Repair costs

Anti-roll bar link replacement garage rates and how often MOTs call for it

What UK garages charge per hour, from ONS price quotes, and how often MOT tests fail on the items this repair fixes, from 130,233,413 DVSA MOT tests (2022 to 2025).

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

Garage labour rates

No public source records the price of this whole job, and the time it takes varies from car to car, so we do not publish a single figure.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.

MOT defects this repair fixes

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint has slight play1.18 per 100
Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt0.70 per 100
Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint excessively worn0.67 per 100
Anti-roll bar ball joint has slight play0.29 per 100
Anti-roll bar ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt0.29 per 100
Anti-roll bar ball joint excessively worn0.19 per 100

Records per 100 MOT tests at all ages (n=130,233,413 tests).

How often by age

All cars: 1.85 fail items per 100 MOTs that this repair fixes (n=130,233,413 tests), highest at 17 years with 4.61 per 100 (n=4,040,458). A test with two such items counts twice.

Fail items fixed by anti-roll bar link replacement, per 100 MOT tests of cars at each age.
Age	Per 100 MOTs	Tests (n)
3 years	0.079	8,016,463
4 years	0.13	8,699,937
5 years	0.19	9,425,360
6 years	0.30	10,382,720
7 years	0.50	10,537,318
8 years	0.77	10,440,457
9 years	1.12	9,949,012
10 years	1.61	9,049,507
11 years	2.28	8,087,514
12 years	3.06	7,303,151
13 years	3.68	6,612,160
14 years	4.08	6,054,526
15 years	4.39	5,591,675
16 years	4.60	4,858,625
17 years	4.61	4,040,458
18 years	4.50	3,261,622
19 years	4.12	2,479,858
20 years	3.70	1,845,952
21 years	3.19	1,321,417
22 years	2.63	913,980
23 years	2.15	619,531
24 years	1.62	428,815
25 years	1.21	313,355

Models that fail on these items more often

At least 1.3 times the rate of cars of the same ages and fuel, over ages with at least 1,000 tests each and 20,000 in total. Each generation of a model is compared on its own. 20 of these have their own page.

Model	Times as often	Tests (n)
Fiat Tipo	at least 6.9	49,704
Citroen C4 Picasso	at least 5.5	25,245
Vauxhall Grandland	at least 4.9	243,753
Vauxhall Viva	at least 4.0	154,054
Renault Captur	at least 3.2	597,036
Fiat 500X	at least 3.2	139,151
Jeep Renegade	at least 3.0	110,103
Nissan NV200	at least 2.9	122,396
Renault Trafic	at least 2.5	428,817
Mazda 5	at least 2.5	44,929
Citroen C4 Grand Picasso	at least 2.3	88,311
SsangYong Tivoli	at least 2.3	27,007
Mercedes-Benz GLA	at least 2.3	329,115
Vauxhall Vivaro	at least 2.3	739,286
Rover 75	at least 2.0	33,751
Renault Zoe	at least 1.9	74,266
Nissan Elgrand	at least 1.9	48,346
Mitsubishi ASX	at least 1.8	116,909
Suzuki Ignisfirst used 2016 or later	at least 1.7	86,194
SEAT Toledofirst used 2012 or later	at least 1.7	20,583
Mercedes-Benz CLA	at least 1.7	243,385
Peugeot 206	at least 1.7	211,511
Volkswagen Fox	at least 1.7	108,524
Hyundai Getz	at least 1.7	85,143
Volkswagen Touran	at least 1.7	302,847

19 more models

Model	Times as often	Tests (n)
Mazda Bongo	at least 1.6	35,066
SEAT Altea	at least 1.6	62,006
Citroen Xsara	at least 1.5	125,734
SsangYong Korando	at least 1.5	31,615
Mercedes-Benz CLC	at least 1.5	35,024
Peugeot 307	at least 1.4	140,556
Mazda 3	at least 1.4	435,738
Volkswagen Eos	at least 1.4	49,528
Toyota Estima	at least 1.4	63,559
Chevrolet Aveo	at least 1.4	36,812
Smart Forfourfirst used 2014 or later	at least 1.4	89,645
Nissan Qashqai	at least 1.4	2,264,112
Citroen C4	at least 1.3	557,142
Hyundai i30	at least 1.3	422,957
Audi A3	at least 1.3	1,697,772
Renault Grand Scenic	at least 1.3	98,535
Volkswagen Jetta	at least 1.3	56,076
Volkswagen Scirocco	at least 1.3	188,602
Nissan Primastar	at least 1.3	36,364

Models that fail on these items less often

At most 0.7 times the rate of cars of the same ages and fuel, on the same rules.

Model	Times as often	Tests (n)
Audi Q5	at most 0.6	422,669
Porsche 911	at most 0.6	174,386
Audi Q7	at most 0.7	191,601
BMW X1	at most 0.7	414,040
Land Rover Range Rover Sport	at most 0.7	498,033
Audi A6	at most 0.7	510,103

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.

Other repairs

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Headlight alignmentlabour rate
Coil spring replacementlabour rate
Wiper blade replacement£9.99 median
Handbrake repairlabour rate
Brake pad replacementlabour rate
Suspension ball joint replacementlabour rate
Headlight bulb replacement£3.99 median
Engine warning light diagnosislabour rate
Screenwash top-uplabour rate
Suspension arm bush replacementlabour rate
CV boot replacementlabour rate
Track rod end replacementlabour rate
Brake disc and pad replacementlabour rate
Shock absorber replacementlabour rate
Corrosion welding repairlabour rate
Binding brake repairlabour rate
Washer system repairlabour rate
Exhaust repair£212.09 median
Emissions fail repairlabour rate
Brake pipe replacementlabour rate
ABS warning light repairlabour rate
Airbag warning light repairlabour rate
Brake imbalance repairlabour rate
Wheel bearing replacementlabour rate
Tyre pressure sensor replacementlabour rate
Horn repairlabour rate
Number plate replacementlabour rate
Exhaust mounting repairlabour rate
Wheel nut or bolt replacementlabour rate
Steering rack gaiter replacementlabour rate
Brake efficiency repairlabour rate
Headlight mounting repairlabour rate
Headlight unit replacementlabour rate
Headlight lens restorationlabour rate
Swivel pin replacementlabour rate

All repair costs All MOT defects

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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