Is there an equivelent of an MOT test for any vehicles in the US?, if so is it more or less rigorous than ours?
I can’t speak for the whole country, but as far as I am aware there is’nt an MOT equilivient, at least certainly not down here in any of the Southern States, it is because of a lack of MOT, that I now appreciate the MOT back home!, when I lived in England I hated it, cuz my cars always failed, and always needed more work than I could afford 
Now, after living here for around 15 years I truly believe in MOT’s, even after all these years over here, I still cannot get used to seeing cars being driven with No windows, completely crazed over windscreens, complete headlight assemblies missing, wings, bonnets, boots missing or attached to the vehicle with Gaffer Tape/Bungy Straps/Rope and even Packing tape, tyres so bald you can see the air in them, wheels held on with as little as two lugnuts, when as many as five were originally there!, driving for weeks on the funny little ’ wheelbarrow wheel ’ spare tyres that American cars have, I have seen the same car for weeks on end driving at night and the only light still working is one headlight! ( no sidelights, no taillights and no brake lights! ) it comes into my neighbourhood regulary, which is why I know. Although rust is not a problem down here as such, there are cars that have 'moved ’ down here from up North, and there are cars that have spent along while on the coast resulting in the kind of rust we get back home, I have seen many ( and ridden in a couple ) cars with the floor so rusty you can see the road through the bottom, seals so rusted through they are barely supporting anything. I often see cars with the wheels wobbling so badly I’m suprised they don’t fall off as I’m watching ( probably the muppets who maintain 2-3 lugnuts instead of the 5 the car came with! ) Exhausts that are basically non existant, or are dragging along the road creating huge showers of sparks, shocks so badly worn that I’m suprised the occupants are’nt spewing up. I could go on about this, but I already have so I leave it at this, I’m sure your immagination can conjure up some hair raising scenarios with what I’ve already described.
The only thing that we are subjected to, living within the metro Atlanta area, is emissions tests on cars that are more than 3 years old, but get this, once your car is older than 10 years it is no longer required to have an emissions test 
…it may interest you to know, that there are 12 States, including Georgia, where it is NOT illegal to watch TV or DVD’s whilst driving, which is why many people come past me with DVD players mounted on/in the dashboard!
Thanks for the reply, interesting stuff
i’m not sure what MOT all entails but i’ll try to explain the way things are over here the best i can. Vehicle inspections are performed at by the individual states. And the amount the individual states inspect their vehicles varies greatly from one state to the next. In my state, Pennsylvania, we have to have our cars inspected once a year and our trucks are inspected bi–anuually. this inspection includes tires, brakes, shocks, lights, gauges, there can’t be any holes in the seats or the body, etc… in all, it’s pretty thorough and a pain when the vehicle is around 10+ years old. In addition to the mechanical inspection, certain counties have to have their vehicles go through an emmisions test as well. in addition to their bi-annual test, trucks can get roadside inspections as well. i have yet to see a truck pulled over for the sake of having an inspection. I’ve been pulled for speeding and had the cop go over my truck with a fine comb. DOT inspections, as we call them, are usually performed at predictable locations and are often easy to avoid. hope this helps.
gorgeousload:
i’m not sure what MOT all entails but i’ll try to explain the way things are over here the best i can. Vehicle inspections are performed at by the individual states. And the amount the individual states inspect their vehicles varies greatly from one state to the next. In my state, Pennsylvania, we have to have our cars inspected once a year and our trucks are inspected bi–anuually. this inspection includes tires, brakes, shocks, lights, gauges, there can’t be any holes in the seats or the body, etc… in all, it’s pretty thorough and a pain when the vehicle is around 10+ years old. In addition to the mechanical inspection, certain counties have to have their vehicles go through an emmisions test as well. in addition to their bi-annual test, trucks can get roadside inspections as well. i have yet to see a truck pulled over for the sake of having an inspection. I’ve been pulled for speeding and had the cop go over my truck with a fine comb. DOT inspections, as we call them, are usually performed at predictable locations and are often easy to avoid. hope this helps.
