MOT fail rates

Mercedes-Benz Cla MOT fail rate by age

How often the Mercedes-Benz Cla fails its MOT at each age, compared with all cars of the same age, and what it fails on. From 243,385 DVSA MOT tests taken 2022 to 2025.

MOT data updated 22 September 2026

At 3 years, the most tested age

MOT fail rate at age 3 (n=39,186)13.8%

All cars at 3 years (n=8,016,463)12.1%

Median mileage at test25,945

All cars, median mileage22,806

235 of 343 model groups with enough tests fail less often at 3 years.

What stands out

At 3 years the Mercedes-Benz Cla fails 13.8% of MOTs (39,186 tests), 1.7 points above the 12.1% for all cars that age. At 12 years it fails 30.0% (2,095 tests), 6.0 points below the 36.0% average.
The gap is widest at 12 years: 6.0 points below all cars.
At 3 years its listed fail items are all wear items, led by Tyre condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords at 3.7 per 100 MOTs.

MOT fail rate by age

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

Mercedes-Benz Cla: share of MOT tests that failed, by age, against all cars. Ages with fewer than 1,000 tests are not shown.
Age	MOT fail rate	Tests (n)	All cars	Difference	Median mileage
3 years	13.8%	39,186	12.1%	+1.7 pts	25,945 miles
4 years	14.6%	35,418	13.4%	+1.2 pts	33,356 miles
5 years	16.4%	33,319	15.3%	+1.1 pts	41,261 miles
6 years	18.0%	33,041	17.8%	+0.2 pts	50,492 miles
7 years	20.5%	31,680	20.6%	−0.2 pts	60,551 miles
8 years	22.3%	27,549	23.8%	−1.5 pts	70,251 miles
9 years	24.2%	21,324	27.1%	−3.0 pts	78,130 miles
10 years	26.8%	13,326	30.3%	−3.5 pts	85,184 miles
11 years	28.1%	6,447	33.3%	−5.2 pts	91,174 miles
12 years	30.0%	2,095	36.0%	−6.0 pts	97,269 miles

Most common fail items at 3 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

None among the ten most common fail items.

Wear and upkeep

Fail item	Per 100 MOTs
Tyre condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Major	3.7
Tyre with cords exposed Dangerous	2.8
Tyre tread below 1.6 mm Dangerous	2.4
Wipers not clearing screen Major	1.3
Brake pads under 1.5 mm Dangerous	1.3
Headlight aimed too high Major	1.2
Headlamp aim: too low Major	0.9
Registration plates: does not conform to the specified requirements Major	0.8
Washers: provides insufficient washer liquid Major	0.6
Brake pads: worn down to wear indicator Major	0.5

Out of 39,186 MOTs. A test with two faults counts twice.

Other models at 3 years

Model	MOT fail rate	Tests (n)	All cars
Mercedes-Benz A-Class	11.0%	141,475	12.1%
Mercedes-Benz C-Class	11.8%	49,103	12.1%
Mercedes-Benz Glc	8.5%	44,615	12.1%

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 28 September 2026.

Latest MOT age with at least 1,000 tests for each first-use year.
First used	Age at test	MOT fail rate	Tests (n)	All cars
2013	12 years in 2025	30.0%	2,095	36.0%
2014	11 years in 2025	28.0%	4,302	33.3%
2015	10 years in 2025	26.3%	6,780	30.3%
2016	9 years in 2025	24.3%	7,641	27.1%
2017	8 years in 2025	23.1%	8,283	23.8%
2018	7 years in 2025	19.9%	8,442	20.6%
2019	6 years in 2025	16.5%	8,375	17.8%
2020	5 years in 2025	15.5%	8,017	15.3%
2021	4 years in 2025	13.9%	10,130	13.4%
2022	3 years in 2025	12.8%	11,841	12.1%

More on the Mercedes-Benz Cla

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 Cla?

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