I know this is like asking how long a piece of string is, but here goes.

Car was MOTed today and failed. The brake light bulb i guess **** happens, it was ok yesterday.

But offside rear (around back plate) braking system leaking

Front (down pipe) exhaust has a major leak of exhaust gases

Rear brake application uneven

Offside rear parking brake recording little or no effort

Exhaust emits an excessive level of metered smoke for a turbo charged engine

Parking brake efficiency below requirements.

If it matters the rear is drum brakes.

I see two issues in that lot, i need a new exhaust which hopefully will also help with the emmisions, plus give the car a decent run to clean it out a bit.

And there seems to be something up with the rear offside drum brake? so i guess a fluid change at the very least.

Any idea what this lot is likely to cost to fix. And does anyone know a decent, cheap, garage in Cheltenham where i could get the work done.

Emissions problem could be down to a dodgy coolant temp sensor fooling the ecu into overfueling. One of the Lambda sensors could also be faulty. Best bet is to get someone with vagcom to do a diagnostic. Rear brake problem is probably the mechanism being siezed up, which might free up with stripping down & cleaning.

Edited 28 February, 201115 yr by pauldazzle

I think that you are looking at two rear wheel cylinders and a set of brake shoes for the rear, guessing at around 1.5 to 2 hours labour. It sounds as though there is fluid over the shoes acting as a lubricant, hence the little effort and parking brake readings.

The exhaust could be expensive, as they tend to rot around the cat, it might be weldable.

For the emissions, check, clean or change the air filter and give it a good run at higher engine speeds (assuming a diesel engine).