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MOT minor defect explained

“Suspension arm ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated”

Recorded on 604 of the 25,257 cars checked on this site. Every time it was recorded as a minor defect.

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Cars with it
604
of 25,257 checked
Share of cars
2.4%
at least once
Recorded as
Minor defect
100% of 761 visits
Back next time
18%
of 584 follow-up visits

What it means

A rubber dust cover seals each suspension ball joint and keeps grit and water away from it. This entry means a cover was badly perished or damaged but was still doing its job at the time of the test.

It is a minor defect, which does not fail the car by itself. Once the cover is missing or no longer keeps dirt out, the entry is recorded as a major defect.

How it shows up in the records

Minor defect 100%
18% came back
The same entry, on the same part of the car, was recorded again at the next test in 18% of cases.
68,925 miles
Median recorded mileage when it first appeared, on cars a median of 8 years old. From the 148 cars whose whole MOT history is recent enough to compare.

Share of cars with this entry, by year of manufacture

0.0%1971–730.0%1980–823.1%1983–850.9%1986–882.4%1989–911.7%1992–943.2%1995–974.5%1998–004.5%2001–034.4%2004–064.9%2007–094.9%2010–122.8%2013–151.9%2016–180.3%2019–210.1%2022–24

Models where it is recorded most

ModelCars with itShareSame-age cars
Honda CR-V13 of 6420%3.1%
Bentley Arnage15 of 7719%4.5%
Nissan Qashqai46 of 34413%1.8%
Hyundai i1015 of 11313%2.8%
Hyundai i2011 of 8513%2.5%
Toyota Auris16 of 14311%3.1%
Mazda MX-58 of 849.5%3.6%
Kia Picanto8 of 1008.0%2.2%

Models with 20 or more cars checked here. “Same-age cars” is the share among all checked cars built in the same years, so an older model is compared with older cars.

What to check before you buy

  • Ask whether the joint or the cover has been replaced since the test. On many cars the joint is replaced as a unit with its cover.
  • Read the later MOT tests for the same corner. A deteriorated cover does not recover.
  • On a test drive over a rough road, listen for a knock from the corner named in the record.

Cars checked here with this entry

Other suspension entries explained

Suspension arm pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movementCoil spring fractured or brokenShock absorbers has light misting of oilCoil spring corrodedSuspension arm ball joint excessively wornSuspension arm ball joint has slight playAnti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirtAnti-roll bar linkage ball joint has slight playShock absorbers has a serious fluid leak

Checking a car with this on its MOT?

Repair costs depend on the car, so this page does not quote one. Enter the plate and the free report estimates them for that car, alongside every test and advisory on its record.

Check a car’s MOT history

Counts are of cars checked on this site, from official public records. Updated 22 Sept 2026 · figures as of 4 Oct 2026. All MOT entries explained.