolant refilled & bled, AC recharged - it gets more expensive!

[BongoBongo123]

There are good mechanics out there who won't rip you off. (start with the members conversant garage list on this forum, it is not expensive to join for a year and very useful indeed) If at all possible try and get 2 quotes if you can. I know it is disheartening when a vehicle is not working so was not meaning to rub it in. Blimey the brakes could cost a bit if it needs 3-4 hours labour a side, would not have though it would be so expensive.

As someone mentioned to me on here compared with some other vehicles you could be looking at 30K to buy a good motor home so bongo does represent good value motor homing. I was speaking to someone at weekend who was very interested in our bongo and had a VW (new-ish not a classic one) and it pretty much looked like a van with a few surf decals with a bed thrown in he paid £10K second hand.

[dave_aber]

1 1/2 Hours per side, 3-4 overall for both rear brakes.

[mikeWalsall]

Pity your dad lives in La Rochelle .. but there again your Bongo as very recently got you from here to there and back again so basicaly must be OK ..

The rust damage .. maybe get that priced / sorted first ..but in all honesty the other things you have listed as MOT failures are realy routine maintainance issues ..

Brakes for instance .. maybe a check over / clean / polish or replace the (cheap) slide pins .. my Bongo had an advisery on track rod end rubbers .. like gaiters not mega expensive to fix .. tyres should have been checked / sorted ... before your continental trip (or any trip..!!) .. oil seal not an heart stopping bill and can be done at the same time as the other work ...

I would go with the advise given and source a local Bongo friendly garage ..

[dave_aber]

Forgot about the oil seal.

Aye, not too dear, and a relatively simple fix once you have the brakes stripped down. You'll probably have to replace the handbrake shoes as well, as the oil will have contaminated them.

Also, work out why it's leaking - usually due to someone spraying underseal all over the place and gumming up the breather. It's a wee cylindrical thing on top of the diff. The body should be free to turn / rattle around. If it's stuck, that's why your axle is leaking.

[BongoBongo123]

You tend to find if a good reliable mechanic has a vehicle with multiple problems the price does not get quite as much as you might think, once a load of stuff is off the vehicle and it's up in the air/over a well in the ground they can do things a hell of a lot quicker (with specialist tools etc.) than messing around in the road, with luck you might have a pleasant surprise on the pricing. Here is to hoping.

Some of it as mentioned is bread and butter work for a competent.

[Simon Jones]

Might be worth getting more info on the 'oil leak' & get your other garage to check it out. Bongo diesel engine is known for being a bit oily around the head gasket area, but a leak near the cambelt is more serious as it could contaminate the belt causing premature failure. Wherever the leak is, it will mean that oil is being lost so it would be wise to keep an eye on the level in case it's dropping significantly. On the plus side, a coating of engine oil has great anti-rust properties .

[mikexgough]

Brake tear down,lube and adjust and the cv boot are cheap jobs to sort...mostly a labour cost of 2 hrs for both jobs max....
Tyres....well that's down to your local supplier..... as for the corrosion... it's all dependent on how bad it is and exact location.... a good body guy like I have would sort that in a few hrs inc making any plates up then some rustproofing on top....
Such a shame that we are seeing some very poorly waxoyled Bongo's suffering the dreaded salt induced rust bug....

[mikeWalsall]

it's been said many times that the body gives up before the mechanics .. (sound a bit like me!!) ..

[mikeonb4c]

Where are you based? Most of the stuff sounds like normal issues with an old car but it would be best in the hands of a Bongo garage methinks.