The decision guides: repair or scrap, what a car is really worth, and how to read an MOT fail sheet without panicking.
Last updated: July 2026. Figures checked against gov.uk, DVSA data and the named UK sources on 8 July 2026. Around 27% of cars fail their MOT at the first attempt (DVSA, April–June 2026), and most failures are cheap: lamps, tyres and suspension top the list. A fail is usually a repair bill, not a death … Read more
Last updated: July 2026. Every figure on this page was checked against the named UK sources on 8 July 2026. Caught before failure, a wet belt change is £800–£1,200 and almost always worth doing. After failure, engine damage can push bills past £4,000 (Honest John), and on most affected cars that fails every repair-value test. … Read more
Last updated: July 2026. Every figure on this page was checked against the named UK sources on 8 July 2026. A head gasket replacement averages £721 in the UK and can pass £2,000 on hard cases, and unlike a clutch, the repair does not always restore the car’s full value. This is the failure where … Read more
Last updated: July 2026. Every figure on this page was checked against the named UK sources on 8 July 2026. Gearbox repairs average £330 in the UK; replacements run from £500 for a manual to £5,000 for some automatics. The spread is so wide that the diagnosis (repairable fault or dead box) decides the question … Read more
Last updated: July 2026. Every figure on this page was checked against the named UK sources on 8 July 2026. The working rule: if a repair costs more than half to two-thirds of what the car is worth, it is usually not worth doing. That is the threshold insurers themselves use: the AA cites “around … Read more
Last updated: July 2026. Every figure on this page was checked against the named UK sources on 8 July 2026. A clutch replacement costs £400–£670 on average in the UK: £1,083 if the flywheel goes too. On any car worth over roughly £1,500 with a sound flywheel, repairing usually wins; on a sub-£1,000 car needing … Read more
Last updated: July 2026. Intervals verified against the sources named below on 7 July 2026. Always confirm against your own service schedule. Ford’s official EcoBoost guidance says 10 years or 150,000 miles, but specialists now recommend 7–8 years or 80,000 miles. The Stellantis 1.2 PureTech interval has been cut to 6 years or 60,000–62,000 miles … Read more
Last updated: July 2026. Every engine on this list is confirmed by the sources named against it, checked 7 July 2026. We list nothing we could not verify. Wet belts are mainly a Ford and Stellantis story: the Ford 1.0 and 1.5 EcoBoost and 2.0 EcoBlue, and the earlier Peugeot/Citroën/Vauxhall/DS 1.0 and 1.2 PureTech. Honda’s … Read more