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My advice is given as an MOT tester, MOT tester trainer, MOT manager, MOT manager trainer, and 50 years of MOT experience!

Autocross-season has started.

I was at Piper Cams and Exhausts today collecting something non-Westfield related but absolutely stunning!! These items jumped into my car and mugged my credit card on the way... Fast road cams, vernier pulleys and followers for a Silvertop Zetec... should let a few more ponies out... Just have to work out how you fit and time them in now...

Some pics from today.

Thanks Martyn for all your help on this!

Exactly, what do you know 😂 I'll ask a load of random people on the internet!

I’ll have one happy nephew at the weekend as built up his Minimoto for him. It just about matches the colour of my striker.

Fair enough. It had escaped me that you had that background 😁

That is mostly correct. Just a couple of points:- 1. It is always the presenters responsibility to prove criteria affecting the test ie. what engine was fitted at IVA? 2. Following the flow chart will direct the tester to ask what age of engine was fitted at IVA, and if it were pre 1st Aug 1995, then a non-CAT test is required. With regards to point number 1, as this is a kit car, who could give irrefutable evidence of what engine was fitted and what age of engine? As a tester, what can I ask for, a letter from the original builder? I could write that for you, or anyone could, it is not really valid is it? What I'm saying here is that it is unreasonable to apply a strict burden of proof when there is so much scope for doubt. When talking to other test stations just be confident in stating that the engine fitted is pre 95 and it was fitted at IVA. If they are resistant, try another one! Don't forget that you can ask for the reasons why you are being refused/declined a test to be put in writing on a CT30 form. This can be appealed via a VT17 form with DVSA to get a ruling on it. Once you start mentioning the appeal details most test stations start cooperating!

Winter/spring engine rebuild...... Core plugs and oil bungs removed and acid dipped. Block bored to 87mm Block face skimmed. Head washed and skimmed. Late crank replaced with a spare early crank I had kicking about. Wossner steel rods and Omega intruder pistons fitted. ACL race bearings. New oil pump with uprated internal gear. QED 450V cams, race springs and steel caps fitted along with solid lifters. Vernier pulleys. Other things that I can't quite remember no doubt!!! All up and running with no coolant or oil leaks. But do want to recheck the shims for the lifters. All machine work done by Grace Engine Developments which luckily are 5 mins drive away!

I would definitely use that as evidence!

Thanks @Mark19691. It's fair to say that other than a bit of tweaking and setting the rear camber, you did most of the job. Your gess-string-stimation was spot on and well above what many monkeys in quick fit will achieve. Allways a pleasure when the car works with you instead of against you. Pleased the result has been satisfying

Hi ,if i remember correctly there is a date stamp on the near side of the block ,mine is 1990,this should help .

Wet belt change on my transit motorhome. Thankful that there were zero signs of deterioration and associated debris Old belt. Oli pump gauze clean as a whistle! New belt and tensioner fitted.

I will go on the hunt for cake in Borneo just to keep up with the Westfield tradition of eating cake.

My advice is to go elsewhere! My reasoning is that if an MOT tester can determine what engine was fitted by reference to the 'MOT database', apparently a 4 litre one then, he should be testing to that standard. THIS IS A LIE! Here is an image of the emissions database So did it previously have a V8 in it at IVA? I think not! The tester is being very intransigent and very unhelpful when generally, DVSA encourage testers to apply the lower standard wherever there is any doubt about the applicable criteria. The benefit of doubt must favour the presenter. I would be happy to test and pass this vehicle as a pre95 non-CAT test at 3.5% CO & 1200ppm HC at idle only, much the same as RickRack's 1995 V8. Link to the emissions database if you want to check it. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5a81bcf5ed915d74e6233d90/in-service-exhaust-emission-standards-for-road-vehicles-19th-edition.pdf

Had a good day today at the The Den in Teignmouth, organised by Colin’s Crashbox club. I met Matt at Ilminster Services soon after 8am having had an early morning walking the dog and washing the car. My little (but getting bigger!) copilot joined me and we had a fun blat up in quite foggy conditions to start. After I had phaffed around with our headsets for a while, giving Matt the chance to lust over a couple of nice Landies, we headed up to meet Adge at Taunton services for a quick break and a wine gum breakfast. From there, down to Teignmouth mainly on the M5, with the last part being quite ‘interesting’ down some winding single track roads due to a road closure. Anyway, safely there at about 9.30am in lovely sunshine, and found a fab place to sit outside and have what was a delicious bacon bap and cuppa, before spending time wandering around the building collection of cars of all sorts. It was an excellent turnout with The Den being full by the time we left. Lorna and I went to the beach for a while before heading back to say bye to Adge and Matt when they left around noon. Mark T had spent the morning fitting his cycle wings and was due there around 1pm, so we had a crafty fish and chip lunch, followed by an ice cream and then met up with Mark for a chat before heading home. Nice day, lovely weather and good to catch up with the chaps. Looking forward to Haynes Breakfast Meet on 4th May too, fingers crossed for similar weather 🤞

