MOT tomorrow. It IS going to fail. *UPDATE*

[_Troy_]

Good evening all.

After getting mixed up and thinking my MOT wasn't due until the end of the month, I've had to book it in for one tomorrow morning, and it's going to fail.

As far as my mechanical knowledge goes, which isn't far, I am pretty certain it is going to fail. At least one of the front brake discs is warped, and the rear has started to turn shit too, and at 50k miles it seems to have had a rough couple of years.

Will the MOT guys think I'm an idiot bringing it to them like this? Probably. But, I kind of want to use this MOT as a health check on my bike, because depending on how badly it fails will determine whether I keep it or not. I know there is a lot I could have done myself, but I'm not the best mechanically, and this has caught me a little off guard.

It was originally bought as a winter hack style bike, and spending more than a couple hundred quid on it wouldn't really be financially viable.

I should mention it is also leaking oil, which is a problem I attempted to fix on the weekend, but have come to see that the part I replaced wasn't causing the problem after all.


Now, all of this probably wouldn't be a big deal by any stretch. But, it looks as though I'm starting a new job next week, and one that simply requires your own transport. It is located on a site just off of a major dual carriageway, and there are no public footpaths any where near, let alone public transport.

So, mighty BCF, what do? Assuming it fails for the brakes and possibly other stuff, do I get rid in its current condition, buy a cheap runabout and use that for the time being? Do I park it up and fix the issues at my leisure, and find some other way of getting to work? Or finally, do I sell the bike and buy a car (something I DO NOT want to do, but it seems like the sensible solution at the moment).
____________________
Current bike: ZX6R J1
Previous bikes: CLR 125 | GS500 | ZX6R G2 | SV650

[smegballs]

If one of the front discs is warped, just take it off. A modern bike easily has enough stopping power with a single disc. Two discs is more about twice as much steel to dump heat into as it is twice the braking area.

You could be really pikey and leave on the unused caliper and put something between the pads to close up on. Really though you should blank off the unused brake line properly.

What year is the SV? They haven't been making them that long?? The amount of 80's sheds I've coaxed into a MOT, something new like an SV must be pretty easy?

[_Troy_]

[P.]

Chuck it in, see what it fails on, fix in cheapest way to continue usage, years ticket.

Got Bandit through the MOT, just.

Now ripping to pieces and truly messing with it

[smegballs]

2nd hand discs are pretty cheap. Not much of an issue with 2nd hand if its only a hack bike anyway....

[_Troy_]

[_Troy_]

[ZebraDriver]

And I'm sure your insurance company will be only too delighted to hear how you have halved your front brakes capacity.

[ZebraDriver]

And I'm sure your insurance company will be only too delighted to hear how you have halved your front brakes capacity.

[anthony_r6]

[_Troy_]

Well that's not going to be done anyway.

So, any opinions on what I should do? Or does anyone have a spare bike, you know, to lend me?
____________________
Current bike: ZX6R J1
Previous bikes: CLR 125 | GS500 | ZX6R G2 | SV650

[KLR600]

Doesn't look like you're trying to help yourself much.

A whole new set of discs can be had for £200 on ebay which will be massively cheaper than a new hack bike which will be an unknown quantity and may need more than £200 spent on it to keep it going not to mention all the faffing around with insurance policies, taking time off work to pick up the bike/get it delivered etc.

Order some discs (they are easy to fit, just need to drop the wheels and use an allen key to swap) for when it fails the MOT so you're not wasting time waiting on delivery. Stop around the corner from the MOT place and wipe as much oil from wherever it is leaking as possible and hopefully it won't leak much at the MOT. If all that's wrong with it is an oil leak and warped discs then you can get a failed MOT on it then swap the discs over when they arrive if that's all it'll fail on and then it will only be re-tested on what it fails so it won't matter how much it's leaking oil when you take it for a re-test.

