In a word, yes.

If compliance only depended on possesion of receipts for certain maintenance operations, the result would be an entire cottage industry selling the required receipts for $10 each, or $50 a set. In days gone past it was done by those in possession of "extra" inspection certificate books. Now you can get into the business with a good laser printer.

Voluntary compliance does not work where it conflicts with personal motives or profit.

If that were the case, there would be no need for builders to have their structural plans and actual work signed off by structural engineers. They would just magically have the right receipts showing they bought the required grade and quantities of concrete, steel, fasteners, etc.

When I put up a building, why are you and the inspectors running around waving your arms? I know what I'm doing, its my building and I have the required receipts fresh off my new printer. I even checked them against the list and I have every required receipt, even the optional ones.

If you think voluntary compliance works for your wishes, then voluntary compliance should also be available to me for my wishes. Might cut into your professional income though. But hey, personal freedom is the higher goal and we all need to make sacrifices.

 

Your building example is something near and dear to my heart as a licensed structural engineer. I have no problem with regulation as there are always those who will not voluntarily do the right thing. What I am against is the bloated bureaucracy that oftentimes goes along with State regulation. I have been involved in peer reviews of projects that have gone through all of the building department checking and then building department field inspection and then found fatal flaws/omissions in the design. What generally saves the day is the overwhelming conservatism that the building codes and standards impose. Still try suing the building department for a fatal flaw that is missed--they are totally exempt.

An opposite example is a recently completed project in Los Angeles I was recently looking at for a prospective buyer. The superintendent on the job told me how the City inspectors would come out find some trivial issue and then leave without completing the inspection. You see a call back ends up imposing additional inspection fees for the City and the super told me this was the latest game the City was playing to increase revenues.

Going back to where we started which is auto inspections/emissions the engines and engine management systems are so technologically advanced that you would have to go to great lengths to get any modern vehicle not to pass emission standards. The entire bureaucracy that was set in place in the 1970s is no longer needed or appropriate for modern automobiles.

Doug

 

The problem is still in the voluntary compliance aspect of your proposal.

There will always be those who want to remove some piece of emissions equipment, likely the cats and sometimes the egr. There will also always be those who do not want to spend the money.

Emissions related equipment is reliable, but they do degrade and ultimately fail. Without mandatory inspection, and little chance of getting caught ... a lot of people given the choice between $50 of pipe or $500+ for replacement cats are going to choose the pipe. It is the rational economic decision.

On an emotional level, if there was little chance of getting caught and little penalty, there are *lots* of owners on JF alone that would happily dump their cats just for the exhaust note.

Around here, the test is on plate renewal every two years and costs about $35 at an independent inpection lane. That's $17.50/year of ownership after the first five. At $35, and a free re-test for first failures, the lanes run you through as fast as possible. Never more than 30 minutes including waiting time.

My 1990 Supra passed *every* time for over ten years at the low end of the allowances with zero maintenance. It would have been more trouble and money just to keep up with some preordained list of required maintenance.

So ... when is LA going to get rid of the requirements for plan sign off, permits and inspection? At the very least, how about building permits in 30 minutes or less for $35 or so, issued by independent structural engineers appointed by the city? Should be quite lucrative for all concerned seeing as a laptop and printer are much cheaper and take less room than a couple of lanes with chassis dynamometers. Probably don't need exhaust fans either.

Again, voluntary compliance does not work where compliance is in conflict with the economic interest of the individual.

For the ultimate example, income taxes nominally fall under the mantra of voluntary compliance. There are very few on both sides of the fence who believe that line of argument given the available enforcement options.

 

I guess the most logical follow up question would be: What about modifications in the exhaust after the cats?

 

Now that we've got back to your original topic!

The only considerations under UK C & U (Construction & Use) Regulations and MoT test requirements for the exhaust system rear of the cats are system security, gas tight joints and noise level.

Graham

 

At least some freedom then. I guess the most popular thing to do is to get one of the stainless steel exhausts with an X-pipe in the place of the front muffler?

 

It is a popular mod and the UK owners I've known who have done this haven't had any issues with the MoT testers.

Graham