The Land Transportation Office (LTO) has long required motor vehicle owners to submit to a motor vehicle inspection and acquire a motor vehicle inspection report (MVIR) as part of the procedures for car registration and renewal. This is to ensure that the vehicles that are legally allowed on public roads are roadworthy.
Just recently, in 2020, the agency stepped up its game and overhauled the Motor Vehicle Inspection System (MVIS) to replace the old and outdated system for motor vehicle inspection and registration. However, in 2021, though the MVIS is still in use, some changes were made, doing away with some of the tests included in the original inspection requirements. While there are still plenty of kinks to sort out, here’s a complete guide to getting your vehicle inspected and acquiring an MVIR.
Table of Contents
The Motor Vehicle Inspection Report (MVIR) is an LTO-issued form meant to attest to the condition of a vehicle at the time of inspection. The accomplished and approved MVIR form is one of the requirements set by the LTO for vehicle registration.
The MVIR is divided into different sections, namely:
This section covers the first part of the form. It indicates information like the following:
This is the second section of the MVIR form and the place where the inspector identify and take note of the following:
It is also in this section where the inspector will rate the condition of parts of your vehicle, including:
It is also in this section where you would have needed to have your car stenciled for its engine number and chassis number, before this requirement was abolished in 2018. It is still necessary when renewing your motor vehicle registration, though.
On the third section of the form, the inspector will test the parts of your car that will affect the car’s ability to drive safely, and might involve a test drive and some q&a.
It is also in this section where the inspector takes notes of the safety test results following the Private Motor Vehicle Inspection Centers (PMVIC) Testing.
In case you want to get a copy of the Motor Vehicle Inspection Report form, you can access it by visiting the website using this link – https://lto.gov.ph/lto-forms/file/1161-motor-vehicle-inspection-report-form.html
Alternatively, please check the MVIR form sample below for your reference so you have an idea how it looks like. Take note that this form is NOT for sale.
The tests that your vehicle will be put through includes:
Through the Sideslip Test, you can determine if the vehicle’s wheel alignment is correct, as well as scrutinize the toe-in and toe-out of the vehicle. It is conducted by the inspector by driving the vehicle into the sideslip sensor plate which will measure the later slip movement of your vehicle as it enters the first switch. The result of the test is determined once the vehicle has passed through the last switch of the tester.
This test is meant to test and measure the effectiveness of the shock absorbers on each wheel of the vehicle, the absolute damping levels and its performance compared with the relative damping balance between the right and left side of each axle, as well as the efficiency of the shock absorbers using the EUSAMA principle or its recognized equivalent. The test is done by placing the axles and wheels of the vehicle on shaker plates which will automatically measure the axle weight of the vehicle. Once done, the plates will begin to oscillate to test out the damping abilities of the suspension and the data will be sent to the computer where it will be compared with the information on the database.
This test is meant to measure the braking force of the left and right wheels for both the front and rear axles of your vehicle on a rolling road in order to get the vehicle up to speed and to effectively measure the braking force that each wheel can generate. The parking brake will also be tested with respect to the axle incorporating the parking brake mechanism.
The speedometer test is designed to measure the actual speed and the accuracy of the speedometer reading on the vehicle. To test these, the inspector will bring the vehicle to a rolling road and accelerate it to a speed of 40 km/h before decelerating it to rest. The vehicle will pass if the reading is within 10 km/h of what is being displayed on the speedometer versus its actual speed.
To complete this test, the headlights of the vehicle will need to be examined to measure the luminous intensity and photometric axis or optical axis of deviation of your vehicle’s headlights. It’s an automated test so the vehicle will only need to be parked at a predetermined distance.
Though the emissions test is done separately, it is a part of the MVIR required by the LTO. It is done to check the concentration of Carbon Monoxide and Hydrocarbon emissions from in-use motor vehicles running at idle speed. To complete the testing procedure, the vehicle will need to be placed on neutral gear with the handbrake engaged. The vehicle’s temperature must also be at least 70 degrees celsius or higher in order for the engine to be at its proper operating temperature. A probe will then be inserted into the exhaust pipe of the vehicle by at least 30 cm from the tailpipe outlet.
