2006 Toyota RAV4 2.0L Petrol · EY56 LHZ

A clear pattern of steering and anti-roll bar deterioration dominates the recorded history of this 2006 Toyota RAV4, with the situation culminating in a failed test on 1 December 2025 where the steering rack was deemed to have excessive free play to the extent that safe steering was affected, accompanied by dangerous wear on both steering rack inner joints and a dangerous offside rear tyre tear caused by structural separation. The December 2025 failure represents the third MOT failure within the available history, with previous failures in December 2024 and December 2023 both also flagging fractured or snapped anti-roll bar linkage components on the offside rear and nearside rear respectively, and the December 2024 test additionally recording play in the steering rack inner joints as an advisory just twelve months before it escalated to a dangerous defect. The progression from advisory to dangerous status on the steering components suggests ongoing deterioration rather than repair, and the recurring exhaust gas leaks recorded as advisories from 2020 through 2024 indicate a separate but persistent issue with the central exhaust system that has not been resolved across five consecutive tests. The advisory history also shows a persistent engine oil leak noted consistently from 2022 through 2024, alongside front brake disc wear and thinning front brake pads flagged in 2024, suggesting these consumable items were approaching the threshold for replacement at the most recent recorded test. With 111,199 miles recorded across approximately twenty years of age, the annual accumulation averages around 5,560 miles, which is notably low for a vehicle of this vintage and indicates either extended periods of limited use or extended standing between journeys. The MOT record shows testing concentrated in December of each year from 2020 onwards with no recorded tests prior to that, meaning the earlier life of the vehicle cannot be verified through DVSA records alone. Low annual mileage combined with a twenty-year-old vehicle raises legitimate concern regarding the condition of age-sensitive items such as rubber boots, bushes, seals, brake hoses, and the steering rack itself, since components that benefit from regular use to remain lubricated and flexible can deteriorate through dry standing rather than mechanical wear, which aligns with the pattern of brittle suspension bushes and perished dust covers seen in the 2023 and 2024 advisories on the front anti-roll bar ball joint. A prospective buyer should treat the steering rack and its inner joints as the primary inspection priority, since the dangerous finding in December 2025 implies the vehicle should not have been driven in that condition and any replacement or repair must be verified through documentation rather than assumed. On a test drive, listen and feel for clonking or knocking through the steering when traversing speed humps or potholes, watch for any wandering or inconsistent self-centring of the steering wheel, and check for excessive free movement at the steering wheel before the front wheels respond. The anti-roll bar linkages have failed on both rear sides and at least one front side across the history, so listen for body roll noise and clunks over uneven surfaces, and inspect the offside front and both rear anti-roll bar drop links and bushes for physical play by hand. The recurring central exhaust gas leak advisories mean the exhaust should be inspected for hissing sounds at idle and visible soot trails around joints, while the persistent engine oil leak should be checked by examining the underside of the engine and the surrounding components for fresh oil residue indicating an active leak rather than a dried historical stain. Given the dangerous tyre separation finding on the offside rear in December 2025, all four tyres and their age should be physically inspected, and the front brake discs and pads flagged as thinning in 2024 should be measured for remaining material given that two further years of use may have brought them closer to replacement.