The text (copied and pasted from Autobionics.co.uk website)below sums the whole experience up pretty well, and lists what you should be able to provide evidence wise and some fairly obvious advice about 'being nice' �� Hope it's not too patronising!
The first 5 minutes might well set the tone for the rest of the test. Your examiner does this day in day out as a job, so it is unlikely he will be in the same state of mental stimulation that you are! Be polite, listen to what he asks you to do and be prepared to do as he asks. Remember to bring a bag or box of basic tools with you so that you can comply with any requests to remove a wheel nut or piece of trim, if you have to run 300m to fetch them when he asks to see something 5 minutes into the test, is only going to add 5 minutes to the time before his 1st tea break, so be prepared!
Do not babble on at the examiner like an expectant father either. Keep close to him, unless asked to move but do not get under his feet, he will likely ask you how things work and might want to know some background to the car. Be honest, don’t waffle, but try and engage the examiner in some of the detail or the history of the marquee, if you get a reaction then continue the rapport, if you get one word answers then give the bloke his space and see if he opens up. Remember, most are car or bike fans so if you can engage it makes the whole thing less tense. We have quite a good rapport with our local test centre now and a little good natured banter certainly lightens the atmosphere.
Different test centres run things in a different order, but things you can expect to happen over the next 2-3 hours are:
Engine and chassis number check, including proof of age of engine.
General check of the interior including seat belt mountings and position, seat fixings, switch operation, warning light operation, lights check, brake balance bar (if fitted) locking mechanism, interior fittings edge and radii conformity, door operation - it must have 2 clicks, latched and shut, etc.
Exterior check including radii conformity, lights position, wiper/washer function, lights function, wheel fixing and security (you might be asked to remove a wheel nut here), bonnet/boot/ clamshell latching and security, number plate position and lighting, etc. If your body has a recess for the number plate, then a new IVA requirement is that a VOSA sized number plate, which is about 10mm larger all round than a standard UK number plate, must fit in this recess. If your recess is tight for a standard plate size then check with your local test centre for exact dimensions.
The emissions test will depend on the age of your engine, so this might only take a few minutes or up to 15 minutes if it has to be plugged into the emission monitoring equipment. Make sure you know what your engine will be tested against and make sure it is set up so it will pass, as mentioned above!
Your car is up on the ramps for a full under body check, which is very similar to an MOT test. You will more than likely be required to sit in the car and operate brakes and steering, etc. If brake lines leak, or snag on tyres at full lock, this is where it will be spotted. Remember what we said about getting oil in the examiners hair? Make sure the motor and transmission are oil tight so it helps give the examiner the feeling that the car has been assembled correctly.
Headlight alignment check. If you have not set the lights up prior to the IVA then explain this to the examiner up front and have the required tools for adjustment in your pocket. We have not yet met an examiner yet who won’t allow you to set this up during the test, so do not waste time trying to do this at home!
Brake efficiency and balance check. This takes a good 20 minutes and tests the efficiency of all the brakes on the car a-la MOT, but the examiner has a pressure sensing pad fastened to his foot to measure peddle effort. He also weighs each end of the car and this allows the examiner to establish if the brake balance is appropriate for the weight distribution. The handbrake will get a good workout here to make sure it works properly and can lock the wheels in less than four clicks. If you want to know what your car weighs then this is the point to ask.
Speedometer accuracy. For this test your car is put on a rolling road and ‘driven’ at up to 70 mph, it’s OK for your speedometer to slightly over read but not under read. It will be checked for accuracy every 10 mph and your examiner might well ask for guidance on what gear to use, etc. to get to this speed. If your speedometer is programmable then explain this to the examiner and have your laptop with you, he will be more than happy to let you tweak the calibration if it doesn’t take forever. Make sure you know what you are doing so you do not spend 30 minutes reading the manual.
Noise check. This will be done outside and involves the engine being held at 2/3rds of the speed at which the engine develops maximum power, whist it’s exhaust noise is measured, so be careful what you put on the IVA form! Your manufacturer might be able to help you here but as a guide, you will get away with saying that a 6-ltr Chevy makes it max power at 4000rpm but putting a V-Tec Honda motor down as 3000rpm is not likely to wash. Remember the examiner is likely to be a car enthusiast too! This test has got stricter for IVA, with noise limits now being reduced to 99dBA.
Mirrors check. Likely to be done outside and will involve the examiner sitting in the car and making sure he can see various fixed points behind him in the mirrors. Electrically adjustable mirrors make this part of the test a breeze!
There may be variations to this depending on the test centre you are using, but remember all centres are ensuring your car complies with the same regulations, so make sure it is built to comply with them and you will be OK.
If you have established a rapport with the examiner then it is worth checking with him after every stage how your car is doing. This way you can mentally work out what you need to do to correct it and assuming its fixable then you can ask the examiner if it is OK to fix it when he goes for a cup of tea. This might sound a bit presumptuous but it is worth it and usually works! Try and keep a can-do attitude towards any running fixes, if you put your mind to it and have the above mentioned spanner handy mate with you you’ll be surprised what you can sort out in 20 minutes. Sharp edges only need covering with foam tape or similar and even a brake line can be temporarily re-routed and re-bled in that time.
Assuming you have managed to sort out any minor glitches and made it through the above then the chances are you will have passed! If not, then try and remain philosophical, if it’s a relatively easy fix see if you can negotiate a quick re-test later in the day and do the repairs at the centre. If not then admit defeat gracefully, there is no point falling out with the examiner or other station staff, as the chances are you will be meeting again in a few weeks. Always remember that if your car has failed, then it’s your fault and not theirs, they are only measuring what you present against a pre defined set of rules, so don’t blame them!
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