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MOT fail rates

Mercedes-Benz C-Class MOT fail rate by age

How often the Mercedes-Benz C-Class fails its MOT at each age, compared with all cars of the same age, and what it fails on. From 1,528,968 DVSA MOT tests taken 2022 to 2025.

MOT data updated

At 7 years, the most tested age

MOT fail rate at age 7 (n=143,293)17.5%
All cars at 7 years (n=10,537,318)20.6%
Median mileage at test59,602
All cars, median mileage52,953

131 of 330 model groups with enough tests fail less often at 7 years.

What stands out

  • At 3 years the Mercedes-Benz C-Class fails 11.8% of MOTs (49,103 tests), about the same as the 12.1% for all cars that age. At 25 years it fails 29.5% (3,584 tests), 6.8 points below the 36.3% average.
  • The gap is widest at 25 years: 6.8 points below all cars.
  • Its most common structural or mechanical fail item at 7 years: Suspension ball joint worn, at 2.6 per 100 MOTs.

MOT fail rate by age

3 years 25 years 47.6%

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

Mercedes-Benz C-Class: 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 years11.8%49,10312.1%−0.2 pts23,572 miles
4 years11.9%72,95613.4%−1.5 pts31,685 miles
5 years13.7%105,97615.3%−1.6 pts40,035 miles
6 years15.6%133,03217.8%−2.2 pts49,369 miles
7 years17.5%143,29320.6%−3.1 pts59,602 miles
8 years19.2%140,05523.8%−4.5 pts69,035 miles
9 years21.7%124,54227.1%−5.4 pts78,741 miles
10 years25.2%115,49830.3%−5.1 pts86,740 miles
11 years28.6%101,79433.3%−4.6 pts93,336 miles
12 years31.0%90,09336.0%−5.0 pts99,135 miles
13 years32.7%78,67738.3%−5.6 pts104,549 miles
14 years34.3%66,17840.3%−6.0 pts109,011 miles
15 years36.1%59,51741.6%−5.5 pts111,638 miles
16 years37.9%56,40142.6%−4.7 pts114,309 miles
17 years39.4%51,77743.1%−3.7 pts115,081 miles
18 years41.0%43,29943.3%−2.2 pts114,505 miles
19 years41.8%33,76443.2%−1.4 pts112,812 miles
20 years40.8%24,53042.8%−2.0 pts109,649 miles
21 years40.6%15,88342.1%−1.5 pts104,831 miles
22 years39.1%9,23841.0%−1.9 pts100,526 miles
23 years35.3%5,61839.6%−4.4 pts98,853 miles
24 years32.8%4,16037.8%−5.0 pts102,983 miles
25 years29.5%3,58436.3%−6.8 pts107,398 miles

Most common fail items at 7 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
Suspension ball joint worn Major2.6
Coil spring broken Major1.9
Malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction Major1.3
Malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction Major1.3

Out of 143,293 MOTs. A test with two faults counts twice.

Wear and upkeep

Fail itemPer 100 MOTs
Tyre tread below 1.6 mm Dangerous4.9
Tyre with cords exposed Dangerous2.2
Tyre condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Major1.7
Brake pads under 1.5 mm Dangerous1.3
Headlamp aim: too low Major1
Washers: provides insufficient washer liquid Major0.8

Out of 143,293 MOTs. A test with two faults counts twice.

Other models at 7 years

ModelMOT fail rateTests (n)All cars
Mercedes-Benz A-Class19.4%148,48920.6%
Mercedes-Benz E-Class16.8%87,92520.6%
Mercedes-Benz Gla17.5%48,99320.6%

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
199825 years in 202328.9%1,14336.3%
199924 years in 202330.7%1,03937.8%
200124 years in 202536.4%1,08737.8%
200223 years in 202536.1%2,03639.6%
200322 years in 202540.8%3,66641.0%
200421 years in 202541.3%5,40742.1%
200520 years in 202539.9%7,34142.8%
200619 years in 202540.7%8,83543.2%
200718 years in 202537.9%11,52443.3%
200817 years in 202535.8%13,30443.1%
200916 years in 202535.2%12,77342.6%
201015 years in 202533.6%12,94041.6%
201114 years in 202532.2%18,98740.3%
201213 years in 202532.3%25,93838.3%
201312 years in 202530.0%23,62436.0%
201411 years in 202524.7%25,36233.3%
201510 years in 202521.9%34,23030.3%
20169 years in 202519.5%36,81927.1%
20178 years in 202518.3%39,74723.8%
20187 years in 202516.1%28,52020.6%
20196 years in 202514.3%24,85717.8%
20205 years in 202514.2%10,21715.3%
20214 years in 202512.9%6,77013.4%
20223 years in 202510.8%5,01012.1%

More on the Mercedes-Benz C-Class

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 Mercedes-Benz C-Class?

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