State inspection results in car being taken off the road because of rust?

[Sedin26]

I'm not sure if I already replied after my last PA State inspection. I know they didn't do the safety inspection because the paperwork said 10/32 for brakes front and rear (they're almost gone I need to address this coming week as I'm off), and, on the stickers (can you believe it in 2023) there are no boxes X'd for wheels pulled. My $29.95 coupon is now $47 out the door. I think the shop offers inspections to generate repairs, but, if a car isn't going to do that, it's a waste of their time to collect $40 something and tie up a tech nit picking things, so out the door with stickers it goes.

imho emissions is different as they plug in to the Commonwealth's computer for 1996+.

From a coworker it's easy to buy stickers where he lives, again, with computers invented and deployed in the 80's, there's no reason for that. Then, what is silly, is there can be 4 color combinations on valid stickers. Can LE really remember all that? Not to mention legit stickers are fabricated by the shop. It's like having foxes watching hen houses.

PA may not be a good point of reference as it's the wild west anyway. No reggie, no insurance, no exterior legible tag, no DL, 5% tints. Pulled over? Allowed to go on with some tix. I think we can do better, but maybe we cannot. With all the loopholes, 95% of people are on the up and up, just a number I made up and think could be correct. I don't know anyone who openly cheats on state inspections, people just pay the money and get it over with. But why have a system if 5% can cheat is what I'm thinking.

On South Main Auto’s channel he gets stuff in all the time that has been passed by other shops but is absolutely rotted out.

Apparently fly by night shops will sell inspection stickers and the state won’t crack down on them because they only operate at night and no inspectors work at that time.

 

[dnewton3]

Any inspection process is only as good (or bad) as those applying it.
Like most things in life, good intentions have a way of turning into bad effects, even malfeasance.

The concept of mandatory inspections is not without merit. The intent would be to assure safe equipment on the road so as to not endanger others. (If you want to kill yourself by the hand of your own stupidity, that's fine by me, but you don't have a right to take out my wife or child, or damage my property, based on your lack of concern for safe vehicle condition).

Unfortunately, many "inspection" services tended to veer too lax, or too strict:
- "Don't worry about that rust all along the frame where your suspension control arms mount; it ain't fallen off yet there, Bubba. I'll take my $10 "fee" now. "
- "Ma'am, I cannot pass your vehicle because your wiper blade has a small quarter-inch nick near the tip; it may cause a violent crash if you cannot see in a blinding rainstorm. If you buy a new $38 wiper blade from us today I can get your vehicle passed right here and now. And we offer free installation!"

Many states which had state inspections got rid of them. They were ineffectual the majority of the time because either unsafe vehicles were passing when they shouldn't, or reasonably safe vehicles were coerced into unnecessary repairs.



However, there are some very scary examples of vehicles being road driven which absolutely, without doubt, should be removed from service. All one has to do is go to the YT channel called "Just Rolled In" and I assure you with absolute certainty that if you randomly select 5 videos from their catalog, at least 4 will have multiple examples of vehicles so horrendously unsafe it boggles the mind. And yet many of those owners refuse service and drive away to endanger themselves and others.

 

[c502cid]

Yet how many people who are strongly in favor of inspections get into their car because "I just had a couple of beers, I'm fine"

 

[John105]

In PA Reggie and proof of insurance required, in order to complete the inspection.

I would ask is that the right juncture to be checking such things? Whereas when pulled over by LE, lacking those things doesn’t result in a tow and no more driving. It was the case in NYS and MA when I was in college as have seen friends’ vehicles towed for expired tags.

It’s been 9-12 years since I had the feeling of 0% chance of not passing…we need to get that feeling back soon (new car).

 

[Gus_Mahn]

No inspections here and I’m good with it. We do have an over abundance of under skilled over confident, or distracted drivers. I was in a fatal accident in my 20’s. A drunk 16 year old was the cause and the one who died. At that point I realized you can be taken out at any moment by situations beyond your control. I accept it as a price we or our loved ones may wind up paying for being a free and mobile people.

 

[2013ecof150]

Here in northern Va you really don’t see many junk passenger vehicles that wouldn’t pass a safety inspection. Maybe the occasional clapped out work truck but it’s not super common.

However dump trucks are another story. So many of them with swiss cheese bodies that leak whatever they are hauling. Many of those guys are terrible drivers as well. So many of those trucks have “ paid for “ inspection stickers it’s unreal.

 

[TimeFlies]

Here in northern Va you really don’t see many junk passenger vehicles that wouldn’t pass a safety inspection. Maybe the occasional clapped out work truck but it’s not super common.

However dump trucks are another story. So many of them with swiss cheese bodies that leak whatever they are hauling. Many of those guys are terrible drivers as well. So many of those trucks have “ paid for “ inspection stickers it’s unreal.

Must be a regional thing.
I see gravel trucks all the time, and they are all in good condition. As far as I know, and truckers talk, no shop around will pass a junker. The risk of being caught is too large, and not worth it. When my logging truck was only 6 months old it went for inspection, and the shop checked everything, almost to the point of being annoying.

 

[cronk]

I've worked as a parts guy in repair shops for over 20 years in northern NY.
We have an annual state safety and emissions inspection.
It is fairly common to have to fail vehicles for rust.
Any rust through in structural things like frames, suspension components, subframes, or structural parts of a unibody car or suspension mounting points is a failure.
Rusted out gas tank straps and brake lines are pretty common to see as well.

It sucks to see good cars die early from rot, NY treats the roads with not only salt but liquid brine and it is really nasty to cars.
Unfortunately have seen cars rotted out and unsafe at 10-12 years old.

 

[TimeFlies]

I've worked as a parts guy in repair shops for over 20 years in northern NY.
We have an annual state safety and emissions inspection.
It is fairly common to have to fail vehicles for rust.
Any rust through in structural things like frames, suspension components, subframes, or structural parts of a unibody car or suspension mounting points is a failure.
Rusted out gas tank straps and brake lines are pretty common to see as well.

It sucks to see good cars die early from rot, NY treats the roads with not only salt but liquid brine and it is really nasty to cars.
Unfortunately have seen cars rotted out and unsafe at 10-12 years old.

Would an annual spray of a rust preventer help?

We don't have the rust issue here, like some places do.

 

[cronk]

Would an annual spray of a rust preventer help?

We don't have the rust issue here, like some places do.

Some of the annual treatments seem to help, like Rust Check and Krown.

 

[vavavroom]

Vehicles with compromised structural integrity or an unusually hazardous exterior, missing bumpers, jagged parts/sheet metal sticking out, etc, don't belong on public roads. My neighbor broke a tie rod going over the 1-inch curb of his driveway which caused him to run into his walI. He was lucky he didn't take out a bicyclist or a whole family in another vehicle. I looked at the tie rod and it was rusted out. That particular tetanus bomber was a 2000 Grand Marquis. The body looked great, the chassis looked like Swiss cheese.

 

[1 SX]

Please do not bring your 60K mile Subarus that look like this to me. Unfortunately this one is a NY insp FAIL - all because the front subframe is about to snap in TWO!. The rest of this Subaru looked GREAT for the late 2000's year it was.