Buying Report · £14.99
Tools

MOT fail rates

Ford C-Max MOT fail rate by age

How often the Ford C-Max fails its MOT at each age, compared with all cars of the same age, and what it fails on. From 527,219 DVSA MOT tests taken 2022 to 2025.

MOT data updated

At 10 years, the most tested age

MOT fail rate at age 10 (n=49,589)27.8%
All cars at 10 years (n=9,049,507)30.3%
Median mileage at test72,360
All cars, median mileage75,043

146 of 309 model groups with enough tests fail less often at 10 years.

What stands out

  • At 3 years the Ford C-Max fails 16.2% of MOTs (3,049 tests), 4.1 points above the 12.1% for all cars that age. At 21 years it fails 46.1% (1,687 tests), 4.1 points above the 42.1% average.
  • The gap is widest at 20 years: 6.9 points above all cars.
  • Its most common structural or mechanical fail item at 10 years: Tyre pressure monitoring system: malfunctioning or obviously inoperative, at 2.7 per 100 MOTs.

MOT fail rate by age

3 years 21 years 54.6%

Solid line: this model. Dashed line: all cars at the same age.

Ford C-Max: share of MOT tests that failed, by age, against all cars. Ages with fewer than 1,000 tests are not shown.
AgeMOT fail rateTests (n)All carsDifferenceMedian mileage
3 years16.2%3,04912.1%+4.1 pts13,652 miles
4 years16.3%7,70713.4%+2.9 pts20,546 miles
5 years15.0%15,77115.3%−0.3 pts29,352 miles
6 years16.6%26,34817.8%−1.2 pts37,544 miles
7 years18.3%35,14820.6%−2.3 pts46,641 miles
8 years20.7%43,02723.8%−3.0 pts55,364 miles
9 years24.2%49,21327.1%−3.0 pts64,294 miles
10 years27.8%49,58930.3%−2.5 pts72,360 miles
11 years30.6%48,88533.3%−2.7 pts79,797 miles
12 years33.9%42,41836.0%−2.1 pts86,384 miles
13 years38.5%34,90138.3%+0.2 pts91,998 miles
14 years41.6%37,27040.3%+1.3 pts97,279 miles
15 years45.4%35,32041.6%+3.8 pts100,389 miles
16 years46.6%32,88042.6%+4.1 pts102,972 miles
17 years47.8%28,66143.1%+4.7 pts105,884 miles
18 years48.8%20,03943.3%+5.5 pts108,516 miles
19 years48.5%10,50043.2%+5.3 pts108,999 miles
20 years49.7%4,80642.8%+6.9 pts110,552 miles
21 years46.1%1,68742.1%+4.1 pts110,881 miles

Most common fail items at 10 years

Split into structural or mechanical items and wear items. Wear items (tyres, brake pads, wipers, bulbs) say more about upkeep than about the design.

Structural and mechanical

Fail itemPer 100 MOTs
Tyre pressure monitoring system: malfunctioning or obviously inoperative Major2.7
Suspension arm bush worn Major1.6

Out of 49,589 MOTs. A test with two faults counts twice.

Wear and upkeep

Fail itemPer 100 MOTs
Tyre tread below 1.6 mm Dangerous4
Brake pads under 1.5 mm Dangerous3.9
Brake light not working Major2.9
Wipers not clearing screen Major2.6
Tyre with cords exposed Dangerous2.4
Side/position light not working Major2.4
Tyre condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Major1.6
Headlamp aim: projected beam image is obviously incorrect Major1.5

Out of 49,589 MOTs. A test with two faults counts twice.

Other models at 10 years

ModelMOT fail rateTests (n)All cars
Ford Fiesta35.6%464,66230.3%
Ford Focus32.5%297,66430.3%
Ford Kuga27.3%76,03830.3%

MOT fail rate by first-use year

Each year has its own page: the fail rate for cars first used that year at each MOT from 2022 to 2025 with at least 1,000 tests, the most common faults at that age, and the car tax and ULEZ rules for that year.

First-use year data updated .

Latest MOT age with at least 1,000 tests for each first-use year.
First usedAge at testMOT fail rateTests (n)All cars
200421 years in 202545.9%1,52842.1%
200520 years in 202548.3%2,25342.8%
200619 years in 202547.2%3,61043.2%
200718 years in 202547.7%6,24743.3%
200817 years in 202546.7%8,98243.1%
200916 years in 202544.8%4,84742.6%
201015 years in 202543.9%5,45941.6%
201114 years in 202536.0%10,09540.3%
201213 years in 202536.4%10,61338.3%
201312 years in 202531.7%13,40036.0%
201411 years in 202530.6%12,46033.3%
201510 years in 202527.6%11,35130.3%
20169 years in 202522.2%10,63727.1%
20178 years in 202517.4%8,04823.8%
20187 years in 202519.9%4,82920.6%
20196 years in 202516.6%2,62717.8%

More on the Ford C-Max

Read this with care. A fail rate is not a measure of build quality. How far cars are driven, how they are used and how well owners maintain them all change it, and wear items such as tyres and brake pads are common fails. Compare a model only with cars of the same age. Methodology and limits.

Looking at one Ford C-Max?

These are figures for the model, not for one car. The VetTheCar Buying Report looks at a single car: its MOT tests, defects, advisories and mileage readings.

See an example report Browse the car tools

Source

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data, class 4 normal MOT tests, 2022 to 2025. MOT data updated 22 September 2026.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by DVSA. How we calculate these figures · Data sources