Motorbike Inspection For Tax

[BKKBike09]

My bike (Yam FZ09) has just hit the 5-year mark which means it needs an "inspection" before the annual tax can be paid. One of the first things I did was pull off the stock pipes and replace with a full Yoshi set. Since it is a (ahem) a little louder than stock, I kept the old exhaust just in case. I also stripped off the hideous stock indicators and replaced the stock rear plate holder with a tail tidy (the second Gen FZ/MT replaced the plate holder with a hugger mudguard). Luckily for me I have a box full of these bits. I say 'luckily' because the testing station told me that they couldn't inspect the bike unless it had a) stock exhaust and b) stock mudguards (I kid you not). Took me two hours to take it all off and put the old bits back on. The real pain was the indicators on the tail tidy as I had to cut the wires and re-connect to get them off and then back on.

 

The actual inspection took 5 minutes and costs THB 60. All that got checked was emissions and noise level (has to be less than 95dB at 1 metre from bike @ 3,000 rpm - stock exhaust came in at 94). They also took a digital photo of the license plate holder / mudguard, which gets sent to the DLT. They don't check anything else like does the horn work, do all the lights / indicators work. They did say that blue indicators are a no-no. 

 

This was in Bangkok. According to these guys (in Onnut) the DLT got really strict about modifications last year. Of course this being Thailand I'm sure that there may well be other TV bikers who'll have a different experience elsewhere and/or will tell me that I've been spun a line etc. 

 

Whatever, if you have a big bike (in fact any bike) that's been modded, prepare for some grief when it hits the 5-year mark if you don't have the stock pipes and/or have put on a tail tidy / plate in the rear wheel arch etc. My Thai is good enough that I could chat with the guys and ask them whether there was 'a way' to get round the tail tidy / mudguard nonsense, but they said the problem is they have to send a photo of the bike to DLT. To be fair, they did say "as long as it looks reasonable then it should be okay", so i used zip ties not bolts for some of the bits.

 

A successful inspection gets you a little piece of paper with a PASS / FAIL notification and a QR code. 

 

 

[Kwasaki]

39 minutes ago, BKKBike09 said:

I say 'luckily' because the testing station told me that they couldn't inspect the bike unless it had a) stock exhaust and b) stock mudguards (I kid you not).

Take it somewhere else many test stations about, typical of Bkk area and maybe same like others just want money from you.

[eisfeld]

2 hours ago, BKKBike09 said:

has to be less than 95dB at 1 metre from bike @ 3,000 rpm - stock exhaust came in at 94

I think for your bike the check should have been at 5000 rpm because the MT-09 makes max power at 10k and the check is to be done at half rpm where it makes max power. Oh and 0.5m distance.

 

I tested my Africa Twin at some porobor shop and hit exactly 95 with stock exhaust.

 

Not sure if some margin of error is allowed in Thailand. I know in Europe they give you 5%. I am not sure if your bike would have passed 95db @ 5k @ 0.5m distance. Wonder what happens if a completely stock bike fails the test ????

[jackdd]

2 hours ago, Kwasaki said:

Take it somewhere else many test stations about, typical of Bkk area and maybe same like others just want money from you.

Last year i bought a second hand motorbike (6 years old), the tax was due at this time, but the seller said he would do it before the sale. He had installed a tidy tail when i looked at the bike. After seeing the bike and wanting to buy it he wanted to pay the tax the next morning.

So in the next afternoon i came back to make the deal. The seller, being a 40 year old local Thai guy, also had to reinstall the stock mud guard in order to pass the inspection, this was in Udon Thani.

[Kwasaki]

13 minutes ago, jackdd said:

Last year i bought a second hand motorbike (6 years old), the tax was due at this time, but the seller said he would do it before the sale. He had installed a tidy tail when i looked at the bike. After seeing the bike and wanting to buy it he wanted to pay the tax the next morning.

So in the next afternoon i came back to make the deal. The seller, being a 40 year old local Thai guy, also had to reinstall the stock mud guard in order to pass the inspection, this was in Udon Thani.

I would not be surprised at some places, where I live they won't touch big bikes, you have to move the bike for them so they can do the so called test, they wouldn't know what was OEM or not.

[OneMoreFarang]

Interesting.

I have to admit I didn't think about all those little things like loud exhaust, mud guard, etc.

Maybe two month ago my Suzuki Raider was 5 years old and I asked the shop where I bought it to renew the tax like I ask them every years to do that (and new insurance).

The shop owner told me because the bike is more than 5 years old he has to bring it to the inspection. I said: fine, just do it.

I also asked the shop to replace the brake light bulb.

A few days later (I was not in a hurry, I have a 2nd bike) I picked up my bike again. The brake light was still not fixed. It seems they forgot it.

And nobody mentioned my relative loud exhaust (not too loud but definitely a lot louder than original) and the not existing mud guard.

