So had my 2014 SD4 in for a service a few days ago and the garage (indie) said both front wheel bearings have play and have a bit of grinding (to be fair I have noticed a drone when driving) and one rear shock absorber looks like it has leaked until dry. I would never have known about the shock.

They have quotes for both bearings and one shock, saying the other didn’t need replaced. My understanding was you should always do the whole axle. So they have now quoted for both.

My question is, are either of those points MOT fails? It’s due it’s MOT next month and after my brake disaster last month I could do without spending just over £800 on this. I’d do it at some point but not rush into it if it wasn’t going to affect the MOT.

Cheers. FL2 TD4 GS 60 reg Facelift - tailgate paint issues, fuel gauge rewire, transfer box failure at 36k miles, clutch at 60k
Reconditioned diff at 70k ish
Sold at 84k and now on a DS. Terribly unreliable.
Sold DS for a 2021 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV. Fingers crossed....
Sold Outlander for a 2014 SD4 SE Tech because I’m mental
Now greatly regret selling the Outlander. MPG of the FL2 is atrocious and so are the fuel bills. Fun though 😎

A lot depends on the MOT tester, a small amount of play is passable on the bearings, as for the shock if its dry then the damping effect will be gone so a fail would result. If the Indi you took it to doe's MOTs ask them if they would pass it???

What one tester would pass on another might fail its all down to the person carrying out the test.

Cheapest option I would do is replace the one shock to get it pass MOT and deal with the other bits ASAP. 2013 FL2 XS.
Defender 90 300 TDi.
Defender 90 300 TDi CSW.
1964 MGB Roadster.
1944 Willys MB "Jeep" with bullet holes. (gone)
17 hand Irish Drought Thoroughbred (mostly lame)
Nagging Old Boiler.

That’s what I figured - it’s a bit of a gamble. Might just need to bite the bullet, or at least the credit card will. Could get him to do the MOT afterwards as well. FL2 TD4 GS 60 reg Facelift - tailgate paint issues, fuel gauge rewire, transfer box failure at 36k miles, clutch at 60k
Reconditioned diff at 70k ish
Sold at 84k and now on a DS. Terribly unreliable.
Sold DS for a 2021 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV. Fingers crossed....
Sold Outlander for a 2014 SD4 SE Tech because I’m mental
Now greatly regret selling the Outlander. MPG of the FL2 is atrocious and so are the fuel bills. Fun though 😎

I changed both my rear shocks last year.
Got Bilsteins from Autodoc. Good service.

Not the easiest shocks to change. The top nut is accessed from inside the boot - need to remove a fair bit of trim and keeping the same position is awkward when bolting back up - as shock/strut position alters the wheel geometry a bit.
rear
I had a 4 wheel alignmnet and both rear wheels needed resetting.

Why cant they do it like VAG cars - where the shock top bracket is unbolted from inside the wheel arch - much simpler. Maybe something to do with the suspension travel. Jules

I won’t be doing it myself. After the drama that should have been simple pad changes, I’m not messing with something like the shocks! FL2 TD4 GS 60 reg Facelift - tailgate paint issues, fuel gauge rewire, transfer box failure at 36k miles, clutch at 60k
Reconditioned diff at 70k ish
Sold at 84k and now on a DS. Terribly unreliable.
Sold DS for a 2021 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV. Fingers crossed....
Sold Outlander for a 2014 SD4 SE Tech because I’m mental
Now greatly regret selling the Outlander. MPG of the FL2 is atrocious and so are the fuel bills. Fun though 😎

Shocks should changed in pairs. I did mine at 125k miles, as the nearside was leaking, of course I only spotted it a week before the MOT.
Wheel bearing play will pass, if it's still in spec, but bearing noise or roughness is a fail.
Definitely do both rear shocks, and have 4 wheel alignment done afterwards, leaving the boot side trims off for the alignment is also a good move, as access to the top plate is needed for the alignment. Hyundai Ioniq 5 Ultimate. The replacement for the SE.
2009 Rimini Red SE TD4. Almost sold.
2006 Tonga Green i6 HSE. Gone.