A week after my legacy passed its MOT test it started to lose a little brake fluid . I couldn't find out where it was going to and the brakes were working OK so I just kept it topped up . Then one night coming home from work I decided to make sure the ABS was OK as I do occasionally . On the first emergency stop it stopped OK . The second time the pedal went straight to the floor . I had virtually no brakes at all . Drove home very slowly and next day I looked for the fault . Found out that the plastic coated rear brake lines were completely rotten and one had burst . They could easily be seen from underneath the car , the coating having peeled off them and caked in flakes of rust . How did the MOT inspector miss them ? How did I miss them ??
Anyway I rang my mate who has been a scooby mechanic for 20 years to find out how to fit new pipes . He didn't know - has naver had to do it !! Ended up making up my own copper ones in situ on the car as the pipes have to be fed up over the top of the petrol tank ( very awkward as space is tight ) and the ends flared on them afterwards . To fit steel ones you have to remove the fuel tank - an even bigger headache .
So any of you checking their car for MOT check thier rear brake lines !