I had my tow package welded to the unibody frame of my 2005 Buick LeSabre.
A mechanic had my car up on a lift for maintenance, and claimed this weld would FAIL me on inspection in New York state.
So I downloaded the most recent inspection regulations from the NY DMV, and the only frame inspection regulations read as follows:
Presence
Condition
Visually inspect chassis/frame or primary uni-body member for general condition.
REJECT IF:
Section is missing.
The frame is cracked, bent, broken, or deteriorated due to rust.
4.i. The front wheels are visually out of line.
4.ii. Any axle or front end assembly is bent or twisted.
4.iii. Chassis/frame or primary uni-body member is severely rusted at suspension attachment points.
4.iv. Bolts or rivets are loose, missing or in a deteriorated condition due to rust.
4.v. Chassis/frame or primary uni-body member is cracked or broken.
Is my mechanic wrong? Or do I need to worry? (I am due for inspection in May 2014).
More likely it wasn’t a kit hitch but something a welder just slapped together. I knew a guy up in Quebec who fabricated and welded a hitch on my first car for $60. If you’re a welder and have some scrap steel kicking around you can slap together a light duty hitch for next to nothing.
From What you are describing, it will Pass
besides no one wants to hook up their new inspection machines, and the states gonna shut all the old machines off, therefore theres not gonna be any more stations
>Is your mechanic saying you can’t add a welded piece to your uni-body?
That’s what he said
>Why was it welded? Most towing packages bolt in.
It is also bolted. I heard that a friend of a friend had his tow package welded. I thought that was a good idea, so I asked the installer to weld mine.
>More likely it wasn’t a kit hitch
Yes, it was a U-Haul kit off my previous vehicle, which was the same model car.
they are legit machines. ares started up and then immediately locked us out for some odd reason… they have a webcam on top to make sure everything your doing is legit from what the state inspector told us. there is no more hooking up hitting 1-0 and just running it through obd, its an even longer process thats monitored even more. we had to buy 2 cause of the dealership having an upper and lower shop. the main upper shop is all wireless, including the scanner (which also has a camera in it that every time you scan it takes a picture of your registration card or door sticker) , and a wireless obd scanner…
pretty much more hassle to obtain a legit sticker.
The webcam is suppose to be used randomly, it isn’t used for every inspection. I’ve done 10+ inspections with the new setup and it takes me less time than the old machine…