MOT question: How often do you fail a car for having a noisy exhaust?

Question prompted by MOT tester on TikTok

MOT question: How often do you fail a car for having a noisy exhaust?
Photo: Bigstock

An MOT tester from the West Midlands who has 112,000 followers on TikTok has caught the attention of a tabloid newspaper for his views on noisy exhausts.

Asked if a car can fail an MOT due to a loud exhaust, Craig of Walsall Wood Tyre & Service, said: “Yes, there is actually a reason for rejection in the inspection manual for ‘exhaust too noisy’.

“However, there is no decibel limit and decibel meter implemented as part of the MOT test, so it’s another one of those ‘grey areas’ that comes down to tester’s discretion.

“There is a legal limit for the road but not for the MOT.”

The Vehicle Certification Agency states: “The external noise emitted by passenger cars has been controlled since 1929 when the Motor Cars (Excessive Noise) regulations were introduced. New cars are now required to meet Europe-wide noise limits. These have been progressively reduced from 82 decibels (dB (A)) in 1978 to the current limit of 72 dB (A) established in 2016.”

Under a heading of ‘Nuisance’, section 8 of the MOT inspection manual outlines the rules for noise, exhaust emissions, engine malfunction indicator lamp, and fluid leak rules and inspection for car and passenger vehicle tests.

It tells MOT testers to inspect exhaust silencers and under-bonnet noise deadening material fitted as original equipment.

It goes on to tell testers to “use your judgment to assess exhaust noise”, before advising that “exhaust noise from the vehicle must not be unreasonably above the noise level you’d expect from a similar vehicle with a standard silencer in average condition”.

Under ‘Defects’, it says that exhaust noise levels in excess of those permitted should result in a ‘Major’ fail.

So, how often do you fail a car for having a noisy exhaust and how do you decide if a car is unreasonably loud? Let us know in the comments.

2 Comments

  1. Never have advised a few

    Reply
  2. Normally fail a car for being noisy if part of the system is broken or perhaps loose at the manifold. Not that often.
    There is a vehicle next to our workshops that when started it makes you jump. How did that get through an Mot? The last question is obvious.

    Reply

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