Do you valet your car before an MOT?

[Didyeeaye]

My car is due a service and MOT on Friday and I've heard from some work colleagues they wash and valet their car before this service. Only passed my test last year so wondering... Is this the norm?

I take the car seats out so they can test the seatbelts so I have to hoover all of the crap that collects under them but that's it

For a good 30 seconds I thought you meant you removed the actual seats from the car (rather than child carseats) and panicked that I should have been doing this.

I need a holiday

No! Oh I think they are having u on.

The MOT is check the mechanics of the car, lights, belts tyres etc. Make sure it is road worthy.

You could have the dirtiest car around but if it ticks all the boxes it passes.

Yes definitely. (OH was a mechanic). Aside from checking everything (lights, washers, wipers, seatbelts) works We wash and clean our vehicles inside, outside, and most importantly underneath. Think of the poor mechanic underneath in all the grot and grime. Everything is checked pre-MOT, and anything that need grease gun or touch up etc underneath is done. We have had vehicles pass MOT with no advisories, when a really close inspection would reveal it would deserve an advisory, but, because all looks clean tidy and tickety-boo, it deserves only a cursory glance.

We use a regular garage for all our vehicles, and they're known for being spot on perfect (when sometimes they're not actually, OH is a bit particular but if he hasn't the time to change something pre-MOT (not dangerous, just he would change it as a matter of routine in the next few months)then he'll make it look good enough and they never notice).

SO entirely up to you, but if you think there's anything might give grief it may help to have the rest of the car look spot on.

If my car needs to have an advisory noted on it I'd rather it was noticed rather than overlooked because all appeared to be clean and shiny

My car is always grubby on the outside at MOT time (but fairly clean on the inside) and has passed every single time at four different garages.

If my car needs to have an advisory noted on it I'd rather it was noticed rather than overlooked because all appeared to be clean and shiny

Exactly this!

I put mine through a carwash before it's MOT. My old garage told me that their hearts sank if car was filthy and unloved looking and said they were more likely to find faults in obviously unloved cars (not that they looked harder to find fault, just that statistically the cars that looked like they were looked after tended to have less wrong with them)

Bollocks, a car is either roadworthy or not regardless of how clean it is. The only link I can see is that people who spend time caring for the outside may be more inclined to service their cars.

My filthy car has just passed its MOT with flying colours . I get it serviced regularly and look after it perfectly in terms of safety. I just don’t wash it very often.