• Welcome Visitor! Please take a few seconds and Register for our forum. Even if you don't want to post, you can still 'Like' and react to posts.

Hosed by an incorrect inspection


ok, heres one that will really agitate some people, when i had my first ranger it hadnt been through inspection in a few years, so i fixed it all up before taking it in for inspection, they do the brake check(brand new) emissions, suspension and it makes it al the way to the gas tank pressure check before the last guy to get into it and moves it starts bitching because of my ford door sag and he said my third brake light didnt work(its a 87 extended cab, they dont have a third brake light), i had a hour long argument which ended up with the inspectors calling the state troopers on me, they made me fix the door.....but when the state troopers arrived and i told them that a 87 ranger NEVER came with a third brake light he called the inspector a ****ing moron lol, i pulled out, took two pennies and a hammer and slid them into shim up the door and pull right into line again LOL

new jersey has NEVER passed one of my vehicles on the first time through
 
ok, heres one that will really agitate some people, when i had my first ranger it hadnt been through inspection in a few years, so i fixed it all up before taking it in for inspection, they do the brake check(brand new) emissions, suspension and it makes it al the way to the gas tank pressure check before the last guy to get into it and moves it starts bitching because of my ford door sag and he said my third brake light didnt work(its a 87 extended cab, they dont have a third brake light), i had a hour long argument which ended up with the inspectors calling the state troopers on me, they made me fix the door.....but when the state troopers arrived and i told them that a 87 ranger NEVER came with a third brake light he called the inspector a ****ing moron lol, i pulled out, took two pennies and a hammer and slid them into shim up the door and pull right into line again LOL

new jersey has NEVER passed one of my vehicles on the first time through

Door Sag? You've got to be kidding me! I thought the shop that failed my friends Mustang for the Fog Lights not working was bad. Reading a bunch of these makes Utah not sound so bad anymore. Funny thing, Safety inspection is only 10 bucks here, so we just took it across the street and it passed as it was.
 
ya, since when u shut the door u had to pull up slightly, standard ford door sag.....they said "If someone else needs to get in and operate the vehicle they wont know the door doesnt shut right"

i retorted with "NOBODY else needs to be driving my ****ing truck" LOL
 
I couldn`t be an inspector I would focus on the important things therefore I wouldnt have a job. That little crap dont matter if the brakes are good and the tires are fair the rest is just window dressing . Just another way to dig into our pockets by taking it to extremes with self fornication and no real skills to add to society.
 
ya, since when u shut the door u had to pull up slightly, standard ford door sag.....they said "If someone else needs to get in and operate the vehicle they wont know the door doesnt shut right"

i retorted with "NOBODY else needs to be driving my ****ing truck" LOL

Ridiculous. I would have lost it on the guy, LOL.
 
Ahh yes... inspections...

When I got my first truck, I took it to a local shop that my parents used. At the time I thought he was doing a good job, but looking back I'm not so sure. Of course, I know a lot more now. For the most part though he didn't have much of a choice on being honest about stuff because I had a brand new truck with a 3-yr warranty, so most anything that would be found bad, I just had to take it to the dealer. (Thus one advantage to starting out with a new truck and I could afford it because of working construction through several good years).

When my parents switched to another inspection station, it was to one right around the corner from a relative. He's a one-man show and has always done us right. I took my Ranger to him one winter for inspection and he said it was going to fail for a balljoint after looking it over. He ordered the part and let me sit down an start tearing it apart while he worked on a car in the other bay of his shop. When I needed a hand he helped, but for the most part I was able to do it all on my own. Greased up the new joint, put the truck back on the shop floor and he slapped a new sticker on it. Never charged me for labor since he let me do the work. The only thing is, he doesn't let anything slide. My F-150 had a crack that started in the middle of the windshield at the bottom, came up a couple inches and shot across the passenger side. According to inspection, that would still pass because it doesn't interfer with the drivers view. But this mechanic said he would fail it because the windshield is cracked. He said that he also would not want to inspect my choptop unless I got a custom title for it, a certified race grade roll cage, and a bunch of other stuff.

Thus, I have another mechanic who is a bit more friendly towards modified vehicles. He still will not pass something if it's bad (he doesn't want the fine or to lose his inspection license and I can't blame him), but he's not going to nitpick a modified vehicle to death. I took a truck to him once that turned 1,000 miles exactly from the previous inspection on my way to renew the inspection. Did the front brakes before the previous inspection and did the rears for this one, new tires and a bunch of other stuff. He checked the lights, shined a light on the front brakes, checked the mileage, and put the new sticker on. Now my F-150 gets a more thorough inspection since it gets 10-20,000 miles on it in a year, but since the guy knows me and that I take care of my stuff, do all my own work and all, he trusts me when I tell him that it's been fixed. And I'm not about to screw that relationship up.
 
Oh, forgot the topper....

