Guys, take a look”: The catalog of defects is up to date

Guys, take a look”: The catalog of defects is up to date

Quiz question: You have a car for inspection whose mileage cannot be read due to a pixel error. Is this a defect according to the §57a assessment or not? “I like to ask this question in my training courses,” says Rudolf Höllhumer, an experienced speaker in §57a training courses who holds the position of educational consultant in the Upper Austrian state guild for vehicle technology. “The answers are usually 50:50.” 

Solution to the puzzle

Höllhumer, who, as a long-time master and managing director of a well-known car dealership, is also involved in the expert panel on §57a, explains: “At first glance you might think that it is a serious defect, but that is actually not the case.” Although manipulation or obvious dysfunction of the mileage display is cited as a serious defect, a closer reading of the comments reveals that this only applies to heavy trucks and buses over 3.5 tons. In the case of a car, a faulty odometer is not a defect at all and therefore does not have to be registered as a defect. “You just have to note it,” says Höllhumer. 

The example shows how complex and informative the catalog of defects is and how important the various comments are. “You have to take a look more often and, above all, read the comments,” says Höllhumer, who describes himself as a real “fan of the catalog of defects”. “I always say: ‘Guys, take a look.’ You have to work with it!” 

The Federal Guild of Vehicle Technology's catalog of defects is a working instrument prescribed by the Federal Ministry for Climate Protection, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology for use in recurring §57a assessments in test centers and vehicle workshops. An editorial committee of experts has taken on the task of keeping the catalog of deficiencies up to date in the event of changes to the law and decrees. This particularly applies to the test instructions and technical comments. 

“The book can get dirty sometimes” 

For the Vienna State Guild Master Georg Ringseis, the catalog of defects fulfills important tasks both online and in print. The physical catalog is practical when working directly on the vehicle. At Ringseis, the catalog is bookmarked with numerous Post-it notes. The printed work can also be used with dirty hands, as Höllhumer adds: “The book can get dirty sometimes.” 
The digital product makes sense in the office and is also “wonderful” for training. “The digital product is very convenient in the office,” says Ringseis. In any case, the digital version has one advantage: it can always be kept up to date through ongoing updates. “Changes can be entered quickly digitally,” says the professional representative and head of the venerable Ringseis special workshop for automotive technology in Vienna. 

Customers and users of the defect catalog subscription benefit from such regular, free updates. The most recent update was before the turn of the year. After the Federal Ministry re-approved the catalog of defects, the changes were promptly incorporated. The 9th approved edition with additions 11/20 is available online to automotive services customers. A total of 158 pages are replaced for the print catalog of defects. 

 “Most of the changes occurred in specialist areas, such as buses, trucks and certain motorcycle classes, and not so much in the passenger car sector,” explains Höllhumer. Specifically, there were changes or additions in the following areas:

● The inspection interval of Class L vehicles has been changed to 3-2-1.
● Change to the transitional provision for game detectors
● Filing a copy of the report with a replacement badge
● Definition of the logbook of historically registered vehicles
● ABS and vehicle class L
● Field of view, lens condition
● Reflector on the side, class L
● explanatory example “rubber elements”
● Wheels and tires – supplement incl. correct. Table
● 6.2.1 Condition, explanatory example “insufficient fastening” 
● Belt vs. airbag, unrelated correction
● Odometer, additional explanation 
● Question – deletion of the tables 

A complex process is taking place in the background, with a milestone being set in 2020: experts from the federal guild and specialist speakers from the federal states, who meet separately as a §57a expert or state conference, met together for the first time in September to exchange views on key topics and to develop a coordinated and consensual procedure in the so-called 57a dialogue. 

As has been shown, the catalog of defects is met with a high level of acceptance and should be further optimized through more frequent updates. The aim is to always have the catalog available quickly using state-of-the-art technology. Regular updates are planned for this purpose. This is technically possible in a basic digital product, but the underlying processes must be standardized (with selected editorial teams and prioritized topic clusters) to ensure rapid implementation and approval of the updates. “As vehicle technology develops, the testing methods, instructions and recommendations for periodic vehicle inspections must also develop,” says Andreas Westermeyer from the Federal Guild Group for Metal, Electrical, Plumbing, Mechatronics and Vehicle Technology at the Austrian Chamber of Commerce. Postscript: "To do this you need the right and up-to-date instrument. And that is the constantly 'maintained' catalog of defects." 

If you are interested in a catalog of defects subscription, please contact Thomas Keinrath, who can be reached on 01 54664 225.