2010 Peugeot 308 1.4L Petrol · SP60 LCW

A sixteen-year-old Peugeot 308 carrying roughly 115,000 miles presents a mechanical story shaped less by the pass or fail stamps and more by the persistent pattern of advisories clustering around its suspension, braking and exhaust components. The most recent recorded test on 22 August 2022 returned a pass, but it carried forward an exhaust gas leak advisory first noted just four days earlier on a failed re-test. Going further back, the 2021 test cycle flagged both rear brake calipers binding and cracking in the tread area of all four tyres, while the 2020 failure involved excessive wear at both the offside front suspension arm ball joint and the anti-roll bar ball joint. A 2019 failure for an offside rear passenger door that could not be opened from outside rounds out a record that, while not catastrophic, demonstrates the kind of accumulated wear typical of a front-wheel drive family hatchback approaching the end of its working life, with steering and suspension joints, brake actuation and exhaust sealing all demanding attention at roughly the same intervals. Against an age of sixteen years, the recorded annual mileage of around 7,185 miles sits broadly in line with the UK average for a vehicle of this vintage, neither indicating exceptionally light use nor sustained high-mileage running. The testing history does, however, reveal notable scheduling inconsistencies: the 2022 pass and fail occurred only four days apart, the 2021 pass and fail share an identical date of 18 August, and the 2020 cycle shows a similar five-day gap. These tight clusters suggest the vehicle has been kept largely roadworthy but is subject to the kind of last-minute rectification runs typical of older cars where one failing item prompts an immediate retest. There are no multi-year gaps suggesting a long lay-up, and the consistent year-on-year testing indicates continuous registration and use, which mechanically means steady wear on consumables rather than the corrosion and seal degradation often seen in stored vehicles. For a prospective buyer, the steering and front suspension components flagged in the 2020 failure should be the primary inspection focus, even though the later tests did not re-examine them. The track rod end ball joint cited as having excessive play on the nearside in August 2022 and the offside front arm and anti-roll bar ball joints from 2020 are wear items that typically deteriorate again over a few years, so a thorough test drive should include firm braking over speed humps, sharp side-to-side steering inputs at low speed, and listening for clonking or knocking from the front end over uneven roads. Any looseness felt through the steering wheel, uneven tyre wear on the inner or outer edges, or inconsistent self-centring would warrant further investigation of the replacement condition of those joints, since they are critical for both handling and MOT compliance. The braking and tyre advisories from 2021 are equally relevant to a current evaluation. Binding rear brake calipers, even when noted as not excessive, can progress into more serious uneven wear, pulling under braking, or overheating, so the rear brakes should be felt for smooth release and the discs checked for hot spots or lipping during a physical inspection. The cracked rear tyres from the 2022 failure cycle and the cracked front tyres from 2021 will by now have been replaced at least once, but their repeated occurrence points to age-related perishing rather than impact damage, suggesting the wheels and arches may be worth examining for any corrosion that could affect future tyre seating. Finally, the persistent exhaust leak advisory across both 2022 tests indicates an aging system likely to need replacement or repair before the next MOT, and a cold-start inspection should include a listen for ticking or hissing from joints and gaskets before any commitment is made.