diff --git a/plugins/svn/svn.plugin.zsh b/plugins/svn/svn.plugin.zsh
index 4d5bfb8dd..d82e3b9ee 100644
--- a/plugins/svn/svn.plugin.zsh
+++ b/plugins/svn/svn.plugin.zsh
@@ -28,8 +28,8 @@ function svn_get_rev_nr {
 
 function svn_dirty_choose {
     if [ $(in_svn) ]; then
-        s=$(svn status|grep -E '^\s*[ACDIM!?L]' 2>/dev/null)
-        if [ $s ]; then 
+        svn status 2> /dev/null | grep -Eq '^\s*[ACDIM!?L]'
+	if [ $pipestatus[-1] -ne 0 ]; then
             echo $1
         else 
             echo $2