Costa Rica News – Riteve, the Costa Rica vehicle inspection, is a mystery to most people in the country. Sometimes even brand new cars do not pass Riteve on the first try. Vehicles can be almost 100% ok but a little thing like the hand break is too weak and it will not pass the Costa Rica vehicle inspection.
The cars need to have absolutely everything in perfect working order to pass the Costa Rica inspection which is harder to pass that the emissions test in the USA. When you see some of the vehicles on the road it is surprising that any of them passed this stringent test.
Vehicles failing on the first try of this vehicle inspection has actually decreased, does this mean that people are taking better care of their vehicles, Riteve is getting easier or something else? It was rumored that RTV was failing vehicles on the first attempt to generate more capital. Perhaps the Solis administration and its determination to cut down on corruption has got this entity in line.
In 2003, 71% of the drivers had to bring their vehicles in for a second try at passing the required inspection.
In the first half of this year, just 47% failed on the first time and had to bring their cars a second time. That means that more than half of the cars were maintained in acceptable condition. This factor has been getting better annually for the last three years.
The failures are usually due to the exhaust systems, gas or brake systems in the cars. 178,600 cars failed because of excess greenhouse gases and 75,000 for brakes in poor condition. Cars in disrepair can increase the severity of accidents.
Costa Rica has about 1.5 million cars circulating. Of the 650,000 cars that should have been reviewed a second time by now, only 470,000 were brought in. 180,000 were not taken back for a re-inspection in the month they were due.
As you drive into your Riteve inspection cross your fingers and hope for the best…..and if you do not pass there is normally a mechanic’s shop right next to each and every Riteve looking to “fix” your vehicle so it will pass…..
