I just took my 62 plate Superb Greenline 1.6 litre for its first ever MOT. It is also one of the cars that will be affected by the EA189 engine recall, as I have had my letter from Skoda. 

 

The MOT tester didn't put it on the exhaust gas analyser to test the particulates emissions, so I asked him why. Apparently some (but not all) of the late model diesel Superb's and Passat's produce so small an amount of particulates coming out of the tail pipe that it isn't possible to get sufficient gas flow for a particulates reading on the testing stations Sun exhaust gas analyser. 

 

As a consequence, my Superb Greenline is effectively excused from that part of the test per Dept of Transport guidance until a new more sensitive machine is developed. This means that every time an affected car is submitted for an MOT, the testing station have to complete a official waiver form and submit it to the Dept for transport along with the other MOT returns. I watched him complete the waiver and put it in the envelope. Apparently when this first happened it was very frustrating for the testing centres as nobody knew what to do.

 

I know we are talking about different tailpipe emissions here to those in the global controversy for NOX, but I did find it more than ironic that a car affected by the recall effectively gets a waiver from testing for emissions at the MOT because they are so low that the cannot be measured by the current machines.  :sun:     

Edited 23 October, 201510 yr by Pesmog

I remember my last Seat Exeo when I had that MOT's it said on the MOT that there was insufficient emissions to test... 

 

I agree with what I have read... it is all rubbish.. The US do not like a foreign manufacturer doing better than GM... Toyota overtook GM to be number 1.... they were subject to a massive US recall that stopped that, VW have done the same.... Who will be next? Whoever overtakes GM to be number 1

My previous 1.9 TDI even without the DPF, and with a remap was barely registering anything on the smoke test on the Irish MOT (NCT), so this is hardly a surprise. I'm surprised they have a waiver form though instead of just measuring what's coming out of the exhaust and giving it a 0 for particulates. The whole point of the test is to catch cars that aren't meeting the emissions performance they're supposed to. On that basis every car that met the requirements for passing the test at some point in the past is entitled to a waiver as well...

When my VW EA189 2L engine car had it's last MOT it could have failed because their machine could not find any particulate/smoke emissions. The garage said no emissions implied to MOT HO that their machine was faulty and therefore they would have to fail my car. However, to help out, the tester blew his cigarette smoke at the exhaust probe and therefore my VW passed the test.

Moral, you need smoke to pass the MOT!

The MOT test is for opacity (smoke) not NOX, the tester is correct, my last car wouldnt show any reading as it was so clean....but the VED was £220

 

the "cheat" isnt about smoke is it?

No the press have just over hyped it again..... Our test is smoke only as mentioned above rather than nox which is in the US.

Having said that, my P reg LDV Convoy read 0.3 while my Mondeo  TDCi read 3.0

Only one MOT done on my car, earlier this year, but smoke not mentioned.

 

It has the following on the test sheet:

 

Test limit applied                    1.50 l/m

 

Absorption coefficient             0.00 l/m

 

Absorption coefficient

after correction                       -0.01 l/m

 

Test type applied                    Fast Pass

 

Test Result                             Pass

 

I assume the absorption coefficient limit is a smoke test in disguise.

The no smoke result I can believe as the exhaust is very nearly clean from soot.

Is the Fast Pass the procedure referred to above or something else?

Difficult to believe Winterkorn.

 

          http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/24/business/international/directors-say-volkswagen-delayed-informing-them-of-trickery.html?emc=edit_ee_20151024&nl=todaysheadlines-europe&nlid=72533936&_r=0

Think about it.

The on-road emissions were SOOOO far out (which MUST have been widely known) UhOh!

And yet, in spite of all senior management being engineers (as opposed to GM being dominated by accountants)

It somehow passed the test!?

Nobody queried that amazing fact.......like........ "how did they do that"?

Three German monkeys comes to mind.

Only one MOT done on my car, earlier this year, but smoke not mentioned.

 

It has the following on the test sheet:

 

Test limit applied                    1.50 l/m

 

Absorption coefficient             0.00 l/m

 

Absorption coefficient

after correction                       -0.01 l/m

 

Test type applied                    Fast Pass

 

Test Result                             Pass

 

I assume the absorption coefficient limit is a smoke test in disguise.

The no smoke result I can believe as the exhaust is very nearly clean from soot.

Is the Fast Pass the procedure referred to above or something else?

 

 

That IS the smoke (opacity) test, its all a test station does anyway

Edited 25 October, 201510 yr by lichfielddriver

Some low emission diesel engines (mainly Euro IV) and those which will not reach maximum revs (due to design features) may fail to trigger a reading due to the very low levels of smoke produced.

If the DSM does not register a reading or shows an error, the printout should be marked accordingly showing that the emissions limits were tested and met but the DSM could not register the reading.

If the DSM will not produce a printout then the tester must make a written note of the following: -

. Test Station number

. Testers name

. Date & time

. Test number

. Vehicle Type

. Vehicle VRN

. That the vehicle passed the emissions test

. No print out was produced due to low emissions.

This information must be recorded and kept with the emissions records for audit purposes for 3 months.

My 2012 had its first MOT this year and the emissions test said something along the lines of the smoke was too low to measure.

So at least it wasn't just me.  I still find the whole thing deliciously ironic.

So at least it wasn't just me.  I still find the whole thing deliciously ironic.

 

Except.....the MOT "emissions" test isnt the emissions being dodged by VW

Had a taxi driver on the rank say "this is how you tell" --- neutral, revved the engine, it hit the no-load limiter .... i told him it wasnt the cheat

As a consequence, my Superb Greenline is effectively excused from that part of the test per Dept of Transport guidance until a new more sensitive machine is developed. This means that every time an affected car is submitted for an MOT, the testing station have to complete a official waiver form and submit it to the Dept for transport along with the other MOT returns. I watched him complete the waiver and put it in the envelope. Apparently when this first happened it was very frustrating for the testing centres as nobody knew what to do.

There was talk of been granted the discretion to do this, but as far as I am aware it hasn't gone any further, though there are some testing stations that get selected to trial new procedures.

 

All that I do in that situation is fill out a form, file it with the emissions reports and advise it on the computer.

 

As a tester you know which cars are going to give a low to nil smoke reading, just by looking in the tail pipe.

 

As for fiddling the result to show that the equipment is working, it isn't needed as the emissions machine is regularly calibrated and you will get some vehicles in before and after tat test that will record a reading.