VOSA rules

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wammers said:
Of course they will, we are the only planks in Europe who obey the rules.
I can see VOSA bringing in a vehicle check for modded cars. Were you have to go to a VOSA station and have your car inspected by someone who knows as much about them as i do about nuclear fusion by has done a NVQ in testing. "Yes sir your car if fit for the road that will be £150.00 please". "Don't for get you will have to bring it back and have a retest if you fit larger numberplate lamp bulbs". "But the retest is only £50.00. "Have a nice day".
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Had to go through that proceedure to register my MR2 over here, but at least it was free:D:D:D
 
jamesmartin said:
with the right coils and shocks they can be made to handle far better than air
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So the right coils and shocks will stop it rolling over when taking agressive avoiding action at 70 mph +. Don't think so. Top heavy, speed and inertia
overcomes high vehicles every time. Don't worry we'll send you a get well soon card and some grapes.;););)
 
I looked at a P38 with coil springs when considering my range rover. I came to the decision that coil springs lack one important feature. The Classic rangie and the disco have mechanical self leveling on the P38 this is achieved by the EAS. Coil spring conversion kits do not provide any kind of self leveling so would not (in my opinion) be suitable for towing or indeed any kind of load carrying.
 
Let's face it - coils are a bodge on a P38. They may be vaguely legal (but I wouldn't want to fight a legal case on that basis - after all one of the 'dangerous mods' on that 110 accident that we discussed earlier was simply lifted suspension - something that is generally accepted to be legal) but they remove one of the best features of the vehicle.

If you don't want air suspension then why buy a P38 in the first place?
 
I wonder whether there is a similar argument going on on the Defender/Series thread about these new fangled coil springs versus good old safe leaf springs.

And as for the modern technology of electric starter motors, surely this takes away from the fun of a good old hand crank! :)

You pays your money you takes your choice, regardless of legality though I cannot see why the hell you would replace EAS with coils on a P38, the conversion is as expensive, or more than replacing all the air springs, servicing the compressor and spending a weekend checking over the system. You lose the auto ride height, you lose the adjustment so useful for towing and coupling, especially when you fit a little reversing camera to line you up with the ball, you lose the need for a step ladder or an undignified shove for granny.

EAS
EAS
EAS

:)
 
Andy.R said:
I wonder whether there is a similar argument going on on the Defender/Series thread about these new fangled coil springs versus good old safe leaf springs.

And as for the modern technology of electric starter motors, surely this takes away from the fun of a good old hand crank! :)

You pays your money you takes your choice, regardless of legality though I cannot see why the hell you would replace EAS with coils on a P38, the conversion is as expensive, or more than replacing all the air springs, servicing the compressor and spending a weekend checking over the system. You lose the auto ride height, you lose the adjustment so useful for towing and coupling, especially when you fit a little reversing camera to line you up with the ball, you lose the need for a step ladder or an undignified shove for granny.

EAS
EAS
EAS

:)
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leaf springs all the way and I carry a starting handle just in case I need it :D:D
 
wammers said:
Automatic leveling no matter what the weight distribution in the vehicle. For stability. Automatic squad position to lower C of G at speed. For stability and handling when sharp evasive manouves are required. They don't go out of control or roll as easily. Springs take all that away. Fitting springs removes built in safety features in my book. That is inappropriate modification to me. But we will have to wait for VOSAs interpretation of the regs and the **** to hit the fan. Maybe it won't, maybe it will.
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yea true but there are thousands of other 4x4s on the road that come out of the factory on springs! surly theyd but unsafe too
 
gfromleeds said:
yea true but there are thousands of other 4x4s on the road that come out of the factory on springs! surly theyd but unsafe too
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Not unsafe, just less safe, but they were designed for springs, the P38 was not. Never mind 4 X 4's, remember the A class Merc when it first came out? It would flip with ease on a swerve as demonstrated on TV.
 
