MoTs at Kwik-Fit

[Twincam16]

Does anyone have any experience of this?

I'm getting a car MoT'd this weekend, but it'll be the first I'll have had done since moving house last year. I used to have a favoured testing station, run by a guy who knows his cars, knows I know my cars, and wouldn't cut corners, short-change me or rip me off and would always show me the worn-out parts so I could see he wasn't making it up.

Anyway, I've built up a similar rapport with a local mechanics', but unfortunately they don't do MoT testing. I used to pay about £45-£50 for MoTs at the old place, so I'm a bit sceptical of places offering MoTs for as little as £25 - sounds like a shoe-in for 'I'm afraid it needs some work sir...'

But Kwik-Fit offer an MoT for £35. They're not backstreet traders, they have corporate image to maintain. Should I go for it?

[AlyWW]

I've had the last three MOT's on my S2000 done at Kwikfit - never failed and they've never tried to tell me I need work done. I think they are franchised so all Kwikfits will be different.

[Agrilla]

There have been a few previous threads on this, some of which have been locked.

Have you thought about Seeing whether there's a Council MOT near you? They don't do repairs, so theres no worry about them having any vested interest in the test outcome.

[mcford]

The theory goes that no matter where you get a MOT done, it should be done to the same standard.

It may pay you to have a skim through the testers manual, which you can find here:

http://www.transportoffice.gov.uk/crt/doitonline/b...

So if there is a point of contention you can see what methods and standards are meant to be used.

For example if there is windscreen damage that is only visible by examining the windscreen from outside, then I would challenge it by saying that the wrong method of inspection has been used.

[wolves_wanderer]

I used my local one twice and never had a problem, I only stopped using them as I need a more understanding tester nowadays. As said above though it does seem to be the luck of the draw.

[baldy1926]

I've had my last 3 done at kwikfit. No problems at all, when i took my zt the tester spent 40 mins trying to find a fault with the numebr plate light. Plus he did a couple of little jobs.
They have never tried to say you need work done.
They have been very fair no complaints at all

[treetops]

AlyWW said:

I've had the last three MOT's on my S2000 done at Kwikfit - never failed and they've never tried to tell me I need work done. I think they are franchised so all Kwikfits will be different.

They are not franchised. They are now owned by itochu. Who also own stapletons.

[shalmaneser]

I had my most recent MOT done at halfords auto centre - half price if you book online and they adjusted my lights for free (only thing it needed to pass with a clean sheet...not bad for an '89 205!)

[chris7676]

Twincam16 said:

But Kwik-Fit offer an MoT for £35. They're not backstreet traders, they have corporate image to maintain. Should I go for it?

You are really offending decent backstreet traders / garages.
It looks like you have already made your mind anyway.

[Twincam16]

chris7676 said:

Twincam16 said:

But Kwik-Fit offer an MoT for £35. They're not backstreet traders, they have corporate image to maintain. Should I go for it?

You are really offending decent backstreet traders / garages.
It looks like you have already made your mind anyway.

No I'm not. I've always MoT'd my cars at backstreet garages, but I've moved to a completely new area and I haven't had time to get to know the reputations of the various options open to me. My housemate's car was left in a dreadful state after a dubiously cheap 'full' service at a local garage (black sludgy oil in the bottom of the sump, drained the coolant but didn't put any more in leaving the system totally dry, failed to point out his exhaust was hanging off), and given that the MoT on the car I'm picking up tomorrow expired yesterday, and I've had to buy a new tyre for it already after the previous owner suffered a puncture in it (apart from all this it seems mint and I have no doubts it'll pass), and I've had to shell out for the insurance deposit, I'm not in the mood to take my chance on people I don't trust.

Nor have I made up my mind. I'm starting to lean more towards the council garage idea. I only mentioned Kwik-Fit as I bought a tyre from them last week and they mentioned they did MoTs for £35. I know it's common practice in some places to fail the car on petty little things and claim there's an expensive problem with the system (before I found a trustworthy garage for my last car, one MoT station drained my entire screenwash reservoir and pointed the washer jets at the base of the screen, then claimed it was broken but the guy over the road (ie them) would fix it. A bit of tweaking by myself a few seconds later, plus a different testing station, and it passed, but I was familiar with the car so I could see the trick he'd pulled. This is a car I'll have owned for all of one day.

[LayZ]

Got one done recently at our local - paid only £25 with a discount code. Nothing to complain about, other than I had to pester them to tell me when it was done. Guy was thorough and they weren't touting for work.