Any car-nuts here?

[d000hg]

Our trusty old Mazda 3 has been relegated to the driveway following the power steering failing... it had a trade-in value of only about £400 prior to that and the repair would cost more like £500.

I've been using it as a battered runabout - tip runs and the like as it still has MOT. I can drive it with a bit of effort but my wife's not physically strong enough to turn the wheel.

We're told it will unsurprisingly fail the MOT with leaking hydraulics, but it runs OK so I'd rather keep it until something else goes wrong. I wondered if removing the power steering entirely is feasible as a way to make the steering slightly lighter, and mean it could still pass the MOT since I don't think power steering is mandatory.

Anyone into car mechanics able to offer an educated opinion?

[vetran]

Buy a Mondeo!

[WTFH]

MarkyMark has a Golf he's trying to sell cheap.

[northernladuk]

Why keep a car that is now clearly dangerous to drive? Give it to the Butler and get yourself something safe to drive.

[MrMarkyMark]

Our trusty old Mazda 3 has been relegated to the driveway following the power steering failing... it had a trade-in value of only about £400 prior to that and the repair would cost more like £500.

I've been using it as a battered runabout - tip runs and the like as it still has MOT. I can drive it with a bit of effort but my wife's not physically strong enough to turn the wheel.

We're told it will unsurprisingly fail the MOT with leaking hydraulics, but it runs OK so I'd rather keep it until something else goes wrong. I wondered if removing the power steering entirely is feasible as a way to make the steering slightly lighter, and mean it could still pass the MOT since I don't think power steering is mandatory.

Anyone into car mechanics able to offer an educated opinion?

I would worry more about the fact you are now driving uninsured.

https://www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/p...ex.htm?t=46378

[SueEllen]

I would worry more about the fact you are now driving uninsured.

https://www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/p...ex.htm?t=46378

WMMMS

A car can be roadworthy without an MOT and unroadworthy with one. All an MOT proves is on the day the car was tested it was roadworthy.

[d000hg]

Why keep a car that is now clearly dangerous to drive? Give it to the Butler and get yourself something safe to drive.

Why is it dangerous to drive? I learned to drive on cars without power steering... it's a labour-saving aid. Only at very low speed is it problematic, 3-point turns and so on.

Bunch of pampered wusses.

[vwdan]

I would worry more about the fact you are now driving uninsured.

People love throwing this phrase around, ignoring the fact that there's almost no way of an insurer avoiding a 3rd party claim. As that's the minimum required in law, he's almost likely insured legally.

Not saying it's a good idea - they could refuse his comprehensive claim (if applicable) and/or cancel his insurance going forward etc but this whole "Ah, you're no longer insured" is much of a myth half the time.

[malvolio]

Why is it dangerous to drive? I learned to drive on cars without power steering... it's a labour-saving aid. Only at very low speed is it problematic, 3-point turns and so on.

Bunch of pampered wusses.

Yeah but the basis tenet of the MOT is that if something relating to the controls of a car is fitted then it must be working properly. Have a shunt with a car carrying a major fault and your insurance is dead an buried.

[vwdan]

Why is it dangerous to drive? I learned to drive on cars without power steering... it's a labour-saving aid. Only at very low speed is it problematic, 3-point turns and so on.

Bunch of pampered wusses.

Because power steering isn't a simple bolt onto traditional steering - it's not just an addition to make it easier. You'll generally find powered steering cars without power steering to be much harder to turn than a factory non-powered steering car because it's an integral part of the system. The car will have been designed with that in mind.

It's like brake servos - modern cars are VERY hard to brake without a servo, despite old cars not being built with them.