Just bought used car. Worrying paperwork.

topcat105

Hi All,

We've just bought a 21 plate Toyota with a full 12 months MOT given by the dealer with only 1 advisory about 1 of the tyres.

On looking through the paperwork when we got home there is a visual safety report from Pinkstones dated 06/11/2025 with the following reports/suggested actions.

Clutch pedal bite point high. Possibly due to worn clutch.

Front brake pads approx 2-3mm remaining on inner pads.

Front brake discs worn lip to edges.

Why weren't these issues picked up when our MOT was done 8 months later when presumably they would have become worse ?

Should I be concerned ?

TiA for any advice. T

XRS200

Have they been sorted?

chrisw

Clutch isn't tested for MOT, brakes are working fine to pass MOT but will probably need changing in a few thousand miles, depending how it's driven.

The barakes are consumables and wouldn't worry me, but I'd be a bit concerned about the clutch and potential upcoming expense.

eschaton

Brakes can be picked up on a service but not be bad enough to feature on an MOT. Other things can also be picked up that might not be part of an MOT check. You need to bear in mind it’s a 5 year old car.

topcat105

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82065135#Comment_82065135

There is a note at the side of the page saying call on 01/02/2026 but no other paperwork afterwards so don't know if it was done or not.

Mildly_Miffed

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6675809/just-bought-used-car-worrying-paperwork

Mr MOT doesn't look at or care about clutch.

If you can't see whether the discs and pads are worn and lipped without removing the wheels… remove a wheel and have a look. Ten minutes to put your mind at rest.

Of course, there's a very good chance they've been replaced between then and now - but they're consumables anyway. It's a 5yo car…

QrizB

Regarding the clutch:

Clutch pedal bite point high. Possibly due to worn clutch.

You've driven the car. Do you think the clutch bite point is high?

facade

Some Toyotas have a clutch cable rather than trouble prone hydraulics.

These often need to be adjusted as the clutch wears or the bite point becomes higher. (In The Olden Days I recall Rover had some sort of automatic adjuster gizmo in the cable that never ever worked)

It could be one of those….

forgotmyname

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82065447#Comment_82065447

I have found the opposite over the years, cable clutches have caused me more grief than hydraulic ones.

Yes Rover used an auto adjust that mostly worked if clean but get dirt into it and it would release or fail to adjust but
older Fords had that silly plastic adjuster on the pedal that often stripped several teeth as it aged which then refused
to work at all.

facade

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82065468#Comment_82065468

Just whisper the words "plastic slave cylinder" to a BMW mini* owner ;)

Or "concentric slave cylinder" to anyone who has had one fail…….

(*BMW minis also have a "rustomatic ™" fluid pipe right under the engine, a dozen or so Winters subjected to corrosive salt and they let go when the clutch is down, usually in a traffic queue…)

Mildly_Miffed

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82065447#Comment_82065447

Problems with clutch hydraulics are almost always due to lack of maintenance - the fluid is simply never changed. Even if brake fluid has been changed regularly, people simply don't then bother bleeding the fluid through the clutch slave.

Even where slaves are plastic, rather than metal removing the internal-rusting angle, that mucky ancient fluid damages seals.

On the OP's 5yo car, this is a very unlikely scenario, even if the fluid is still the factory-fill.
However, could a clutch have been worn by a ham-footed previous owner in five years and an unspecified amount of mileage? Yes, absolutely.
Would a consumable such as this be a consumer rights issue? You'd have your work cut out.
Would finding 9mo paperwork that suggests that a subjectively-perceived high bite point might possibly be a worn clutch be a consumer rights issue? Absolutely not.