IVA - Take 2

It has taken a bit longer that expected but I finally managed to juggle my university work and sorting the car out to prepare for the final IVA test. The problem was being 30mins away from the car is finding the time and motivation to get over and do the work, some of which was quite daunting in the sense of not knowing if the huge task would even do anything to solve the problem, specifically the self centring issue. Whilst many had said that castor was the problem, the only explanation was that the front wishbones were on wrong....but that would be a massive task and from memory, they only went on one way. CHECK THEY DON'T FIT BOTH WAYS AT THE FIRST STAGE!!!Anyway, I also found that with toe out, rear wheel drive cars will benefit by gaining self centring, which seemed to be wrong due to the wheels looking to be having a lot already...however, getting hold of some gauges I found that it was actually 2 degrees toe in! So with a bit of toe out...it worked! to the extent of having a bit anyway.

Now, on to the test! This was booked for February 11th, 13:00 this time, I didn't fancy another 6am start. This proved to be a great choice as the forecast was meant for heavy rain in the morning and should pass before I planned to head out....how wrong was that! Whilst it did just about stop by the time I planned to leave, the weather had changed from heavy rain to a blizzard! It was so thick and despite being wet, still managed to stick in places! So much that I nearly gave the test centre a call to see what the process was for cancelling on the day due to weather! However, as it started to ease off I decided to crack on anyway, I wanted this car to pass so probably would have driven in the snow!

I got to the test centre again with about half an hour to spare and a soaked right elbow. Post IVA trim will be some extended flaps on the front wheels to reduce the spray from any puddles! Despite that it was a joyful drive with no issues at all. Couldn't have gone better. However, things couldn't go right the whole time....Roy came out to start the test at 1, asked me to bring the car into the IVA lane, "Sure, no problem!" oh wait....the battery was flat....no lights left on, nothing left to drain the battery, but something had. The car had been stood without a proper run for a few weeks but still started up first time and drove without any issues. This puzzled me and Roy and didn't look good for the retest. Roy grabbed a battery booster and jump started the car. This was left running for the whole test and only turned it off at the end of the test.
With a short list, we flew through in an hour and all the bits I could fix, were fine...not pretty in places, but fine. Then onto the two things I knew I would struggle with. The brake test and self centring. Up first was the brake test. NOTE: this is done on your stated maximum weight, I wasn't sure so had used the Mazda MX5 details....1200kg....that's twice the weight of the car! So ensure you chose wisely! Probably would have passed first time using a weight of 800kg instead!
Anyway, it was right on the limits and Roy accepted these as they would only get better as the pads bedded in more.
Finally the self centring. I was never sure how exactly this was assessed but for those like me who don't know, the examiner will simply take your car around the site, turn hard on the wheel then let go at around 15mph. It is then up to the examiner to determine if there is self centring or not. I had a tiny amount bringing it about half a turn from centre both sides so Roy was happy with it. He stated he'd seen better but had also passed worse and agreed that a full geometry set up post IVA will help greatly and once the new parts loosen off a bit more with use. As a result, this was a big tick on the sheet!

So, for those of you keeping score, that was all the previous fail points passed. Which means.......

THE CAR HAS PASSED IT'S IVA TEST!!!!!

After 12 months of building, an actual, road legal car is finally the end product! 18months ago I never thought this would happen, hadn't even crossed my mind, however it has and I succeeded! Even my own mother had doubts and expected me to give up when she found out about my plans!!!

Now begins the DVLA paperwork challenge....

Thanks for reading and I hope you have found this blog useful. I must admit it's been nice to write and hopefully it has proved to be helpful in your build or interest. Enjoy some pictures below!

Stay tuned for further updates to post-IVA work and anything else I feel like putting on here.
As always, if you have any questions, don't hesitate to comment or email me on:

 wallerz816@gmail.com 

 

I'm always happy to help and answer any questions you may have. Thanks again for following!