Short answer: yes, it can. Victoria's roadworthiness standard requires steering and suspension to be free from wear or play beyond the manufacturer's limits, and every joint, bush and mounting to be in good condition. The noise itself is not the test. What is worn, and by how much, is.
The rule for steering and suspension
The standard is Vehicle Standards Information 26, published by the Victorian Department of Transport and Planning in March 2023. It is the set of written directions a licensed vehicle tester works to. Section B opens with the general rule.
The vehicle steering and suspension system must be free from wear or play exceeding the manufacturer's limits and the vehicle must track satisfactorily without undue wander.
Note the yardstick: the manufacturer's limits. The question a tester answers is not whether a part moves, but whether it has worn past what the manufacturer allows.
Bushes, joints, bearings and mountings
All suspension components must be properly mounted and aligned with no distortion, cracks, fractures or other damage likely to cause failure or instability. There must be adequate clearance between components and the vehicle body, and all joints, bushes, pivots, dust and grease seals, wheel bearings and mountings must be in good condition.
That is a long list: joints, bushes, pivots, seals, wheel bearings and mountings. Any of them can be the source of a noise, which is why a knock cannot be diagnosed from a description alone.
Shock absorbers and struts
Shock absorbers and struts must be securely mounted, function effectively and be free of leaks. Dampness or staining around seals is acceptable.
So a damp shock absorber is not a failure, and a leaking one is. The standard draws the same line for power steering, where fittings must be free of oil leaks but dampness or staining around seals is acceptable.
If the car has air or hydraulic suspension, there is one more requirement.
The auto levelling function must operate on hydraulic or air suspension systems.
What the tyres say
Section A of the standard makes uneven tyre wear a roadworthy item in its own right.
A tyre must not have uneven wear across its width such that an edge of the tyre is significantly more worn than the remainder of the tyre surface.
On a pre-purchase inspection we treat uneven tyre wear as a pointer to alignment or a suspension fault, which is why we look at the tyres and the suspension together.
Lowered or modified suspension
Modified suspensions must comply with the relevant sections of VSI 8.
VSI 8 is Victoria's guide to modifications for motor vehicles. If the car has been lowered or fitted with non-standard suspension parts, that is the document a tester turns to.
What a pass does not tell you
A roadworthiness inspection is not a check of the mechanical reliability or general condition of the vehicle. If a comprehensive check of the overall condition of the vehicle is required, you should arrange for a separate independent report.
Parts can be within the manufacturer's limits on the day and still be part-worn. If you are buying a used car, that separate report is a pre-purchase inspection. The same applies to brakes, where the standard sets a pass mark for pad wear rather than a measure of how much life is left.
How we find a knock
On a hoist rather than by eye. Steering, suspension and bushes are checked with the car in the air, alongside the tyres. Suspension and steering work, including bushes and control arms, is on the list of what we do for BMW owners, and we do wheel alignments as well.
It helps to tell us when the noise happens: over speed humps, on full lock, under braking, on one side or both.
BM Garage is a licensed vehicle tester. If a car fails its roadworthy on steering or suspension, the repair and the re-inspection happen here in the same visit.
Every car is different, so we quote on the car rather than from a list. Send us the year, model and rego along with what it needs, and we will put a tailored quote together.
Sources
- Vehicle Standards Information 26: Roadworthiness requirements, State of Victoria, Department of Transport and Planning, March 2023. Part 2, Section A (Wheels and tyres) and Section B (Steering and suspension).
Every quotation above is taken word for word from that document. It applies to vehicles with a gross vehicle mass of 4.5 tonnes or less.
Häufige Fragen
Will a suspension knock fail a roadworthy in Victoria?
It can. Victoria's roadworthiness standard, VSI 26, requires the steering and suspension system to be free from wear or play exceeding the manufacturer's limits, and all joints, bushes, pivots, dust and grease seals, wheel bearings and mountings to be in good condition. The noise is not itself the test. The worn component is.
Is a leaking shock absorber a roadworthy fail in Victoria?
VSI 26 says shock absorbers and struts must be securely mounted, function effectively and be free of leaks. It also says dampness or staining around seals is acceptable.
Does uneven tyre wear fail a roadworthy in Victoria?
VSI 26 says a tyre must not have uneven wear across its width such that an edge of the tyre is significantly more worn than the remainder of the tyre surface.
Does a roadworthy certificate mean the suspension is in good condition?
No. VSI 26 states that a roadworthiness inspection is not a check of the mechanical reliability or general condition of the vehicle, and that a comprehensive check of the overall condition needs a separate independent report.