getting my 1997 polo ready for nct, advice?

lankz92

what should i look out for?

there is a few surface patches of rust but i had the car checked back in august got tierods bearings etc done and it was ready for the nct but i never got round to sending it in

giveing it to my gf so decided id get everything right on it

first off is it worth doing with 135k miles on the clock? or is it likely to kick the bucket soon?

i can service it myself but id like to know how complicated changing the timing belt is?(im fairly sure its due, previous owner said it was done at around 110k but im not too sure of that... would it be doable? bearing in mind i dont have much mechanical expertise...

or would i be aswel sending it in and see what it fails on?

thanks for any advice in advance

Alanstrainor

Just send it in and see if it passes.

As for timing belt, not a DIY.

The Pontiac

lankz92 wrote: »

or would i be aswel sending it in and see what it fails on?

That's the way to do it.

Retest is only €28, and you'll know if it's worth fixing up.

johnayo

Check the obvious yourself, lights tyres etc, and send it in to see how it goes. As for the timing belt, if you have little motor experience, probably not a good idea to do yourself.

lankz92

johnayo wrote: »

Check the obvious yourself, lights tyres etc, and send it in to see how it goes. As for the timing belt, if you have little motor experience, probably not a good idea to do yourself.

tought as much, the kit itself seems cheap enough, couldnt find any info on how to change it tho

ill send it in and see what they say, shine it up and have it looking good might get lucky haha

lankz92

actually is there any way to just check the timing belt? id assume its marked somewhere if it was done?

bazz26

lankz92 wrote: »

actually is there any way to just check the timing belt? id assume its marked somewhere if it was done?

tip-ex or a marker are cheap...:D

biko

I've plenty of DIY experience and I wouldn't go near a timing belt. Some things are best left to mechanics.
The TB is just too critical to mess up in my opinion.

nct tester

timing belt on a 1 litre polo (if that's what you have) is probably one of the easiest belt's out there to replace but not so easy if you don't have mechanical experience. best thing to do is send it in for Nct and see how she goes unless you can find someone who can do a full pre-nct with all the proper equipment for less than €28. The simplest thing you can do is check the dip beam bulbs are working and fitted correctly, all other bulb failures are only visuals.

TGi666

send it through the test if it fails badly then get a haynes manual and have a go at repairing it, always good to learn a thing or two