Thanks, not 100% sure what our test involves (I’m not that mechanically minded!) but it sounds similar.
MOT stands for Ministry Of Transport, similar to DOT, an MOT test is performed on vehicles in the UK once a year, it is very stringent. I can’t remember everything they check, someone still living in the UK can best answer that.
That suprise’s me regarding the test in Pa, it certainly sounds like the equivilant to an MOT, although I did state I was’nt sure about the rest of the country, and I’m only sure of what we have to have ( or don’t have to have ) down here. It does underline that whilst the USA is one country, it often seems that it is really 50 countries, as so many laws, rules and regulations differ so widely from State to State, County to County and City to City.
I should have made it clearer that I was in fact only refering to personal vehicles in the post above, because as Gorgeousload rightly points out, the DOT do have bi-annual inspections on commercial vehicles, and I believe this is supposed to be to the same rules and standards countrywide, but having said that, as I drive around Atlanta, I can’t help but think the DOT test for commercial vehicles is for the whole USA…except Atlanta! 
as far as i know, pennsylvania has the toughest annual inspection in the nation. I’ve heard that maryland goes over more, but marylnad only requires it when then vehicle is sold. i’ve heard of tests similar to penna’s in colorado but i’m not too sure about that either.
pennsylvania has been doing the bi-annuals on trucks for a long time. the federal test is actually easier then the pa test.
I like how you noted how much this country varies from one end to the other, cliff.
gorgeousload:
I like how you noted how much this country varies from one end to the other, cliff.
Actually it does’nt even have to go as far as one end from the other, there are vast differences in laws, rules etc as you 'step ’ across the State line of adjacent States…but you already knew that, before having pointed out by a foreigner 
The NY vehicle inspections are a joke
I took my truck in for the last one and the guy told me to pull it round back, he appeared about 5 minutes later with a pass sticker
My Mate took his car for one once and the guy asked “Does it feel safe ?”
“Yes” said my Mate.
"It’s passed then " said the guy
Pat Hasler:
The NY vehicle inspections are a jokeI took my truck in for the last one and the guy told me to pull it round back, he appeared about 5 minutes later with a pass sticker
My Mate took his car for one once and the guy asked “Does it feel safe ?”
“Yes” said my Mate.
"It’s passed then " said the guy
, I was going to say I wish ours were that easy to pass as it would certainly save money trying to get through the MOT, however I don’t like the thought of so many potentially dangerous vehicles on the road 
I know some states do, and some don’t have such tests. I know ND is pretty easy going on that subject.
Canada has a federal law on safety tests for vehicles, private ones annually, and commercial ones every six months. Check for a sticker in the window to proove it’s been done before taking a Cannuck truck out.
New Jersey has inspections but don’t know how they compare to the MOT.
Texas has vehicle inspections as I recently moved from FL and had to re-register my Jeep.
New emission controls and checks are to be introduced here too similar to California.
I used to run accross Arizona and California on a regular basis,and that CALTRANS/CHP inspection on I-8 was the most severe I have ever encountered.
Got turned back into Az a/c a few bulbs on trailer not operating(Elec fault that just occured)and waiting in the reception area saw all the photos on their Hall Of Shame from inspection station. Was a very sobering experience…
Thanks for the extra replies 
I don’t know if you people are aware or not but MOST Canadians find it very offensive to be called “Canuck”. 
RuralRhodes:
I don’t know if you people are aware or not but MOST Canadians find it very offensive to be called “Canuck”.
Hey RR
I don’t.
You are an idiot…that’s very offensive and I find each and every one of your posts very offensive.
Go away.
Well said Bluejay, we know that he is not a true representative of Canadians but as tar from the brush is hard to avoid it is good to hear from one who has.
its all up to the state u live in like in denver,colorado u got a smog test and in calfornia u got the same kind of test but its not hard to get a car to pass it and in other states they just make sure the head lights,turning lights a brake light o an a tail light thats about it for cars