Hi Andrew. Only just see your post. Many apologies. Updated pictures from today at hunstanton

Hi everyone, Have decided that now is the time to sell. Have owned for two years and it has been a blast. Age, time factor and no inclination now to keep tinkering has made my mind up. Am looking for a sale at a very fair price. MOT due 14th May. The main bolt that screws into the chassis that holds exhaust bracket has recently sheared of off and would need fixing. Ford 1600 CVH engine Twin Webers, these were overhauled last year with a carb refurb kit . Toyo Proxes all good 205/50 ZR15 89W New exhaust last year. New drop links for both sides, one side already fitted Box of spares and lots of paperwork including build info. Drives well as they should. First registered December 2001. A few surface cracks to the fibreglass mainly on rear tub and hidden under the tonneau, but to be expected on a 24 year old Westfield. Please do not expect perfection!!😆 Looking for a very reasonable £5,500 or close offer, which reflects that the MOT due soon. Any questions I will endeavour to answer. Please note that IF a new MOT is put on within the next month or so, the price WILL increase significantly! Am based in Tunbridge Wells Kent. Thanks for looking. Message for details.

Usual time and place, this Thursday, the Golden Pheasant, Plumley; 7.00pm if eating, otherwise around 7.30pm. See you there!

I use Radarbot. Can't fault it tbh. It's free but I paid for the ad free jobby, £5 odd iirc, one off payment, well worth the money this app is.

Don't worry, we are away in it again now See you Sunday!

Visited @Maurici- CleaR Motorsport today for an alignment on my SEiW, after fitting wide track front suspension and replacing rear rose joints. Pleased to say the car now drives like i had expected. Car is very stable at speed now, no wandering around, turn in/direction change is much more crisp and settles into corner nice. Looking forward to getting on track with it now👍

Is in both forms, app for smarthphone (free but with adv etc) , or unit (few different to choose from with or wihout screen etc, some additional functions etc - https://www.sklep.yanosik.pl/urzadzenia-Yanosik ). I prefer one device for one job rather, than many apps working all at onetime at one smartphone . Also that way one never forget to start app, as device starts on ignition - instal and forget . Oh, and I bought mine on promotions - with liftime data transmission to every unit I have, so would be a sin not to use I think its similar to App "Waze", but Yanosik here has much larger community, therefore is more acurate and its harder to miss a speed patrol etc. And is more convenient to use thanks to separate devices only for this job.

Just out of interest I used chatGpt to generate an engine summary using all the parts numbers on the head block and bearing caps and it came up with this…C20XE_Engine_Summary.pdf

RTFM Kingy 🤣

Are you making the most of retirement 🫣🤪

Please explain how this benefits me…

Surely not!

Yep. it really is that simple.

There's been a long standing thread on piston heads, "ask an mot tester" or somesuch, where mot testers answer unusual mot queries, usually pretty helpfully. You could maybe head over there and ask how you can deal with this. https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f=23&t=1828627&p=158 David

Thanks so much Martyn and everyone for your help with this, so just to clarify if I talk to another MOT station show them the V5c to highlight no emissions standards or special notes are listed on it so they are forced to use the flowchart to the point where there is no exact match on the car in the EGA or Emissions book so they have to do a non cat test? Also when it comes to the debate on the engine age the manual doesn’t actually say that either me or the tester has to prove the age of the engine either! Is this correct? many thanks all much appreciated

Yes..glad it didn't end up in barriers! Yes was the near side..I guess gets most load however least amount of kerbs.. now trying to find a good quality replacement..

Installed another device on my Road Westfield dashboard ( its very "busy" dashboard... no place for next devices or gauges or screens...) - Yanosik. Dont know if there is a similar device in UK - it shows and tells warnings in case of police with radar (with distance to them) , or standing radar (speed trap?) or accidend in front, or police with radar in non-signed car, or roadworks, traffic etc ahead etc etc. Got in in all cars, saves a lot of money

Generally, DVSA will not offer advice over the phone, they will only point to the MOT manual and MOT guide. The only way to get clarification is to appeal a fail or complain about a refusal to test by completing a VT17 and sending it to DVSA.

