MOT advisory · manual section 1.2.1

Service brake fluctuating, but not excessively

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)0.69

Most often at16 years

Times recorded892,396

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: Service brake excessively fluctuating.

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 1.2.1):

Excessive fluctuation in brake effort through each wheel revolution.

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	Service brake performance	fluctuating, but not excessively (1.2.1)	892,396

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 16 years: 1.05 per 100 MOTs (n=4,858,625 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	0.22	8,016,463
4 years	0.27	8,699,937
5 years	0.33	9,425,360
6 years	0.40	10,382,720
7 years	0.50	10,537,318
8 years	0.59	10,440,457
9 years	0.69	9,949,012
10 years	0.77	9,049,507
11 years	0.84	8,087,514
12 years	0.91	7,303,151
13 years	0.96	6,612,160
14 years	1.01	6,054,526
15 years	1.03	5,591,675
16 years	1.05	4,858,625
17 years	1.05	4,040,458
18 years	1.04	3,261,622
19 years	1.03	2,479,858
20 years	1.02	1,845,952
21 years	1.03	1,321,417
22 years	1.01	913,980
23 years	1.02	619,531
24 years	1.01	428,815
25 years	0.99	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
Skoda KamiqSkoda Kamiq brake problems	0.91	0.23	4.0	47,898	3 to 5
SsangYong TivoliSsangYong Tivoli brake problems	1.59	0.45	3.5	27,007	3 to 9
Skoda ScalaSkoda Scala brake problems	0.82	0.24	3.3	24,182	3 to 6
SEAT AronaSEAT Arona brake disc and pad replacement SEAT Arona brake problems	0.87	0.29	3.0	173,475	3 to 7
MG HSMG HS brake problems	0.57	0.21	2.7	45,337	3 to 5
Volkswagen T-CrossVolkswagen T-Cross brake disc and pad replacement Volkswagen T-Cross brake problems	0.67	0.24	2.7	75,652	3 to 6
Hyundai GetzHyundai Getz brake problems	2.54	0.95	2.6	85,143	14 to 22
Volvo V40first used before 2012Volvo V40 brake problems	2.50	1.01	2.4	15,100	18 to 24
Tesla Model 3	1.28	0.53	2.4	192,551	3 to 6
Citroen C3 AircrossCitroen C3 Aircross brake disc and pad replacement Citroen C3 Aircross brake problems	0.68	0.29	2.3	110,010	3 to 7
MG 3MG 3 brake problems	0.92	0.40	2.2	81,125	3 to 11
Nissan NV200Nissan NV200 brake problems	1.67	0.74	2.2	122,396	3 to 15
Vauxhall CrosslandVauxhall Crossland brake disc and pad replacement Vauxhall Crossland brake problems	0.63	0.28	2.2	229,410	3 to 8
MG ZSfirst used 2017 or laterMG ZS brake disc and pad replacement MG ZS brake problems	0.70	0.33	2.1	143,170	3 to 7
Tesla Model STesla Model S brake problems	1.80	0.86	2.0	41,739	3 to 10
Chevrolet SparkChevrolet Spark brake problems	1.70	0.82	2.0	59,796	9 to 15
Hyundai i40Hyundai i40 brake problems	1.33	0.71	1.8	85,833	4 to 13
Hyundai i800Hyundai i800 brake problems	1.11	0.60	1.8	32,058	3 to 14
SEAT MiiSEAT Mii brake problems	1.08	0.59	1.8	72,945	3 to 13
Kia OptimaKia Optima brake problems	0.92	0.51	1.8	45,012	3 to 12

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 disc and pad 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 disc and pad 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 pipe corroded, covered in grease or other material3.80 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
Brake pipe excessively corroded0.64 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