Okay, l have a 2001 Citroen Xsara and the warning light indicates the ABS is not working. However, the brakes are still working okay, but it does mean that the car can lock up (like many other cars on the road without ABS). Can the car still get through the UK MOT with this warning light on? If not, why not?

If ABS is fitted it has to work

no instant fail

Yes. Functioning ABS is not a prerequisite for passing the MoT.

Remove the warning light bulb for the MOT just in case!

Yes you will be okay. By the way, did you know you can pass the MOT with only one windscreen wiper, as long as it is on the drivers side. YThis happened when l went for MOT and tester told me this because My wiper was badly worn on the passenger side

elvis - l dont want you to pop a vein in your forehead with stress but.my husband says NO! he used to be a cabbie in the eighties and services his own cars.it has something to do with your brakes, it will fail if that doesnt work oh, he just explained to me it means.anti-lock braking system.oh well, u know the score.tell me, how DID u die anyway? car brakes??

All systems fitted in car they have to work, if no,sorry no MOT.

ABS if fitted has to work .

The ABS warning light is checked for the correct sequence of operation .
That is one of the main Brake check points in the test.
By sequence this means it lights up with ign switch then goes through a self check before extinguishing.
If this is not accomplished then a failure results .
Of course the car is perfectly safe without ABS its just one of the rules that the MOT tester is obliged to follow.

The simple answer is NO, If the vehicle is fitted with ABS it must be working correctly. l have a Volvo V70 & a couple of months ago my ABS warning light came on on the dash. l took it to my local garage where they plugged the car into a diagnostic tool which indicated that there was nothing wrong with the ABS system other than the fact that the ABS sensor on one of the brakes was faulty & giving a false reading & causing the warning light to illuminate. Whilst there as the MOT was nearing renewal l asked the garage to put it through the MOT l was told that it would fail because of the warning light. l questioned this in view of what they had just diagnosed & l was directed to a large poster on the wall issued by the the Department of Transport on which was listed all the fail points of which the ABS warning light was one. Out came the credit card!!

Well that is just terrible,in Texas you would pass.did you know that in some states there is no inspection whatsoever???

No its an MOT fail.
You can get a faker relay fitted to light the light for a few seconds when turning the ignition on to fool the tester...

The only ABS item testable during an Mot is the lamp. It must come on and go off in accordance with the manufacturers program. If it is staying on after 5 seconds, or is not coming on at all (do not take the bulb out) it will fail.
As for why it would fail, how do you know the abs wo not decide to release the brakes because it thinks the brakes are locked when they aren't? It is a WARNING lamp for a reason.

it will fail, unless u wire it up to the oil light so it comes on with the ignition and goes out when u start it.

No. When abs fails, the car can take twice the stopping distance to stop.

No it will not pass, its part of the mot test, when you lose your ABS you only lose the extra braking in and emergancy the brakes will still operated normaly

As most people have said, the light must follow a correct procedure set out by manufacturer which has to be followed by the MOT tester, if the ABS light does not go out according to procedure then it will fail.
Most common reason of failure is simply dirt in the connections of the wiring harness near the ABS sensors at each wheel but that would normally just bring on the light after driving, the abs control unit does not receive a signal from that abs sensor & the light comes on. Check the fuse for the ABS control unit itself & then check plug/harness to ABS control unit. If the light is on from start up then that would suggest a comms fault before even moving off.
Hope this helps.
Cheers
Andy

No it wont pass a MOT because the ABS it is classed as a safety feature