Vanner quad bike would have failed WOF examination

The quad bike 4-year-old Molly Vanner rode to her death was in a state of disrepair with faulty brakes and poor steering.

The bike would have failed tests imposed in warrant of fitness checks and would not have been legal on New Zealand roads. David Taylor, who works for On Road NZ, was called by police to check the vehicle shortly after it was impounded. Mr Taylor, who gave evidence in the case, tested the quad bike in the yard behind the Hawera police station.

He told the Herald on Sunday he had identified a string of problems including: 

* the speedometer didn't work;

* the rear brakes were worn and did not work;

* there was excessive play in the steering;

* the brake lights and rear tail lights did not work;

* the tyres were inflated to widely different levels.

In the test, Mr Taylor took the quad bike through a series of checks, although he was unable to reach high speeds because of space restrictions. Mr Taylor told the court the problems with tyre pressure and the steering could have contributed to the accident.

Mr Taylor said yesterday the tyres were all at different pressures, when the recommended level was 4 pounds per square inch of pressure. He found the left front tyre had 7 PSI, the right front 21 PSI, the left rear 15 PSI and the right rear just 3 PSI.

He also found the bushes in the steering column, which were meant to hold the handlebars in place, were badly worn. The quad bike, which had 5135km on the clock, had a tendency to turn to the left - the direction it was heading when it rolled and killed Molly. If a rider tried turning left, it "sledged" - was difficult to turn and dug into the ground. "To the right, it turned sharply."

The bike's rear brakes were "badly worn", although Mr Taylor said most farmers tended to coast to a stop rather than braking.

Cabinet minister Ruth Dyson, in charge of occupational safety and health, said children should not be allowed to ride quad bikes but refused to push for legislation to control their use.

"I think the trial sent a huge message through the farming community. I think people are much more alert that little children cannot safely ride ATVs."
Transport Safety Minister Harry Duynhoven, said farms would be safer without quad bikes and had previously pushed for a drop in ACC levies for those farmers who did not own them.

- HERALD ON SUNDAY