I did take an 89 Bronco II to another inspection station once. I bought the truck when it didn't run and had damage from a close encounter with a deer. I made friends with an owner of a junkyard off at college - he was helping me fix the truck up, letting me use the shop at the junkyard and giving me parts discounts. I thought the truck was fixed up good enough to pass inspection and the owner of the yard recommended a place for me to take it, said he thought they would take care of me even though he had not taken anything there before. They pulled it in, put it on the lift and let me walk around with the inspection guy. When it was over I was handed a laundry list of idiotic things. Below is the list as best I can remember it, I probably have forgotten a few things though.

1) Engine is too dirty, must be cleaned to pass. (WTF!)
2) Door handle for rear hatch broken, must be fixed. (actually, inspection here isn't all that clear, it says that as long as you can open it, it's ok - I could open it)
3) Tint too dark on back windows. (uhmm... yea... factory tint, perfectly legal - they scratched that out after I pointed that fact out)
4) Too much rubber fuel line. (There was a replacement line run from by the back axle to the fuel filter and it was high-pressure fuel rated line).
5) Rear brakes need replaced. (they didn't pull a wheel, just shined a light in through the adjuster slot. Not sure how you can tell anything that way. Brake shoes were still 3/32 over minimum allowable - I checked)
6) Rear driveshaft U-joints bad. (Uhm... can we say CV shaft?? joints were good and it doesn't have U-joints.)
7) E-brake cable too rusty. (since when is that an inspection item? As long as they work...)
8) Front rotors and pads are shot, need replaced immediately. (I didn't bother to argue at this point, the rotors were BRAND new with no appreciable wear)
9) Front balljoint bad. (I will concede that they were right on this one item, it had noticeable play. But then they went on to tell me that it would be like $700 if they replaced that balljoint and I brought them the part because they would have to tear the entire front axle apart and pull the front pumpkin to change the balljoint. I tried explaining that the axle would come apart at the slip joint (passenger side balljoint) but no, they insisted they were right and that's what the book said it would take - they quoted that it would be something like 8 hours of shop time... I did it in 3-4 lazy hours at the junkyard and didn't have a proper balljoint press either.)

I bid the shop farewell, returned to the junkyard where with the help of the guys there we replaced the balljoints and I took it home the next weekend to a mechanic there who passed it. Surprise. The part that irritated me the most was that the first shop I took it to knew that if anything failed, I was just going to take it with me and fix it myself, but they gave me a laundry list anyway.
 
I've never failed a NY state inspection here. It seems that many states are much more lenient on the interpretation of inspection rules though.
On my 86 in NY, I need to have the following:
-All lights need to work
-Parking brake has to operate
-Brakes must not be metal to metal
-All emissions equipment must be present
-Seatbelts must be firmly anchored
-Horn must operate
-Steering linkage and balljoints/kingpins must not have play
-tires must have 2/32 of tread
-Vehicle must not have a bad fuel leak(discretionary)
Vehicles 1996 and newer:
-All of the above plus:
-Check engine light must not be illuminated and vehicle must set all diagnostic monitors (Gas only)

The whole system is computerized, meaning it makes it much more difficult to fail at one inspection station, drive to another and pass. Inspection stickers are also Paired to the registration, meaning you can't pull a sticker off another vehicle and get through a police roadblock.
 
That little crap dont matter if the brakes are good and the tires are fair the rest is just window dressing.

While I agree that PA has a lot of stupid things in the inspection codes (things that I frequently overlook) I disagree with you on this point.

I drove most of my life in PA. Then I went to GA for a week. Everyone drives 25 miles over the speed limit and NO ONE has any freaking brake lights. I almost got killed I don't know how many times because I was expecting little things like brake lights and turn signals to WORK AND BE USED!!!! Guess those aren't such a big deal when some idiot decided to cut across all 4 lanes going 80 MPH.

1) Engine is too dirty, must be cleaned to pass. (WTF!)Not rejectable
2) Door handle for rear hatch broken, must be fixed. (actually, inspection here isn't all that clear, it says that as long as you can open it, it's ok - I could open it) Only applies to driver's door
3) Tint too dark on back windows. (uhmm... yea... factory tint, perfectly legal - they scratched that out after I pointed that fact out) not rejectable if factory, also this is no longer an SI issue, its the Statie's job now
4) Too much rubber fuel line. (There was a replacement line run from by the back axle to the fuel filter and it was high-pressure fuel rated line). you can have as much rubber as you want if it has "Fuel Ijnection" stamped on it.
5) Rear brakes need replaced. (they didn't pull a wheel, just shined a light in through the adjuster slot. Not sure how you can tell anything that way. Brake shoes were still 3/32 over minimum allowable - I checked) On some vehicles it's possible to check the brakes that way. Not ours. Also, inspection manual says you MUST remove one drum/caliper from each axle.
6) Rear driveshaft U-joints bad. (Uhm... can we say CV shaft?? joints were good and it doesn't have U-joints.) They were trying to hose you on that one.
7) E-brake cable too rusty. (since when is that an inspection item? As long as they work...) not rejectable if the brake works
8) Front rotors and pads are shot, need replaced immediately. (I didn't bother to argue at this point, the rotors were BRAND new with no appreciable wear) tried to hose you again
9) Front balljoint bad. That is a legit issue.

