MOT defect file
Play in the steering
Last updated
Quick answer
Excess movement has been found in the steering system. Needs diagnosis to identify which joint or rack is responsible.
- Typical cost
- £150–£600
- DIY viability
- Garage job
What you might notice
- A dead area at the top of the steering — the wheel moves an inch or two before the car does anything
- Constant small corrections needed to hold a straight line on the motorway
- Knocking, or a notchy feel through the wheel, over rough surfaces and on full lock
- A whine from the power steering pump, or a wet patch under the front of the car after it has been parked overnight
What causes it
- Worn track rod ends or inner rack joints, which is the usual answer on a high-mileage car
- Wear in the steering rack itself, either at the pinion bearing or the rack bush
- A worn universal joint or a loose pinch bolt in the steering column shaft
- Split rack gaiters letting grit and water into the rack, which causes precisely the wear that gets found later
Advisory or failure?
The tester measures free play at the steering wheel rim with the road wheels straight ahead. On a rack-and-pinion system, which is what almost every modern car uses, more than about 13mm of movement at the rim before the road wheels respond is a major defect; older steering-box systems are allowed noticeably more, assessed as a proportion of the steering wheel diameter. Slight play below the threshold is a minor defect. It escalates to dangerous where a component is likely to separate, where a retaining device is missing or fractured, or where the play is severe enough that steering control could be lost. Related items are graded separately — a split rack gaiter, a leaking rack and a low power steering fluid level each have their own place in the inspection, and a gaiter that no longer keeps contamination out is a failure in itself.
Can you fix it yourself?
Garage job
Finding the play is the hard part. It takes two people and a ramp — one rocking the wheel while the other watches each joint in turn from underneath — and the tester's sense of what counts as excessive comes from having done it thousands of times. Track rod ends are within reach of a competent home mechanic; a steering rack is not, because it usually means dropping a subframe, bleeding the system and setting the geometry precisely afterwards. Every repair in this area has to be followed by a proper alignment, and anything with a specified torque or a locking device must be done to the book.
What it costs
A track rod end is £15 to £35 in parts with under an hour of labour, so a pair plus a four-wheel alignment lands around £150 to £250, the bottom of the band. Inner rack joints and column universal joints sit in the middle. What takes you to the top is the rack itself: £150 to £350 for a new or reconditioned unit, three to five hours of labour and alignment on top, and more again for an electrically assisted rack where the motor and control unit are integral and may need coding to the car. Expect a diagnostic charge of £50 to £80 first, because working out which joint is responsible is most of the job.
What happens if you ignore it
Steering play grows, and the components it comes from do not fail gracefully — a track rod end that separates removes your ability to steer that wheel at all. Short of that, the vagueness makes the car tiring and less predictable to place, particularly in crosswinds and at motorway speed, and the wandering geometry scrubs tyres out fast enough to pay for the repair on its own. Where the play has been graded dangerous, the car should not be driven until it is fixed; using it in that condition carries a fine and penalty points.
This is general guidance, not a diagnosis. The severity DVSA records depends on the specific fault found, so the same item can appear as an advisory on one test and a failure on another. Ask a qualified tester or mechanic to inspect the vehicle.
Has this been recorded on your car?
Check the full MOT history for any UK registration.