2013 Peugeot Premier 1.6L Diesel · SD63 FTC

The defining mechanical concern with this 2013 Peugeot Premier is a recent and fairly serious brake and drivetrain failure, only rectified three days before the current pass. On 18 November 2025 the vehicle was presented with rear brake pads worn below 1.5 mm, which the examiner classified as a Dangerous defect, alongside a Major failure for excessive wear in the offside front drive shaft joint. The subsequent pass on 21 November 2025 was recorded with no defects, which suggests the items were repaired promptly, but a buyer must treat that test result in context: this is a thirteen-year-old vehicle that very recently failed on safety grounds, and the components involved are subject to ongoing wear rather than one-off faults. Earlier history reinforces this caution, as the 2021 test saw both rear coil springs fail on the same day and an engine management malfunction indicator lamp failure was recorded in 2024, demonstrating that this car has produced genuine Major defects across separate systems within the last few years rather than a clean bill of health. Against a vehicle age of roughly thirteen years, the recorded 76,196 miles equates to approximately 5,861 miles annually, which is a notably modest accumulation rate and consistent with light, infrequent use rather than regular daily driving. There are no lengthy unexplained gaps in the testing record, with annual or near-annual MOT entries from 2021 onwards, indicating the car has remained in active use throughout its recorded life. Mechanically, lower annual mileage can reduce wear on high-mileage items such as the clutch, gearbox internals and certain engine components, but it often accelerates deterioration of items affected by age and standing rather than distance: rubber boots, drive shaft gaiters, suspension bushes, brake flexihoses and tyre sidewalls can all degrade through oxidation and UV exposure. The recorded advisories for perished tyres and a fractured rear coil spring are consistent with this pattern, where age-related rubber and metal fatigue have surfaced despite the modest odometer reading. Given the specific components flagged in the history, a prospective buyer should focus the inspection on the rear brake system and the offside front drivetrain. The recent Dangerous brake pad finding implies the caliper slide pins, carriers, handbrake mechanism and rear discs warrant close scrutiny; on a test drive, listen for any scraping noise from the back axle, check that the handbrake holds firmly on an incline, and feel for any pulling or judder under braking that might indicate a binding caliper or warped rotor following a pad replacement. For the drive shaft joint, the buyer should test the car through tight low-speed turns in both directions and listen for a distinct clicking or knocking from the offside front wheel area, as a recently replaced joint can still be incorrectly seated or the wrong grade fitted. The 2021 dual coil spring failure is also worth revisiting, as fractured springs on the same axle often point to a fatigued rear beam or weakened mounting points; firmly bounce each rear corner by hand and listen for any clonking over uneven surfaces that might indicate residual issues with the rear suspension geometry. The repeated tyre perishing advisories across multiple tests suggest that the rubber compound on this vehicle is ageing faster than mileage alone would cause, and any tyres still fitted from the original specification should be examined closely for sidewall cracking, bulges or uneven inner-edge wear. The steering rack inner joint play flagged in 2021 has not reappeared in the records, but it is worth checking for any slack or knocking through the steering wheel during slow manoeuvres, particularly over kerbs. Finally, the inoperative MIL from the 2024 failure should be verified by confirming the engine management warning lamp illuminates and extinguishes correctly on ignition; a permanently extinguished or sticky lamp could indicate a deeper electrical or sensor issue that the simple retest may not have captured. Taken together, the record shows a vehicle that has passed its current test but carries a genuine and recent history of component failures that any buyer should price into negotiation rather than overlook.