Most US States have a yearly inspection program but most of it is for lights, horn and brakes and similar. There is to my knowledge, no thorough mechanical inspection such as you have to undergo anywhere in the US. In my State, NY, your ball joints could fail driving out of the inspecting garage - it isn't an inspectable item - dumb, yep, real yep again. Case in point - my last truck had bad ball joints - really bad. I received an inspection sticker and an astronomical quote to replace them. I went by the parts store and bought them and replaced within a couple of days for a lot less.

Unfortunately, we have way too many people (even more people then sheep and cattle) and way, way too many cars for more bureaucracy and mandates such as this.

But not a bad idea

Dave

WHOA BOY!! Back up the bus!!
A voluntary inspection was what I had in mind... Not some government "program".

Inspections mandated and regulated by the US government could only mean the end to many of the modifications that we make. Not that it would be bad to inspect the mechanicals of our cars, but to let the US Gov do it would turn it into something ridiculous.

If it was anything like the smogcheck programs that more and more states are adopting, it would mean a bunch of cars would be taken off the road , not because they were not road worthy, but because each and every part had to be approved for use on that particular vehicle..
And if a part that had not gone through the approval process was installed on a vehicle, it would not pass inspection, regardless of whether or not it met performance standards.


If the inspections were limited to just structural and standardized performance tests that would be one thing, I can't picture it happening like that though.


My shop is next door to a smog check shop. If a vehicle passes the tailpipe emissions test, but fails the visual because it has an aftermarket air cleaner on it, it fails altogether. You'd think that the noxious gases were what we were trying to eliminate.

Learn to inspect your own vehicle, or pay your mechanic to do it. It should be our responsibility to make sure we don't neglect our vehicles to the point of being a danger to society.

I wonder how many mishaps and accidents needed to happen in New Zealand for the government to step in with that kind of draconian inspection program?

Don't let that happen here.

Later, mikey

__________________
BE different....ACT normal.

No one is completely useless..They can always be used as a bad example

Although I understand why and fully support aircraft inspections it does get expen$ive and has made ownership of my little Cessna 152 just about prohibitive, well that along with everything that goes with it anyway, and I see no reason why it would be any different if they got their money grubbing hands on our cars! Lets see now a few hundred dollars for the inspection and then grossly inflated prices for "certified" parts installed and signed off by a "certified" mechanic, well you get the picture. I guess it would make things safer, maybe, but then just how much "Big Brother" can we stand.

Jon,thanks for re-opening the thread from 2003 ,lot of good information there also.

You do not need a Mack truck steering box on a T-Bucket and you would not want a aluminum Corvair box on a 2 and 1/2 ton vehicle.
Deuce ... [/QUOTE]



Makes you wonder about the durability of those Cavalier racks people put in these heavy cars. I never really felt comfortable going this route and I'm glad I didn't.

Dang, that's nasty. The roadrash on the embankment just fore of the crash scene is curious. Did the car veer off the road onto the embankment before flipping? Maybe that contributed to the crossmember failure? Do you have the crash details?

Either way, it's scary to see the crossmember fail like that. Mine is a new TCI and has the reinforcing gussets. But I wonder if that makes it any safer? Yikes. Thanks for posting.

Antny

We only have speculation and mine is that the crossmember failure is a result of another failure, not the original failure that caused the crash.

My opinion is that the failure could have been the coilover spring and shock absorber attachment to the lower control arm.

I don't think the embankment was involved, the streak of bare dirt is surrounded by undisturbed growth and is too far from the path indicated by the leaked fluid that is visible on the road surface.

Back to the inspection for a minute....The NSRA safety inspection is a very good place to start. I have a copy that I refer to often, even on the cars I build with the buyer there. I would think you could find it on their site.It covers things like;

Horn
speed indicator
rear view mirror
glass
lighting
windshield wiper
auto. trans lockout
tires
steering
throttle linkage
fuel system
exhaust system
self aligning rod ends
shock absorbers
brakes
scrub line
windshield
shift pattern
fuel lines
parking brake
brake lines
chassis fasteners

Hey Rossco, greetings from sunny Colorado.

What is the cost of this inspection and who pays for it?

Can you get a second opinion? I suppose you can if you pay and if your sticker hasn't expired.

Can an inspector "ground" the auto? That is to say, can the inspector prevent the auto from returning to the road if found or perceived faulty?

Helicopters have loads of time life parts. If you don't replace the items when due, your insurance will not cover you if you have an accident. That's final.
No insurance, no fly, no fly, no income.

Thanks,

Doug

The Minnesota streetrod association MSRA has an inspection program. It's pretty involved. I don't know if it's a one time deal or a yearly thing.

Also someone mentioned that you don't see suspension failures like that on production cars.

Well, 68-82 corvettes have a histry of ripping off the lower A-Arm at the slightest provocation, like entering your driveway. Usually rust is not the issue.

So it does happen

Keith

Any good rod shop, should know what to look for. I know our rod shop, will look at any car, and give advice. The basic thing to look for is metal fatigue. It will show up as small cracks at first.
Think of steel as a fantastic material, BUT-- any thing that wiggles, vibrates or bends, will eventually break!!!!
Other problems we see, are designs that worry more about (form )than FUNCTION. How pretty is it, instead of how strong is it.
An example comes to mind, on our last build up. A 2003 Caddie front wheel drive, converted to rear. And a 572 big block. It has a lot of design elements that we ask our selfs, what is strong enough. There is a video on our web site, with it smoking the tires . It is listed under current projects, 2003 Caddie. If you want to check it out. The web address is on my profile page. Sorry I can't list it here.
Happy rodding.
Dave Tallant KC Mo.

I fully concur about the benefits of inspecting all aspects of your ride on a regular basis. It certainly cannot hurt and may turn up a problem that is easily fixed before it turns into a disaster like this. Looking at the photos of that crash, I see grass on the frame horns and in the vicinity of the damaged crossmember, and what looks to be soil on the underside of the front fender. This, coupled with the scar on the grass embankment just ahead of the scene leads me to believe that this car may have veered off the road and hit a rock outcropping, tree stump or something else that sheared off the lower control arm. While I'm not dismissing the possibility that the crossmember failed while the car was tooling along the road, the evidence appears to indicate otherwise. Just my observations from the photos. If there is any way to contact someone involved in the crash or the police on the scene, I'd love to hear a first-hand account of what actually happened. We would certainly learn something from this disaster.

Antny

Thanks, Wildman 1932.

My 36 is up on blocks now for the winter. As soon as I finish installing the Bear Claw latches (tomorrow) I'll start rebuilding the front end.
Thats the next thing on my list. Its written in BIG BLACK LETTERS !!

In the spring I'll take it somewhere to be checked out. No Rod Shops around here, but I'm also going to have Cboy take a look at it.

Thanks to everyone for everything you've added to this thread.

454 RATTLER

This weekend, I plan to revisit my work on my TCI MII installation. I will add a brace to the LCA bolt to help transfer the braking forces directly to the frame. I will also add closure plates to fully box the crossmember ends. I want to sleep at night! More fabbing/welding...woohoo!

Antny

WHAT?? WHAT?? what the heck are talking about!! no disrespect intended but i'm a corvette mechanic/restorer and i've never heard/seen a lower A arm torn off. the frames are the same from 63-82 not 68-82. i'm restoring a 64 now and the front suspension is attached to the frame more strongly than a ford truck!!! not only are the lower A arms bolted to the thick boxed seel frame with three giant bolts but the frame also has reenforcements welded the full length of the lower A arm pivot bar attachment.
please show me just one link where a lower A arm ever came off a vette!!! (wont happen)