Vehicle Inspection questions

[Christofini]

Hey all,
I'm curious as to how motorcycles are examined in the states for their roadworthy certificate (ITV in Spain). I recently had a close friend get his Ninja 250R taken to the examination and failed due to a lack of "homologated" parts. He passed all the tests, it was only afterwards when asked about the exhaust (it was 14dB below normal values for that bike) that the examiner took note of the homemade parts and promptly failed him.

I worked on his bike alongside mine (we both have matching parts and similar color schemes) and my ITV test is up in July. Almost all of the visual aspects of the bike are home-made. Would this cause a vehicle to get an "Unworthy" outcome in the States? I recall also working on a motorcycle in New Jersey before moving down here...haven't heard any complaints from him.

A small list of parts:
Homemade fibreglass fairings (made for the track...these would not pass so I'm in the process of creating street-legal ones)

Exhaust (the aforementioned friend works in a car shop - he made these two exhausts that are a little more restrictive than stock to help the lean ECU setting the bikes are shipped with...and much quieter)

Dashboard - Different colored LEDs and an LED strip under redline that glows when the needle approaches it.

LED indicators / brake lights / strip under headlight - Extra lighting as spanish drivers are much more inclined to "not see" motorcycles. These are in the form of small LED bulbs connected to a regulator in the indicator / brake light circuit.

Reason behind the homemade fairings is that OEM fairings from the dealer cost €1400 and decent aftermarket ones around €300. However shipping costs (for example the UK...) is around €260. It was much cheaper making my own, and saves me from chopping up my OEMs to add additional lights.

[Soujyu]

I keep telling folks to just stick with their freaking stock exhaust. From what I've heard about what happens in Europe and Australia, people could save themselves a lot of aggravation from the government about their bikes.

As for the United States, every state has differing standards on what a bike needs to pass a test, and it's often dependent on who administers the test. If it were your bike from your description, I think it would mostly likely fail if you were in California depending on your model year. However, I live in a state where all they pretty look for is if there is an exhaust system, you have all your lights/horn/safety equipment, and your brakes and tires work. When I get my bike inspected, I always take it to a local mechanic near where I work who I know would give me an honest inspection.

Personally, if I were the inspector, I would ding you for the exhaust and tell you to put the stock exhaust back on... but there are good reasons why I don't do this job.

[Christofini]

I used to work a late evening / night time job and needed a quieter exhaust - id get calls from security due to people complaining of the noise. I suppose swapping in my stock is feasible now as Im the only family left in the neighbourhood. Ive got quite used to the sound however.

I suppose there's not many europeans around to comment, the reason my friend's bike failed inspection was vecause of non-OEM parts being present. Apart from the exhaust and fairings, I haven't got any OEM parts left.

Hoping the examiner was just having a bad day. There's hardly any bone stock bikes down here anyways. Local shops aren't an option as you have to go to a government-run test center. Seems like a strange reason to fail him as the same bike passed the test In Portugal 2 years back.

[Christofini]

Thanks for the clarification though. I may be moving back to the states and taking my bike with me if possible.

[notsofast]

hope to see you out on the road! gl w the bike

edit: id also love to see those custom fairings!

[Christofini]

Thanks Jon
I'll be sure to take some at the next group ride - I switched bikes with a friend for a month. Glad I didn't pick the 636 in the beginning

[lgk]

its pretty simple here in Virginia.

They check the brake system, headlights, indicators, and controls.

my bike passed with no fairings.

[sLick415]

Vehicle inspection? What's that?

[bfpower]

My state (Montana) does not have vehicle inspections of any kind. However, we have no major metropolitan centers and a population density of only 6.86 people per square mile.

[Whiskey]

Originally Posted by Christofini

I used to work a late evening / night time job and needed a quieter exhaust - id get calls from security due to people complaining of the noise. I suppose swapping in my stock is feasible now as Im the only family left in the neighbourhood. Ive got quite used to the sound however.

I suppose there's not many europeans around to comment, the reason my friend's bike failed inspection was vecause of non-OEM parts being present. Apart from the exhaust and fairings, I haven't got any OEM parts left.

Hoping the examiner was just having a bad day. There's hardly any bone stock bikes down here anyways. Local shops aren't an option as you have to go to a government-run test tax collection/shakedown center. Seems like a strange reason to fail him as the same bike passed the test In Portugal 2 years back.

They have no incentive to pass anyone, they charge again for a repeat test, and you have to have it tested.

It's a government sanctioned scam administered by jobsworth arseholes

[skilletmo]

Lol there's a mechanic shop across from my street and all of the guys there ride sport bikes(r1, gixxer 1000, cbr 600). I brought mine in and they inspected it in one second with my bike totally trashed. You can see how it looked when I first bought it on my thread or profile album. Just matters who you go to

[NinjetteNewfie]

No inspections for motorcycles here in Newfoundland. There is no book value for motorcycles either, so if I buy a used bike I only have to pay taxes on the amount that the seller puts on the bill of sale, not necessarily the amount that the bike is worth, which would save me a few hundred bucks!

[bdavison]

No inspections here either,...pretty much if it has wheels and rolls under its own power it's legal on the road.

[NevadaWolf]

When I bought mine, the DMV just wanted to see the title and insurance and viola I had a plate.

HOWEVER, after I wrecked and Kawasaki issued me the estimate to repair, she now met the Nevada definition of a totaled vehicle (Total Loss - A vehicle that has been damaged to the extent that the estimated cost of repair, not including the cost associated with painting any part of the vehicle, would exceed 65 percent of the fair market value of the vehicle immediately before the damage was incurred) so I had to get a salvage title. After that, I spent the next few months rebuilding and had to go through the process to have a rebuilt title issued.

That involved going to a registered mechanic (not many qualified to certify a salvage vehicle and fewer would do the job), having them do an inspection to meet this form, then taking it to the DMV to have them verify that the VIN matched the title, the inspection form, the frame, and the engine. After that, it was getting the appropriate insurance to cover since things change when vehicles are rebuilt. Once that was done, it was go back to the DMV with proof of insurance, their temporary little title paper, and yay I have a road worthy bike again!

[ChrisMKV]

That reminds me that mine is due this year for inspection, hopefully I can convince the SNCT to get an appointment a few months before the certificate expiration... Which is in November... :-D

[Alex]

No inspections of motorcycles in California. There are car inspections after the cars reach a certain age (I think it's somewhere around 6 years old, but google could probably help out), but they are almost exclusively smog checks.