Is the MOT valid?

[Maggie-Mae]

I brought a used car in February which came with a three month warranty.  Yesterday, the end part of the exhaust fell off due to corrosion.  The dealer put a years MOT on the car but should it have passed the MOT if there was such bad corrosion in the exhaust? I have contacted the dealer who has hinted he may rectify the problem but I am now doubting the validity of the MOT.

[willow74]

i would contact these guys to check the station is valid and also ask any mot questions

http://www.motuk.co.uk/contact_motuk.htm

[cockneyexile]

remember an m o t is only an indication of the condition the car was in on the day presented and is not an indicator of  future mechanical soundness my advice would be to book your car for an m.o t at your local main dealer for your make of car and see what they come up with then go back to the dealer you bought your car off and get him to put right any defects the main dealer found.

[KebabMeister]

As Cockneyexile mentions, the MOT is purely a visual inspection of the vehicles road worthiness on the day it was tested.  Exhausts can be rather difficult to guestimate the life time of - the temperature range is severe (cold to hot, hot to cold) which encourages corrosion and therefore exhausts can look very rusty.  During the MOT test you can only tap the exhaust using a plastic/light metal hammer and if the exhaust is secure with no blowing then it passes.

Having said that, chat with the garage and I'm sure they'll rectify any problems that you have, either under warranty or as a good will gesture.