Slimy38
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| posted on 8/12/25 at 11:23 AM |
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Distance driven for an IVA test
I'm getting my IVA booked in, and calling them for Kidderminster, Derby and Nottingham reveals that the first two are booked up for January and
February, and Nottingham is closed. I'm waiting for a call back from a private facility in Castle Donington, but if that has no availability
I'm going to have to go further afield.
The next ones are 80-100 miles away. Is this a pretty standard thing, has anyone else had to travel 2-3 times as far as expected in order to get an
appointment? I suspect a 2 hour drive followed by a 4 hour test then another 2 hours drive will make for a very tiring day, especially if the
appointment is first thing.
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Sanzomat
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| posted on 8/12/25 at 11:53 AM |
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If you do end up travelling that kind of distance it might be worth considering Avonmouth (about 90 miles from Wolverhampton). Everyone I know who has
been tested there is very complementary about how friendly and helpful the staff there are. No idea how busy they are though.
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nick205
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| posted on 8/12/25 at 12:00 PM |
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Winchester to Southampton for my SVA test - 18 miles (with a support car following).
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JAG
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| posted on 8/12/25 at 02:39 PM |
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I did my SVA (back in 2005) at Nottingham and drove from Studley in Warwickshire.
It's roughly 65 miles and took nearly two hours, I had a friend follow me there and back.
It was fun to actually drive the car - although it started snowing while I was on the M1  
Justin
Who is this super hero? Sarge? ...No.
Rosemary, the telephone operator? ...No.
Penry, the mild-mannered janitor? ...Could be!
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gremlin1234
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| posted on 8/12/25 at 02:49 PM |
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something in my memory says the private test sites don't do kit cars. but this may have changed.
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Slimy38
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| posted on 8/12/25 at 03:55 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by gremlin1234
something in my memory says the private test sites don't do kit cars. but this may have changed.
Yeah I contacted them this morning and it's been unusually quiet...
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Slimy38
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| posted on 8/12/25 at 03:57 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Sanzomat
If you do end up travelling that kind of distance it might be worth considering Avonmouth (about 90 miles from Wolverhampton). Everyone I know who has
been tested there is very complementary about how friendly and helpful the staff there are. No idea how busy they are though.
Yeah that's the Bristol site isn't it? I've got Bristol, Chadderton and Leighton Buzzard as the next 'tier' of test stations,
all around 100 miles away from me. I'll give them a call tomorrow and see if there's any available, thanks for the recommendation.
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Slimy38
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| posted on 8/12/25 at 03:59 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by JAG
I did my SVA (back in 2005) at Nottingham and drove from Studley in Warwickshire.
quote:
Originally posted by nick205
Winchester to Southampton for my SVA test - 18 miles (with a support car following).
You're both braver than I am, I'll be hiring a trailer for my test! Hopefully once the car is registered I'll build up the confidence
to drive longer distances but for my first drive I'm not brave enough to go that far.
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Slimy38
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| posted on 8/12/25 at 04:13 PM |
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OK, booked in at Bristol in February... 
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gremlin1234
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| posted on 8/12/25 at 07:53 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Slimy38
OK, booked in at Bristol in February...
excellent, good luck,
I still suggest posting some pics so the experts here may give their insightful knowledge
ps someone here had a problem taking their car on a trailer to Leighton Buzzard, as there was a width restriction about half a mile from the test
centre.
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nick205
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| posted on 9/12/25 at 08:58 AM |
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quote:
Originally posted by nick205
Winchester to Southampton for my SVA test - 18 miles (with a support car following).
The Southampton test site is very close to Southampton docks. It had a constant stream of Japanese import cars rolling through being inspected and
given the ALL CLEAR to drive in the UK. The drivers bringing these cars through were on first name terms with the testers and it was a slick
operation. Most of the cars were 3-4 years old and looked almost new.
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Sanzomat
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| posted on 9/12/25 at 09:04 AM |
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"had a fantastic day at the test center even thought it failed , but only on 7 items
1 brake low pressure to the rear brakes ,I think it may be still air in the system as i have been having a torrid time bleeding the system
:emoji_rage:
2 The pivot pins to the bonnet i had forgot to fit R clips:emoji_flushed:
3 I had wired the fog lights to the side lights and not dipped beam :emoji_upside_down:
4 The fuel filler cap wasn't tethered to the fuel tank :emoji_upside_down:
5 speedometer was out of calibration
6 I had a brake flued label but it wasn't marked up with the appropriate .4 fluid :emoji_upside_down:
7 I had the wrong weights on the vin plate they should have been Gross weight not curb weight :emoji_rage:
The guys at Avonmouth are fantastic they are very helpful
Now to get all the fixes done and get it booked back in for a retest ASAP
All in all a very positive day and im the little bit closer to being able to get it road legal so it can be driven to Malvern :emoji_sunglasses:
Big thank you to all you guys for all your help"
Hope it goes well on the day (especially as I suggested Avonmouth!) Above is a copy/paste from the Kitnet forum from a guy named Mark who had his
RS200 replica tested there this Feb (and re-tested in April when it passed). The only other advice I've heard recently is that apparently the
tester is fond of lemon drizzle cake so if you've been concentrating when watching bakeoff...
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TimC
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| posted on 9/12/25 at 12:54 PM |
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I had a 1st time pass at Avonmouth - Aug 2023. It was a really good experience.
My advice is:
1, You get out in correlation to what you put in. Read the manual. Watch the MK videos. Read the, 'How to pass IVA' guide from DVSA.
Leave as little as possible to chance. Go to an MOT station and check your headlamp alignment and emissions. I had a great response out of the
testers because it was evident that I really gave a sh*t and had followed the rules.
2. Take the right attitude with you. Be courteous and polite. They'll give you the same back - plus help and pointers. When they are telling
you about their negative experiences with people trying to pass IVA, you know you are on the right track.
3. Make their lives easy. I had photos of difficult to see areas and even a video which showed how the brake bias was locked-off - no subterfuge,
just trying to make their job as straightforward as possible.
Mine was not an easy car to get a pass for and they did come down on my side in two marginal areas - but, I think, only because of the points
above.
 
IVA Pass
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