2009 Ford Focus 2.5L Petrol · AM09 APX

A seventeen year old Ford Focus with this MOT profile tells a story of front running gear and brake consumables slowly working through their service life, rather than any single catastrophic failure. The most recent test on 20 March 2025 returned a clean pass with no advisories recorded, but this clean sheet must be read against what came immediately before. The 2023 pass carried a cluster of advisories covering rear brake disc wear, rear brake pad thinning, a non-excessive front oil leak, and both front tyres approaching the legal limit on their edges. That pattern suggests the front end geometry, braking performance, and underbonnet sealing were all beginning to demand attention at that mileage, even though nothing was yet at failure threshold. The 2022 test then noted a slight grease weep from the offside front CV gator, and by March 2021 the offside outer CV boot had split completely and was recorded as a Major failure item, with the inner boots on both sides also leaking. In short, the record shows a vehicle that has passed every annual test in this window but with a recurring thread of front axle and brake deterioration that an inspector has been flagging for at least three consecutive years. With 95,734 miles accumulated over roughly seventeen years, the average annual mileage of around 5,600 is notably low for a car of this vintage, and that usage profile carries its own mechanical implications. Lower annual mileage often means more short journeys and longer standing periods between drives, both of which accelerate corrosion on undersealed components, dry out rubber boots and bushes, and encourage brake disc surface corrosion through lack of regular heavy braking. Conversely, the total distance covered is still substantial in absolute terms, so wear related components such as suspension linkages, wheel bearings, exhaust hangers, and engine mountings will have accumulated considerable fatigue cycles even at this modest annual rate. There are no significant gaps in the recorded testing history, with an MOT recorded every year from 2020 through 2025, which means the vehicle has not been laid up off the road for any extended undocumented period and the mileage progression can be treated as broadly continuous. For a prospective buyer, the immediate priorities on inspection mirror the exact components the MOT history has been flagging. On a test drive, listen for a rhythmic clonking or clicking from the front wheels over full lock or during tight turns, which would indicate worn or perished CV joints following the boot failures noted in 2021, and feel for any vibration through the steering wheel that could point to an imbalanced or worn inner joint. The brakes should be tested with a firm 60 to 30 mph stop from a moderate speed: any judder through the pedal or steering column suggests the rear discs flagged as pitted in 2023 have reached the point of replacement, and a pulling sensation to one side under braking may indicate a binding caliper or uneven pad wear. On a visual check, inspect the offside and nearside front CV boots for fresh grease residue or cracking, look under the car for any signs of oil misting or drips consistent with the front oil leak advisory, and run a hand around the inside and outside shoulders of both front tyres to confirm even wear, as the 2023 advisories for both edges being worn suggest the tracking may still be drifting out of specification. The remaining checks should focus on the secondary wear items that this age and mileage would normally begin to surface, even though the MOT record has not yet flagged them. Jack the car and rock each front wheel top and bottom to detect play in the strut top mounts or front wishlist bushes, and side to side for worn suspension arm joints, all of which are common Focus weak points once the odometer passes six figures. Inspect the exhaust system from the manifold rearwards for rust perforation, paying particular attention to the flexi section and rear mounting, and check the underside for any bubbling corrosion around the suspension subframe mounting points and brake pipe runs, as salt exposure over seventeen winters will have worked on these areas regardless of recorded mileage. Finally, confirm that the front tyre wear pattern noted in 2023 has not returned by inspecting the current tyres closely, and verify that the rear brake pads and discs have been refreshed since the 2023 advisory, as these are the components most likely to be approaching their next service interval on a car of this age and accumulated distance.