2009 Ford Mondeo 1.8L Diesel · ML59 FPN

A recurring pattern of rear suspension and exhaust wear defines the mechanical trajectory of this 2009 Ford Mondeo, with the issue crystallising at the 2020-11-16 test where the car was refused a certificate. That examination recorded four Majors, including both rear axle swivel pins and their bushes as excessively worn on the nearside and offside, a significantly worn front brake disc, a major exhaust leak, and an insecure nearside front inner constant velocity joint boot. By the most recent assessment on 2021-11-22 the vehicle did pass, but only after initially failing that morning over both headlamp beam images being obviously incorrect, a straightforward alignment defect rather than evidence of broader rectification. The intervening 2019 test had already flagged both rear trailing arm bushes as showing slight wear alongside a minor exhaust leak at the back box and centre pipe, so the 2020 Major exhaust leak and 2020 suspension failure represent the predictable progression of advisories left unaddressed. The overall trend is therefore one of deterioration in the rear axle sub-assembly and exhaust system rather than stable roadworthiness. Across the seven recorded tests spanning 2016 to 2021 the Mondeo has covered a substantial distance at a roughly typical annual rate of around 11,500 miles for its age, though the gap between the 2018 and 2019 tests combined with the heavy advisory and failure activity in 2019 and 2020 suggests the vehicle was in active service rather than laid up. Mileage of nearly 196,000 on a seventeen year old car places considerable cumulative demand on the powertrain, braking system, and chassis components, and this usage level is consistent with the wear pattern observed in the test record. The clustering of suspension, exhaust, and drivetrain defects during a period of high annual mileage is exactly what one would expect when consumables and load-bearing components reach the upper end of their service life. For a prospective buyer, the rear axle swivel pin and trailing arm bush defects flagged in 2019 and 2020 are the primary items requiring physical verification. With the bushes only noted as slightly worn in 2019 and then recorded as excessively worn on both sides less than twelve months later, any further deterioration since the 2021 pass is plausible and a workshop inspection of the rear axle assembly is strongly advisable. On a test drive, listen for clonking or knocking from the rear over uneven surfaces and during sharp direction changes, as worn trailing arm bushes and swivel pins typically generate audible impacts and can produce vague, wandering steering responses under load. Pay particular attention to whether the rear end feels settled or whether it shifts laterally on bumpy roads, and check both rear wheel arches and the trailing arms themselves for any surface corrosion that could be advancing the bush wear. The 2020 exhaust major leak and the persistent back box and centre pipe advisories also warrant close attention, as a leaking exhaust system that progressed from advisory to major in the space of one test is liable to have weakened pipework and joints throughout. From a cold start, listen for additional blowing, ticking, or fluttering sounds beneath the floor that intensify on the over-run, and check the centre pipe and rear box unions for black soot deposits indicating escaping gases. The 2020 front brake disc wear item should be confirmed resolved by measuring remaining disc thickness against the manufacturer minimum, while the previously split inner CV boot on the nearside front driveshaft requires a visual check under the inner joint for fresh grease leakage or re-securement of the boot clips. Finally, the headlamp aim failures on both sides in 2021 are easily verified by parking on level ground facing a wall and confirming a flat, sharp horizontal cut-off just below the bulb centre line, with any adjustment carried out using the vehicle's headlamp levelling mechanism rather than by lamp refit.