I first registered my car in March 98, ahead of the introduction of SVA and cat tests, so have always been visible smoke only. Despite this, a new test station this year were still insistent I needed a cat test - I guess we're becoming such unusual cases we're all going to need to carry copies of the flowchart/online tester handbook and V5 at MOT time.

I would make contact with the DVSA and ask them for clarification on this matter. The car has clearly been tested with the details you have in the past so I suspect the garage you have taken this to is not fully up to speed with how to do this, or is fearful of getting it wrong and being picked up. I have found in the past if you get hold of the right person you can clear most things up and a letter confirming this will make your life so much easier going forward.

Testing to the V5 special notes value is very easy, but DVLA have a habit of missing this vital information from the V5. When my car was transferred into my name, the IVA emissions note were shown. I mislaid the V5 so ordered a replacement. I didn't check at the time and only recently noticed that the emissions notes are now missing! DVLA are the root cause of a lot of these problems! Possibly during change of ownership V5 updates. FWIW I have found my original V5 now, with the notes on.

Chris it really is a crock of b***ocks when the Tester doesn’t know the rules. I was lucky as I see Martyn most months and he gave me the info I needed to argue it out with my tester who I’ve used for 30 plus years…. 🙏🤞

Martin, would you go talk to the testing station first to establish the test criteria??? @Sam Harland check your V5C to see if you have emissions listed in the section on page 2 (as per my pic) or on bottom of front page under “Special Notes”

I recently had my 2L Zetec fail its MOT on emissions. It’s passed the last 5 years with no real hassle (occasional turn the other way). But this year my local place doesn’t do tests anymore so went somewhere else and it failed. It has no CAT so it’s no surprise but because the garage put it through as a fail it then proved hard/impossible for anyone to pass it without a bit of work and proof of adjustment. In the end I got a local company to fit a sports CAT before the silencer. I got him to use V band clamps and make me a de cat pipe so I can remove it and re fit it each year for MOT.

I went to see my tester a week before the MOT - explained as Martyn Vann had advised - then turned up for MOT with V5C - there was a further discussion between the garage owner & the MOT tester & after 10 minutes they both agreed that they had to test to V5C data - I then showed them V5C as pic below - they then MOT’d the car & passed

Out to play in the sunshine today.

Thanks, really appreciate the advice. I'm not fussed about a q plate so happy to go this route. I'll try to knock a build thread up as it'll be nice having others see what I'm doing and hopefully point out my mistakes before it's too late . I'll start having a look through my documentation to make sure ive got all the info i need for registration.

Oh wow, quite a few owners there 🙂 I used to own a pre-lit purchased from a Westfield specialist in Newmarket and 30 years later am contemplating moving from my motorcycle to another one and hence wanted to have a look around to see how they've moved on.

You can, of course, build and IVA with one engine, then change it later...but it isn't as simple as it used to be. In the 'good old days', all you had to do was update the engine number & capacity if applicable, on the V5 and send it to DVLA. Now, you need to produce an 'official' letter from a recognised business in the trade to declare that the engine swap as detailed has taken place. Not the end of the world, but one more hoop to jump, and I honestly don't know what would happen come MOT time with emissions testing. Simplest path by far on that front is a Q plate. I'd be very surprised if you'd be able to get anything else given the history of your build so far. Personally, I love a Q plate for a kit car. Makes things much easier. RFL will be the same regardless of registration and is governed simply by engine capacity as kits are treated as 'PLG'. Under 1549cc is £220, over is £360 The key thing to remember in all this is that DVSA, who handle the IVA, and DVLA, who handle registration are NOT the same entity!! This helps a bit when trying to understand why the left hand doesn't seem to even know there is a right hand at times. One thing to check, the chassis number. Make sure it meets the rules or you may have to have DVLA issue one for you - no big deal, and it's free, but might need doing depending on how old the kit is...maybe!! The DVLA Kits & Rebuilds department are actually pretty helpful in my limited experience with them. And please, do start a build thread. It's a great way for folk to follow along and offer unsolicited advice

Classic car meeting at the Kings Arms, Heath Common, Wakefield. Sausage roll, mash and beans £5.

Is that just so you can sniff it 🤣

Great evening out at Brands 👍🏼👍🏼

I reckon that would make a great new WSCC flag! 😂