Our daughter has had her first child (and our first grandchild) and we are still with her in the UK, having driven over early August and planning orginally to be back in France a few weeks ago, but understandably we have delayed a few times now. I have to be in the UK for a conference on 8/9 October so we were just about to delay our return a 4th time until 10th, but I received an email that the CT on our car that is just sitting in our carport at home is due on 5th October. I knew both were coming up due (the one we are in is for 22 October) but hadn’t realised the other car was quite so imminent.
Is it a big problem if I just book the test for the first day we are back (say 12th to be sure) which is a week after it expires, but it won’t be on the road at all except for the 5km on rural roads to the CT centre, where I almost never see a gendarme, let alone get stopped by one? I am ready for that risk, and to leave the car at the local dealer near the CT centre for repairs if anything is needed, so really my question is whether there might be a problem with the CT centre due to the one week gap?
The alternative is racing back. I do have flights booked for the conference from Bordeaux that I am prepared to let lapse and my wife would certainly enjoy an extra week with her new grandson.
Some years ago OH got stopped for a contrĂ´le on one of his vans. He had forgotten that it had passed the four year old mark and therefore had no CT which the eagle-eyed flic spotted and said he was four months over the due date for the first one. Anyhow he was given 7 days to get it done andthen had to go in person to the main gendarmerie in town and show the certificate etc but he was not penalised in any way, just told off and as he had explained the vehicle was in use every day for work and he had simply not realised. If you think about when covid was rife and we were all in lockdown, people did not go to the CT centres as they were not allowed and no one got fined. You can always claim mitigating circumstances as you were out of the country due to family problems and could not get back for the date.
Thanks. Kind of thinking that way as well. My next door neighbour is a retired gendarme but my French is not good enough to discuss this with him over the phone and it is not something I want to trouble him with anyway. I had thought I had put this in my calendar (the other one, yes, but this one no) as I always used to with the MoT test in the UK. We live and learn.
Everything I read, tells me it is illegal to use a vehicle on the roads… if the CT is out of date.
Having said that… my own classic needs its own CT, but is en panne… and won’t be mended this side of next Spring.
Once the car is working, my Examiner has promised to give me written confirmation of the CT Appointment, which will (he says) allow me to trundle delicately to his Testing Station … hopefully the CT will be granted…(fingers crossed) otherwise, the car must be trailed home at around 150 euro… aaargh.
EDIT speak with your CT station and warn them… ask their help…
make sure the Insurance company won’t wash their hands in the event of an accident…
Yes, my understanding is that you are allowed to drive directly to the CT station as long as you have a pre-booked rdv with them. Not sure how that affects the 2 months grace for repairs after a fail though, but probably not a problem for you @Russellgww as you have stated it will go straight to the repair place nearby.
However, I think commonsense tells us that if there is something seriously wrong, like completely bald tyres for instance, it would be wise to change those at home, if necessary with delivered parts/tyres etc.
Actually I have only one known issue with the car, which is kept well maintained and was serviced by the main dealer just a few months ago. I had someone clip my wing mirror several months ago and it strangely damaged the motor mechanism but not the mirror itself. Now, when the mirrors open as the car is unlocked with the remote, the offside mirror opens completely, ie past the point it is useable, unless you either stand and stop it at the right point with your hand, or manually push it back.
I imagine this shouldn’t be a CT fail and when I requested a devis for its replacement at the dealer I was rather shocked at a €350 price for parts, with just €50 for fitting. So I ordered a used original part from a scrap dealer in the UK, which I will take back with me (obviously I can’t have it fitted here as I am in our other car). Still £100, but a big saving.
If your car is dealer maintained can’t you ring the garage and get them to take the car for its CT then they can do the repairs and retest if needed?
We always arrange for our garagiste to do this for us… they check the car out first and then take it to the test station.
Always comes back with the CT done and dusted and never a problem
yeah, the only thing is that dealers are often reluctant or even refuse to fit used parts Given that this is easily adjustable before starting the engine and not a problem until the next time the car is locked then I don’t think it should be a CT issue, but others might know better.
Funnily enough, in our Espace I also had someone knock my mirror while I was stationary and it flipped the lens out which smashed. An ill wind - it was cracked when I bought it 7 years ago and always got flagged as an advisory for MoT and then CT but I always thought it would be too expensive to sort out. Now that I had to, I got a new part (with heater connections and a perfect replacement) for ÂŁ20 when the Renault dealer here had quoted for a full replacement mirror!
I think for the Peugeot mirror it is probable that the mechanism was damaged by the knock and it is impossible to source small parts like that, but I am sure the dealer didn’t remove it to check, they just made a judgement when issuing the devis. Sadly us mechanical numpties are rather at the mercy of garages for such calls.