The bike still looks relative new, that might have helped. But whatever inspection was done, it wasn't very thorough.

I paid a few hundred bath for the service (including oil change, air filter) and things like that. So I am sure nobody had to pay extra money so that the inspector looks away.

Maybe it makes sense to let a shop do the job, I don't know. But I though I like to share my experience.

[eisfeld]

1 hour ago, OneMoreFarang said:

I paid a few hundred bath for the service (including oil change, air filter) and things like that. So I am sure nobody had to pay extra money so that the inspector looks away.

Maybe it makes sense to let a shop do the job, I don't know. But I though I like to share my experience.

I would chek at least the air filter if it was really changed if they didn't change the bulb. Sometimes they like to charge without doing anything really.

 

But yea, I also think that letting a shop perform as an agent can help pass things. They can navigate the DLT very well ????

[BKKBike09]

5 hours ago, Kwasaki said:

Take it somewhere else many test stations about, typical of Bkk area and maybe same like others just want money from you.

I wish they had just wanted money! That would have been the easy way to sort it. As it was they seemed happy to take only the official THB 60 fee. 

[BKKBike09]

4 hours ago, eisfeld said:

I think for your bike the check should have been at 5000 rpm because the MT-09 makes max power at 10k and the check is to be done at half rpm where it makes max power. Oh and 0.5m distance.

 

I tested my Africa Twin at some porobor shop and hit exactly 95 with stock exhaust.

 

Not sure if some margin of error is allowed in Thailand. I know in Europe they give you 5%. I am not sure if your bike would have passed 95db @ 5k @ 0.5m distance. Wonder what happens if a completely stock bike fails the test ????

Now you say that actually I think it was closer than 1 m, and also although the guy said 3000 rpm it did sound like it was revved higher than that. Maybe it was 5000 rpm. 

 

I bet there's no margin for error, just as how you can get a speeding ticket for doing 121 in a 120 limit ...

[OneMoreFarang]

8 hours ago, eisfeld said:

I would chek at least the air filter if it was really changed if they didn't change the bulb. Sometimes they like to charge without doing anything really.

That is a good idea.

To be fair the light bulb was not on my original bill. I had to pay (I think) 60 extra after they changed it. And the filter was on the original bill...

[johng]

11 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

The brake light was still not fixed. It seems they forgot it.

On the "original" Raider  changing the rear bulb is a right pain  because in their "wisdom" Suzuki designed the fairing/light cluster  in such a way  that you have to  take the  both side fairings off to get the lens cover off...I modified  mine with an angle grinder  cut off the silly bit of plastic on the  bottom edge of the lens cover...the same problem with the Air filter  but  just one fairing has to come off...????.

 

Don't think this one would pass inspection.

 

 

 

[OneMoreFarang]

1 hour ago, johng said:

On the "original" Raider  changing the rear bulb is a right pain  because in their "wisdom" Suzuki designed the fairing/light cluster  in such a way  that you have to  take the  both side fairings off to get the lens cover off...I modified  mine with an angle grinder  cut off the silly bit of plastic on the  bottom edge of the lens cover...the same problem with the Air filter  but  just one fairing has to come off...????.

It seems they improved it - by about 10%

Now there is at least one screw on the underside of the rear fender - likely covered in dirt.

And there are screws on the back of the light where one would expect them.

The problem is obviously that most people see the screws on the back, take them out, and find out they still can't remove the light cover. And after some unsuccessful dragging the search for another screw begins....

I know why I didn't change that bulb myself - too much trouble.

 

Raider 150 from 2014, ready for inspection:

[johng]

14 minutes ago, OneMoreFarang said:

Raider 150 from 2014, ready for inspection:

Do you get any bother from the police with that "illegal exhaust"  ??

 

[OneMoreFarang]

1 hour ago, johng said:

Do you get any bother from the police with that "illegal exhaust"  ??

Never ever.

But that exhaust has a "silencer insert", or whatever that is called.

With that insert inside it's medium loud, without it's louder. I have never removed it. It's loud enough like that to make sure people notice a bike is coming.

And I had that exhaust from day one. The Suzuki dealer where I bought it installed it. I got a discount because I left my unused original exhaust with them. So I can always say: That's original just the way I bought that bike. ???? 

[johng]

1 hour ago, OneMoreFarang said:

So I can always say: That's original just the way I bought that bike.

I think you've been "lucky"  not to have had a problem..????

its my understanding that unless the  exhaust silencer has a T.I.S stamp  its illegal.

 

 

 

[OneMoreFarang]

6 minutes ago, johng said:

I think you've been "lucky"  not to have had a problem..????

its my understanding that unless the  exhaust silencer has a T.I.S stamp  its illegal.

 

I guess I have to tell anybody who asks that my exhaust is the gold edition, same same, but better. ????