Is an engine management light an automatic MoT fail now?

My four year old car was in for service and the MoT at a main dealer when shortly before I took it in the engine management light came on. It was diagnosed electronically as a wiring problem underneath the driver's seat which they didn't have time to fix immediately but they wouldn't carry out the MoT even though that should not have been a reason to fail it. They said if the light's on it's a fail even though we know what the problem is. The road fund licence was due which meant I was without the use of the car for several days with no courtesy car available. What are the latest rules on this ?

Asked on 2 July 2018 by mercedessl

Answered by Dan Powell

I’m afraid the engine management light is an instant fail under the 2018 rules. Indeed, according to the latest MoT inspection manual, a car will be given a major fault (fail) if the Engine Malfunction Indicator Lamp is not working or indicates a problem.

A major fault is issued if the MoT tester considers that the problem may affect the vehicle’s safety, put other road users at risk or have an impact on the environment. Given that the engine management light is linked to the vehicle's emission systems, I imagine that the failure is linked to the impact it may have on the environment.

Tags: engine warning light new mot test

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