I have also written a blog entry on my experience of the application process - this can be found here:
IVA Application - A murky path oft trodden!
My plan is to try and list the points in the order and header sections they would come up in on the IVA manual, to try and make things easy to find.
01 Noise
02A Visual Emissions
02B Metered Emissions
- It is my understanding that due to various concerns that VOSA have over the ability to accurately judge the age of engines that we use to build our cars, they need to have an age certificate from an approved engine builder/supplier. This will then be used to apply the correct emissions test to the car.
- Make sure all breather pipes are clipped appropriately and securely
- The space between the Reg Plate light and the boot handle should be a minimum of 120mm.
06 Door Latches and Hinges
07 Audible Warning
08 Indirect Vision
- Wing Mirrors - Technically you only need an offside wing mirror, however, it is usual and practical to fit both. It is advisable to mount these on the side pillars of the windscreen as the Cobra "hips" tend to cause a fail point if they are mounted on the side of the body due to the rearward vision not being complete enough
- Make sure the brake pipes are not too close to the exhaust headers/manifold
- Make sure your brake flexies do not contact any of the suspension parts when moving from lock to lock.
09C Park Brake Control/Mechanical Components
- Make sure the handbrake is properly adjusted up, and provides adequate future adjustment
- Ensure that you have the correct label on your brake fluid resevoir. Details can be found on page 92 of IVA Manual version 9.00 (section 9D).
10 Electromagnetic Compatibility
12 Interior Fittings
- It is sensible to ensure that the underside of the dash is covered otherwise the IVA examiner will be able to get his sphere under there and it is most probably that there are sharp edges in these areas. A simple covering should eliminate this issue.
- Make sure your dials and switches have compliant bezels/edges, unless in the exempt zone.
- Make sure all of your switches/controls are labelled appropriately.
- The top of your windscreen may have a channel where the soft top fixes. This may fail the radius test so a piece of rubber should be fitted (a good suggestion was to use the same type of pipe that is for the washer/wiper system).
13B Anti-Theft/Alarm
14 Protective Steering
15 Seat Strength
16 Exterior Projections
- You will most probably need to fit a splitter in the "mouth" of the Cobra to stop the IVA examiner getting his sphere in the front.
- Make sure all bonnet/boot locks and handles do not fail the radius test.
- If you have wheels with "spinners" on them, make sure they are removed for the test.
18 Statutory Plates
- Make sure the VIN plate meets the requirements in the IVA manual
20 Installation of Lights
- Make sure all of your lights are "E" marked.
- Make sure none of your lights fail the radius test.
- When measuring up to mount your lights, make sure any measurements from the floor are taken under the same conditions the car will be in during the test (i.e. full tank of fuel, full weight etc). This may be the difference between a pass and a fail.
22 End-Outline, Position (Side), Stop, Side Marker & Daytime Running Lamps
23 Direction Indicators
- Some seem to have had issues with mounting these above the side grilles, and examiners have decided that they can't see them properly from the rear. Having looked at this, I think some examiners are being over zealous with the interpretation of the rules, so it is worth mocking up something to ensure you can see the side repeaters between the 5 degrees and 60 degrees as suggested in the manual.
- Others have said that they passed fine with them mounted above the front grilles.
25 Headlamps
26 Front Fog Lamps
28 Rear Fog Lamps
- There was some confusion over a change to the IVA manual which made it appear as though the fog lights had to switch off when the ignition is off, and then not come back on again if the ignition is switched back on.
- There has been clarification on this, and an email from someone at VOSA to confirm that the wording was confusing and the fog lights only had to conform to the following: The rear fog lamp(s) must only illuminate when dipped beam, main beam or front fog lamps are lit and apparently all test stations have been notified of this and the manual is going to be revised to make the wording correct again.
30 Parking Lamps
31 Seat Belts
32 Forward Vision
33 Identification of Controls
- Make sure all of your switches/controls are labelled appropriately.
- Make sure the heater is drawing air from the cockpit, or outside the car. It can't pull air from the engine bay.
36 Heating Systems
37 Wheel Guards
44 Masses and Dimensions
45 Safety Glass
46 Tyres
Very useful, thanks. I'll keep an eye on this page as I begin my build. Kit arrives from AK beginning of Feb.
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