It's guys like the ones who come up in these threads that really burn me. I, and the guys I work with, are all honest. Its these few jack-offs that give us all a bad rep.
 
Hi, I live in PA also and I also believe that inspections are a bullshit money making scheme for the most part. I've been to a number of different shops and they all seem to have different standards regardless of the inspection codes. Some just check the lights, brakes, and tires. I've been to others that don't check shit and just put the sticker on. Then, you have the ones who nitpick every damn thing just trying to find something wrong to make money even if it has little or even nothing to do with the actual inspection.

My best friend's older sister took in her older chevy pickup for inspection and they they though they would ream her a new ass hole because she is a woman. They told her it needed over $1000 worth of parts and labor like suspension work, rust repair, and other things just to pass. She told them to eff off and she took it elsewhere. Guess what, they passed it with flying colors!!

Also, since our "inspection" is only once a year, who is to say that you pass with flying colors, but 8 months or so go by and you have tires with the belts showing, metal on metal brakes, and a bad tie rod end?

Me and one of my friends lately just say eff it and just roll without a sticker all together. If the sticker is bad I just scrape it off and leave it off. My friend bought his POS Dakota new in '00 and it has been inspected exactly one time and he has never been pulled over and he does the same thing. He refuses to waste the 20 or so dollars on a sticker for his POS. The cops around here don't seem to give a shit. He says if he ever does get pulled over he will tell them he just put a windshield in and hadn't got it inspected yet. Sounds like a plan to me.

Sorry about the novel/rant, but inspections really are a joke!

Josh
 
Good lord, you all need to get out of these evil states you live in. Inspections? What a crock of shit.

More goofy shit the government thinks of...
 
I'm glad inspections here are pretty easy. And it definitely helps to know the inspector
 
In general, I do agree with having inspections to ensure the car next to yours on the highway at least is safe. With the wintertime hitting us? Everyone is dragging out the 'beaters' (the ones that if it gets dented? who cares?)

I did inspections for 4 years before changing careers. I know what to look for, I also know the possible penalty if the state slips in a "ringer" to check on the inspectors work. (had that done to me once-failed a car due to broken springs, and the owner went to a lick'em and stick'em shop and called the state in on me....I failed the inspectors car for exactly what the pre-faults where). The state guy stated it was a 20 min. inspection that covered everything by the book. Even checked his headlight aim using the Hoppy Aim system. (our shop had each bay pre-set for quick adjustment check. Takes less then 3 min to do it)

Yes the local shops are all, if desired, licensed to inspect with "trained" inspectors. For the most part? It's a quick procedure that looks at the standard safety issues, and does work. Many shops also treat everyone with respect and know a quality work ethic will make them more $$ long term. The big-box shops? More worried about getting the $ per ticket as high as possible.

If you have a shop that feels it's 100% fine to take a minor item and bomb it---even though the part still falls well into spec--but is just starting to show wear? (such as my wheel bearings). All in the hopes that the owner of the car/truck will feel pressured to have it repaired at their shop using the "Mitchell Time Manual" @ 60-100 bucks an hour?. That's bending and breaking codes of ethics.

Let's look at the facts of my own brake job for example from a labor standpoint. (using just 1 hr for point of reference)

RR time to service wheel bearings-1hr
RR time to replace brake pads-1hr
RR time to replace a caliper-1hr
RR time to replace both rotors-1hr

Anyone notice something fishy?.... You've got to remove the brake pads to remove the rotor---You've got to replace the rotor, and that entails service to the wheel bearings at the same time (at the least, 10 minutes using a grease packer and new seal)-- You've just been billed for 3 hrs work, when only 1hr was physically needed. Plus factor in LIST prices for all the new parts! (normally 20-50% markup)

This shop knows I do all my own repair work, and used to be a former mechanic/inspector. I'm blown away by the fact they would knit pick/cherry pick. In their own words "You're lucky to get two years out of a set of rotors in this state". By the states own rules, the rotors did not have any chunks missing, cracks, or signs of excessive wear. Sure they where heat scored a bit and didn't look factory 'new'. But that holds true even after a few weeks of use. You can heat-score any rotor within a few sharp stops---it's called cheap china metal.

I'll take it to the shop for the reinspect on Tuesday. (all they will check is the rotors and bearings) And then? I'll not step foot in the location again--and I'll tell everyone I know to use a different shop.

The educational part still stands: Two rotors, same store and part number. One made in Canada, the other China. The one made in China? Very rough cut pattern for the finish pass on the machining end..and just looked 'cheap'. The one made in Canada? Darn near a mirror finish on the machining--looks like quality.

S-
 

Sponsored Ad


Sponsored Ad

TRS Events

Member & Vendor Upgrades

For a small yearly donation, you can support this forum and receive a 'Supporting Member' banner, or become a 'Supporting Vendor' and promote your products here. Click the banner to find out how.

Latest posts

Recently Featured

Want to see your truck here? Share your photos and details in the forum.

Ranger Adventure Video

TRS Merchandise

Follow TRS On Instagram

TRS Sponsors


Sponsored Ad


Sponsored Ad


Amazon Deals

Sponsored Ad

Back
Top