As far as getting to work goes then you've shot yourself in the foot a bit there really. Either get a taxi to work or take the cheapest form of public transport to the nearest place you can get to work (i.e. nearest train station) then get a taxi from there. Assuming all that's wrong with the bike is a bit of an oil leak and warped discs and assuming you order the discs asap then you won't have to do this for any longer than a week to get to work. You could even try and find someone in your new job who lives close to you and arrange a car pool and split petrol costs.
____________________
Now: '00 Kawasaki ZRX1100R - Past: '84 Yamaha DT125, '89 Kawasaki KLR600, '97 Yamaha XJ600N
<My Bikepics Page> <My Yootoobes> <My Websites> <My Photos>
<Take Cool Photos!>

[_Troy_]

[KLR600]

It depends entirely on how the MOT pans out for the SV but assuming it only fails on the discs and the oil leak then I'd be inclined to get it through an MOT and keep it on the road for a few months at least then wait until you're settled in your new job to look for a new bike. You'd be a bit silly to buy a new bike now then find the job doesn't work out and have to find some way to either pay off a new bike or sell it all to keep yourself above water. Also the SV with no MOT will be practically worthless so unless it's a major fail then putting a 12 month ticket on it will be worthwhile either way.

Saying that, if it fails spectacularly then you might be better off with a new bike that has tax and test if you can afford it so wait and see I guess. A new bike is always tempting, especially when you're on a boring commuter. I should know - I went from a knackered 600 divvy to my ZRX1100. Luckily it paid off for me and while I justified needing it for work it was a total lie and I knew it but it still turned out ok. It could easily have gone the other way though and I could easily have defaulted on finance or lost the bike and messed up my credit rating etc.

Just thought of another tip for the oil leak. Ride the bike as close to the MOT centre as you can without going in then park it up for as long as possible so the oil will be as cold/thick as possible for the test. Maybe go and have breakfast/lunch at a nearby cafe and/or run some errands with the bike parked around the corner from the MOT place. Give it a wipe before you go in and hope for the best.

I have a love/hate relationship with MOT's - I'm pretty good at finding the cheapest ways to get a bike through an MOT though as long as it's been maintained to some degree at least!
____________________
Now: '00 Kawasaki ZRX1100R - Past: '84 Yamaha DT125, '89 Kawasaki KLR600, '97 Yamaha XJ600N
<My Bikepics Page> <My Yootoobes> <My Websites> <My Photos>
<Take Cool Photos!>

[_Troy_]

[KLR600]

You could always put some araldite over where it's leaking. I did that on my old KLR and it lasted fine for about 3 months while I tried to get hold of a new engine cover.

[_Troy_]

[KLR600]

Don't quote me as I've never had an exhaust stamped like that and it's just what I've read from forums and recycled to here but if you taped it up the tester wouldn't be allowed to remove the tape as it'd be classed as defacing the bike. There's a very high probability that I just made that up though. If it's passed previous MOT's then surely it'd be fine?
____________________
Now: '00 Kawasaki ZRX1100R - Past: '84 Yamaha DT125, '89 Kawasaki KLR600, '97 Yamaha XJ600N
<My Bikepics Page> <My Yootoobes> <My Websites> <My Photos>
<Take Cool Photos!>

[_Troy_]

[smegballs]

[stuarthouston]

[_Troy_]

Well it's been dropped down the shop, so place your bets.

I did a lot of searching last night, and I have spotted a pair of used discs in 'good condition' for £65, which is a great price considering they're around £250 a pair on Wemoto.

The thing with the discs is there isn't really a bodge way to fix it. Not like my oil leak where I may get away with an instant gasket.
____________________
Current bike: ZX6R J1
Previous bikes: CLR 125 | GS500 | ZX6R G2 | SV650

[smegballs]

[ride_to_die]

Some good advice from KLR and Smeg, hope it works out for you bud.
____________________
I'm not here for a long time, I'm here for a good time.

[_Troy_]

It PASSED! No advisories. Holywhatthefuck?!
____________________
Current bike: ZX6R J1
Previous bikes: CLR 125 | GS500 | ZX6R G2 | SV650