Vehicle roadworthiness is one of the most important requirements that must be ensured in order to maintain the safety of all road users. Thus, the Department of Transportation and the Land Transportation Office-Philippines (DOTr-LTO) is stepping up efforts to inspect motor vehicles by issuing guidelines for the authorization of Private Motor Vehicle Inspection Centers (PMVICs).
PMVICs are the stand-alone one-stop testing centers built by independent investors across various locations around the country. These centers will perform the necessary tests mandated by LTO for vehicle registration and/or renewal.
By imposing a more comprehensive and stringent testing system, motor vehicle ownership will be put to a higher level of maintenance and responsibility, ensuring that only those in good running condition are allowed to run on the road.
State-of-the-art testing
There’s a total of 138 PMVIC locations nationwide, with each region’s number based on population and annual income. For example, NCR has 34 sites while Region 4A has 15, Region 7 with 14 and Region 3 with 13.
Each center is equipped with state-of-the-art equipment and machines (computers, wireless touch screen monitors, tablets for test operation control, barcode scanner/RFID reader and process indicator monitors to name a few) to do a variety of wide-ranging tests for both light vehicles (LVs) and motorcycles (MCs). These modern testing centers are designed to test 61 points for road worthiness of vehicles. The results are digitally transmitted directly to LTO’s Information Technology (IT) system.
For his part, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade underscored the benefits of an automated inspection system to determine the vehicle’s roadworthiness.
“Yung automated inspection, titignang mabuti ang roadworthiness ng sasakyan nang sa ganun, malaman kung ligtas itong bumaybay sa mga kalsada. Hindi na po manu-mano ang inspection. Machine po ang gagawa kaya naman accurate ang resulta. At dahil limited ang human intervention, mawawala ‘yung sinasabi nating opportunities for corruption,” Tugade emphasized.
Checklist of parts to be inspected
Based on Memorandum Circular 2018-2158, here are the specific parts and points that will be thoroughly checked by the PMVIC:
Above carriage items for inspection
a. Identity/ construction
b. Lighting system and reflectors
c. Windshield/window glass
d. Wiper/washer
e. Chassis/ motor number authenticity
f. Horn
g. Number plates
h. Floor board
i. Body appearance
j. Seat belts
k. Door/Hinges
l. Rear view/ side mirror
m. Brake system/ parking brake
n. Clutch system
o. Steering
p. Driver’s/passenger’s seat
q. Tires/wheels
r. Wheels bolts/nuts
s. Fuel tank/ fuel tank cap
t. Mobile Air-conditioning System (MAC’S)
u. EWD
v. Length, width and height (Rebuilt and locally assembled)
Under carriage items for inspection
a. Chassis Frame/ Chassis member
b. Drive Shaft Bolt/Nut
c. Engine Oil Leakage
d. Transmission Oil Leakages
e. Differential Oil Leakages
f. Steering Linkages/Gear Box Mounting
g. Steering Ball joints
h. Radiator
i. Shock Absorbers
j. Exhaust pipe
k. Propeller Shaft Couplings
1. Front/Rear Shackle Eyes/Pins/Bushes
m. Spring Clips
n. Stabilizer/Bushes
o. Suspension joints/Bushes
p. Engine Bracket/Mounting
q. King Pins and Bearing
r. Steering Idler/ Section Shaft
s. Brake Hoses/ Pipes/ Cylinders
t. Spring Bolts/Nuts
u. Power Steering
v. Fuel Hoses/Pipes
w. Parking Brake Wire
While all items for inspection are visually checked, both above carriage and undercarriage inspections are also monitored and recorded using HD cameras connected to the MVIC IT System that stores the visual inspection of each vehicle.
According to the memo, cost of the test will be P1,800 (P900 for re-tests) for four-wheeled vehicles, and P600 (P300 for re-tests) for two-wheelers.
