MOT advisory · manual section 1.1.11

Brake pipe corroded, covered in grease or other material

What this MOT advisory means, how often testers record it and what the usual repair costs. From 130,233,413 DVSA MOT tests taken 2022 to 2025.

MOT data updated 28 September 2026

As an advisory, per 100 MOTs (n=130,233,413)3.80

Most often at22 years

Times recorded4,952,090

Times recorded adds every DVSA code with this wording, so a test can record it more than once, for example on two wheels under separate codes.

What it means

This is an advisory: the car passes its MOT, and the tester is warning about the part. An advisory is something the tester noticed that could become a defect later. The car passes its MOT. The advice is to monitor the part and repair it if it gets worse.

When it gets worse, the tester records it as a fail: Brake pipe excessively corroded.

The tester checks the pads, discs, drums, pipes, hoses and warning lamps, and measures the braking effort at each wheel. Wear and corrosion build up gradually, so brake items often appear as advisories before they become fails.

The tester fails the car when the part reaches the point the MOT inspection manual describes (section 1.1.11):

Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded

Read this section of the MOT inspection manual on GOV.UK

The DVSA codes counted on this page: the manual item and the defect text as DVSA records them. The heading above joins the two, as a certificate does; the tester also adds the position, such as nearside front.
Result	Manual item	DVSA defect text	Records
Advisory	Rigid brake pipes	corroded, covered in grease or other material (1.1.11)	4,952,090

Got an MOT advisory or defect on a certificate? Paste it into the MOT advisory checker to see what it means.

How common it is by age

Testers record it most at 22 years: 15.9 per 100 MOTs (n=913,980 tests at that age).

Per 100 MOT tests of cars at each age, all makes. We show no figure below 20 tests.
Age	Advisory per 100	Tests (n)
3 years	0.013	8,016,463
4 years	0.059	8,699,937
5 years	0.21	9,425,360
6 years	0.49	10,382,720
7 years	0.88	10,537,318
8 years	1.39	10,440,457
9 years	2.06	9,949,012
10 years	2.85	9,049,507
11 years	3.73	8,087,514
12 years	4.50	7,303,151
13 years	5.14	6,612,160
14 years	6.02	6,054,526
15 years	7.17	5,591,675
16 years	8.78	4,858,625
17 years	10.5	4,040,458
18 years	12.3	3,261,622
19 years	14.1	2,479,858
20 years	15.2	1,845,952
21 years	15.9	1,321,417
22 years	15.9	913,980
23 years	15.4	619,531
24 years	14.7	428,815
25 years	14.1	313,355

Models that get it most

Each model generation is compared with cars of the same ages and fuel, so older and diesel models are not penalised for their age or fuel. Generations are never pooled.

Model generations with the highest rate as an advisory, against cars of the same ages and fuel. A model’s figure counts this defect only at ages where it is among that model’s 25 most recorded items, and as zero elsewhere, so it is a floor. Tests (n) are all the generation’s MOT tests at ages with at least 1,000 tests each; at least 5,000 in total.
Model	Per 100 MOTs, at least	Same ages and fuel	Times as often	Tests (n)	Ages
Suzuki BalenoSuzuki Baleno brake problems	9.58	0.56	17.1	26,797	3 to 9
SsangYong MussoSsangYong Musso brake problems	3.42	0.27	12.7	7,522	3 to 6
Fiat FullbackFiat Fullback brake problems	6.69	0.81	8.3	10,944	4 to 8
Mitsubishi Eclipse CrossMitsubishi Eclipse Cross brake problems	1.46	0.19	7.6	45,345	3 to 7
Ford Transit CustomFord Transit Custom brake pipe replacement Ford Transit Custom brake problems	2.21	0.29	7.5	499,881	3 to 7
Ford TourneoFord Tourneo brake pipe replacement Ford Tourneo brake problems	9.18	1.23	7.4	55,404	3 to 11
SsangYong RodiusSsangYong Rodius brake problems	8.89	1.23	7.2	8,586	5 to 9
MG 6MG 6 brake problems	18.5	2.59	7.1	5,526	8 to 11
Mercedes-Benz CitanMercedes-Benz Citan brake pipe replacement Mercedes-Benz Citan brake problems	9.05	1.31	6.8	80,122	3 to 12
Isuzu D-MaxIsuzu D-Max brake pipe replacement Isuzu D-Max brake problems	9.48	1.43	6.6	134,777	3 to 13
Chevrolet SparkChevrolet Spark brake pipe replacement Chevrolet Spark brake problems	28.2	4.29	6.5	59,796	9 to 15
SsangYong KorandoSsangYong Korando brake problems	9.38	1.50	6.2	31,615	3 to 12
MG 3MG 3 brake problems	3.72	0.70	5.2	81,125	3 to 11
SsangYong RextonSsangYong Rexton brake problems	4.69	0.91	5.1	9,823	3 to 9
Suzuki CelerioSuzuki Celerio brake pipe replacement Suzuki Celerio brake problems	4.66	0.90	5.1	110,627	3 to 10
Dacia DusterDacia Duster brake pipe replacement Dacia Duster brake problems	5.02	1.00	5.0	274,804	3 to 12
SsangYong TivoliSsangYong Tivoli brake problems	3.94	0.79	5.0	27,007	3 to 9
Ford TransitFord Transit brake pipe replacement Ford Transit brake problems	18.8	3.91	4.8	1,227,954	3 to 25
Isuzu TFIsuzu TF brake problems	22.7	4.79	4.7	6,237	11 to 14
Mitsubishi ASXMitsubishi ASX brake pipe replacement Mitsubishi ASX brake problems	9.64	2.15	4.4	116,909	3 to 15

Read this with care. A fail rate is not a measure of build quality. How far cars are driven, how they are used and how well owners maintain them all change it, and wear items such as tyres and brake pads are common fails. Compare a model only with cars of the same age. Methodology and limits.

Repair and cost

The usual repair is brake pipe replacement.

No public source records the price of this whole job, and the time it takes varies from car to car, so we do not publish a single figure. Garages charge by the hour, so ask for a quote that lists labour time and parts. The rates below are what UK garages charge per hour.

Local garage labour, per hour (65 shops)£78

Local garage, middle half£70 to £96

Main dealer labour, per hour (62 shops)£156

Main dealer, middle half£144 to £174

Median hourly rate charged for car repairs, from 1,058 local garage and 953 main dealer price quotes collected by the ONS, September 2025 to August 2026. The same shops are priced each month, so the number of shops is the real sample.

Brake pipe replacement: cost and the models that need it more often

Related MOT defects

Brake disc worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened8.74 per 100
Brake pad(s) wearing thin7.61 per 100
Brake disc worn, but not excessively2.30 per 100
Brake pad(s) less than 1.5 mm thick1.85 per 100
Service brake binding but not excessively1.59 per 100
Parking brake efficiency below requirements1.14 per 100
Service brake excessively binding0.82 per 100
Flexible brake hose has slight corrosion to ferrule0.78 per 100
Service brake fluctuating, but not excessively0.69 per 100
Brake disc significantly and obviously worn0.58 per 100

All brakes defects All MOT defects Car repair costs

Buying a used car?

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Source

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data, class 4 normal MOT tests, 2022 to 2025, and the MOT inspection manual published on GOV.UK. Prices: ONS consumer price inflation price quotes, September 2025 to August 2026, UK.

MOT data updated 28 September 2026. Prices updated 22 September 2026.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by DVSA or the Office for National Statistics. How we calculate these figures · Data sources