The test would be slightly different for diesel-fed engines, as it will be measuring the opacity of the smoke that comes from the exhaust instead. In the same way that gasoline-powered vehicles are tested, the vehicle will also remain in neutral, at idle, and must be at its proper operating temperature. The engine will then be revved two to three times to remove deposits or soot for proper smoke sampling. While the engine is idling the inspector will then insert the sampling probe into the exhaust pipe to measure its readings.
The last test in the list of safety tests to complete the MVIR is the sound test. Done in conjunction with the exhaust of a vehicle, the sound test is meant to determine if your vehicle is too loud and is a source of noise pollution. To complete the testing procedures, sonometers are placed 0.5 meters behind the exhaust pipe at 45-degree angles. The inspector will then measure your vehicle at idle and at the 2,500 rpm mark. Your vehicle must come with a result lower than 99db in order to pass the test.
Once all the tests and the three sections of the form are all filled up, it will be sent for approval and transmitted to LTO. Once accepted, you may already use the accomplished Motor Vehicle Inspection Report (MVIR) to complete the next steps of your motor vehicle registration process.
Getting an MVIR is more than just satisfying a requirement. For a list of benefits that come with adhering to this requirement, please see the list below:
Depending on the reason for the inspection, you may need to submit the following documentary requirements to get an MVIR:
For other instances, please see the checklist in the attached image:
Sure, there might be some changes to the LTO Procedures for acquiring an MVIR, but for now, this is how it’s done, according to the LTO’s operating guidelines for PMVICs.
Step 1: At the Motor Vehicle Inspection Center (MVIC) or authorized LTO District Offices (DO) or Extension Offices (EO), applicants requesting for vehicle inspection must first submit the required documents.
Step 2: Once the documents have been accepted and verified, the applicant may proceed to the Cashier for payment of fees and to receive their Official Receipt (OR).
Step 3: Armed with an OR, the applicant may then visit a PMVIC and present the motor vehicle for the following inspection procedures:
The PMVIC will first check if a vehicle is already registered in the LTO’s Land Transportation Management System (LTMS) through either one of these three ways by which the PMVIC personnel run their checks:
This LTO check is done by having someone scan the RFID tag on your car’s LTO sticker.
Another way of checking with the LTO is by the use of a barcode scanner which will be used to scan the QR code on your car’s LTO sticker.
Other than these two that require the use of scanners, there’s also the option for manual checking. This involves getting your car’s license plate number manually checked in the LTMS database.
Note: If your vehicle is not yet in the LTMS database, you will be asked to go to the nearest LTO district office prior to continuing to the next step of the process.
If you’ve scheduled an appointment online, you. Can immediately proceed to payment. Otherwise, you need to drop by the encoder window to present your OR/CR and vehicle identification number (VIN) before receiving a queue number.
There are three payment options:
You surrender your keys to a designated PMVIC driver and wait for your queue number to be called again at the customer lounge.
Your car undergoes the MVIS testing and inspection process.
As per the MVIS Checklist, here is the list of items of the parts of the car to be inspected:
Your test results and data are sent via a Value Added Service Provider (VASP) to the LTO database and an MVIS report is printed out. A point system will determine whether your vehicle receives a ‘Pass’ or ‘Fail’ result generated by the LTMS. The report is valid for 60 days from the date of inspection.
Step 4: Once done, you can then receive the inspection report and the list of things that need to be replaced or changed.
Step 5: Once the vehicle receives a Pass result, you may head on over to a nearby LTO office to register your vehicle. If your car fails, you will need to come back for a test once your ride’s issues have been resolved.
In order to get your vehicle tested in the new MVIS, you need to be ready to pay the following fees:
Note that the reinspection fee would only apply if a motor vehicle fails the first inspection, and will only cover the stage where it previously failed.
On February 11, 2021, the MVIS fees were reduced from the original LTO 2018-2158 document.
The new motor vehicle inspection fees are as follows:
For smoke emission tests, the fees are as follows:
As stated in LTO Memorandum 2018-2158 Section 18, an inspection fee amounting to P1,800 may still be collected for the following transactions:
Note: Re-inspection of the vehicle shall cover only the item where it previously failed.
Motorists who need to get their motor vehicle inspected needs to observe the following inspection schedule:
Note: There is a penalty amounting to P50 for vehicles who failed to meet the scheduled testing.
To learn more about what the motor vehicle inspection report is all about, then you can check out this explainer video from Pinoy Car Guy:
