2005 Toyota Prius 1.5L Petrol · KB05 FXH

The 2005 Toyota Prius passed its most recent MOT on 9 June 2025 at 126,353 miles, but the record reveals a maintenance trend that is neither stable nor fully resolving. Three advisories were issued at that latest test: a rear tyre showing damage, cracking or perishing, a rear brake pipe corroded and contaminated with grease or other material, and a rear suspension component mounting area corroded though not yet excessive. These are not new problems in isolation. The same rear brake pipe corrosion and rear tyre deterioration were flagged in the November 2021 test at 105,585 miles, meaning these issues have persisted or recurred across roughly 20,768 miles of use. The pattern suggests a vehicle that has been kept on the road without fully addressing underlying corrosion or rubber degradation, particularly at the rear axle. The mileage accumulation tells a fairly consistent story. Between the April 2023 test at 106,996 miles and the July 2024 test at 115,265 miles, the car covered 8,269 miles in fifteen months. From July 2024 to June 2025, it added 11,088 miles in eleven months, indicating a modest uptick in use. The annualised average of roughly 6,017 miles over the vehicle's twenty-one-year life is unremarkable for a Prius of this vintage, and the record shows no suspicious gaps or sudden jumps that would suggest odometer tampering or prolonged storage. The underseal noted in July 2024 may have been applied as a protective measure, yet corrosion advisories continued to appear regardless. A buyer should focus their physical inspection on the rear suspension mounting points, rear brake pipe condition, and the integrity of the rear tyres. The repeated corrosion findings on rear brake pipes, now accompanied by grease contamination, warrant close examination of the entire rear brake hydraulic circuit for pitting or weakened metal. The rear suspension component mounting area flagged in June 2025 needs probing with a torch and pry bar to determine whether surface corrosion has progressed to structural thinning. Given that both front coil springs were noted as corroded in 2021, a thorough check of all four springs for section loss or cracking is advisable, particularly if the car has been used on salted roads. Beyond the flagged items, the general underbody corrosion noted in 2021 and the recurring rear tyre perishing point to a vehicle that has not been garaged or meticulously protected from moisture. Inspect subframe mounting points, jacking points, and inner wing lower sections for corrosion that may not yet meet an MOT failure threshold but could become costly. The Prius hybrid system itself has no specific MOT record of concern here, but the overall corrosion trajectory suggests a car that has been maintained to a pass-and-use standard rather than a preventative care standard. Budgeting for rear brake pipe replacement, fresh rear tyres, and a detailed underbody rust treatment would be prudent before relying on this vehicle for regular use.