gfromleeds said:
yea true but there are thousands of other 4x4s on the road that come out of the factory on springs! surly theyd but unsafe too
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Lets put it this way. If your house was fitted with fire alarms and smoke detectors. Would you switch them off everynight when you went to bed so you could be the same as the bloke next door who hadn't got them?
 
enery8 said:
I looked at a P38 with coil springs when considering my range rover. I came to the decision that coil springs lack one important feature. The Classic rangie and the disco have mechanical self leveling on the P38 this is achieved by the EAS. Coil spring conversion kits do not provide any kind of self leveling so would not (in my opinion) be suitable for towing or indeed any kind of load carrying.
Click to expand...
Mechanical self levelling? not sure I know what you mean.
I'm neither pro or against EAS, I have a standard p38 and a Disco 1. As an MOT tester though, I feel there are large grey areas in the realms of air suspension. For instance, you cannot fail an air spring for being cracked, which is potentially far more dangerous than most broken coils springs I have seen. Also, type approval means nothing when it comes to MOT's, that is a construction and use regulation matter. I think Mr VOSA would be very unhappy with me if I was to fail a coil converted p38 for a dangerous modification. There is a key phrase when MOT'ing, and that is 'Test as presented'. You cannot be expected to consider every what if and wherefore that the vehicle may encounter, nor can you execute an evasive manouever at 70mph to test how the modification behaves! Off the top of my head, the fail criteria which may best suit this subject would be 'suspension deliberately modified which may reduce the strength of the vehicle '. Don't think coils do that! If you were to have an accident though, don't know how your insurance would feel if the springs were not declared?!:confused:
 
Rangie_Daz said:
Mechanical self levelling? not sure I know what you mean.
I'm neither pro or against EAS, I have a standard p38 and a Disco 1. As an MOT tester though, I feel there are large grey areas in the realms of air suspension. For instance, you cannot fail an air spring for being cracked, which is potentially far more dangerous than most broken coils springs I have seen. Also, type approval means nothing when it comes to MOT's, that is a construction and use regulation matter. I think Mr VOSA would be very unhappy with me if I was to fail a coil converted p38 for a dangerous modification. There is a key phrase when MOT'ing, and that is 'Test as presented'. You cannot be expected to consider every what if and wherefore that the vehicle may encounter, nor can you execute an evasive manouever at 70mph to test how the modification behaves! Off the top of my head, the fail criteria which may best suit this subject would be 'suspension deliberately modified which may reduce the strength of the vehicle '. Don't think coils do that! If you were to have an accident though, don't know how your insurance would feel if the springs were not declared?!:confused:
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At the moment i totally agree with you. But the new regulations the EU are insisting on may put a totally different slant on things. Batteries being secured for instance is not covered in MOT but will be in new rules. In some cases they may have a point, but a 60lb battery in a Range Rover is going nowhere secured or not. SRS is not covered but will be in new rules. I can see Maplins doing a roaring trade in small three second timers to stick behind the instrument panel. Modified lighting not allowed, self leveling lights if fitted must work. We know they don't have that feature per se but the EAS does it for them. How is a P38 on springs going to pass that one? Lots of questions to answer if VOSA go to the letter of the law and don't allow a bit of common sense. :D:D
 
wammers said:
At the moment i totally agree with you. But the new regulations the EU are insisting on may put a totally different slant on things. Batteries being secured for instance is not covered in MOT but will be in new rules. In some cases they may have a point, but a 60lb battery in a Range Rover is going nowhere secured or not. SRS is not covered but will be in new rules. I can see Maplins doing a roaring trade in small three second timers to stick behind the instrument panel. Modified lighting not allowed, self leveling lights if fitted must work. We know they don't have that feature per se but the EAS does it for them. How is a P38 on springs going to pass that one? Lots of questions to answer if VOSA go to the letter of the law and don't allow a bit of common sense. :D:D
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save your cash-wire to oil or battery light:doh:
 
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