MOT fail rates by first-use year

2015 Volkswagen up! MOT fail rate and common faults

How Volkswagen up! cars first used in 2015 did at their MOTs from 2022 to 2025, against all cars of the same age. From 65,242 DVSA MOT tests of these cars. First use is usually the date the car was first registered.

MOT data updated 28 September 2026

At 10 years, tested in 2025

MOT fail rate at age 10 (n=16,327)22.4%

All cars at 10 years (n=9,049,507)30.3%

Difference−7.9 pts

MOT tests of 2015 cars, 2022 to 202565,242

What stands out

In 2025, at 10 years old, Volkswagen up! cars first used in 2015 failed 22.4% of MOTs (16,327 tests), 7.9 points below the 30.3% for all cars that age.
From 2022 to 2025, as these cars went from 7 to 10 years old, the fail rate moved from 18.7% to 22.4%.
Volkswagen up! cars first used a year earlier, in 2014, failed 22.2% at the same age of 10 years (21,606 tests, in 2024).
The most common fail item that is not a wear item, for the Volkswagen up! at 10 years, is service brake performance: excessively binding, at 1.8 per 100 MOTs (all cars: 0.7).

MOT fail rate by test year

Volkswagen up! cars first used in 2015: share of MOT tests that failed, by test year, against all cars of the same age. Years with fewer than 1,000 tests are not shown.
Test year	Age	MOT fail rate	Tests (n)	All cars	Difference
2022	7 years	18.7%	16,348	20.6%	−2.0 pts
2023	8 years	20.4%	16,295	23.8%	−3.3 pts
2024	9 years	22.4%	16,272	27.1%	−4.7 pts
2025	10 years	22.4%	16,327	30.3%	−7.9 pts

Most common faults at 10 years

These figures cover all Volkswagen up! MOTs at 10 years: cars first used 2012 to 2015, tested 2022 to 2025 (n=71,930). The list uses every first-use year so it has enough tests. Wear items (tyres, brake pads, wipers, bulbs) say more about upkeep than about the design.

MOT fail items

Fail item	Per 100 MOTs	All cars
Wipers not clearing screen Wear	2.1	1.8
Tyre tread below 1.6 mm Wear	1.8	2.7
Service brake performance: excessively binding	1.8	0.7
Registration plate lamp(s): inoperative in the case of a single lamp or all lamps Wear	1.7	1.2
Headlamp aim: too low Wear	1.5	1.2
Side/position light not working Wear	1.4	2.4
Fuel cap/sealing device: ineffective	1.4	0.1
Catalyst emissions: Lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits	1.1	0.4
Washers: provides insufficient washer liquid Wear	1.1	1.5
Coil spring broken	1.1	3.2

Per 100 of the MOTs above (n=71,930). A test with two items counts once for each.

Advisories

Advisory	Per 100 MOTs	All cars
Tyre tread close to the legal limit or worn on the edge Wear	13.2	17.0
Tyre condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing Wear	12.9	8.6
Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened	5.7	9.6
Suspension pin or bush worn, without excessive movement	4.3	5.8
Brake pads wearing thin Wear	3.7	8.1
Service brake performance: binding but not excessively	3.1	1.3
Non-component advisories: Play in steering rack inner joint(s)	2.1	1.3
Brake discs: worn, but not excessively	2.1	2.7
Tyre tread close to the legal limit, under the 1.0 mm rule Wear	1.6	2.2
Exhaust system: has a minor leak of exhaust gases	1.6	1.6

Per 100 of the MOTs above (n=71,930). A test with two items counts once for each.

Fuel type at 10 years

These figures cover all Volkswagen up! MOTs at 10 years: cars first used 2012 to 2015, tested 2022 to 2025 (n=71,930). Each fuel is set against all cars of the same fuel and age. Fuels with fewer than 1,000 tests are not shown.

Fuel	Share of tests	MOT fail rate	Tests (n)	All cars, same fuel	Median mileage
Petrol	99.8%	21.9%	71,779	29.5%	52,524 miles

Fail rate by mileage at 10 years

These figures cover all Volkswagen up! MOTs at 10 years: cars first used 2012 to 2015, tested 2022 to 2025 (n=71,930). At 10 years, Volkswagen up! cars at 120,000 to 150,000 miles failed more often (38.1%, n=1,046) than those at under 30,000 miles (12.3%, n=11,955). Bands with fewer than 1,000 tests are not shown.

Mileage at test	MOT fail rate	Tests (n)	All cars
Under 30,000 miles	12.3%	11,955	15.3%
30,000 to 60,000 miles	18.8%	31,979	24.7%
60,000 to 90,000 miles	27.3%	20,680	31.9%
90,000 to 120,000 miles	36.2%	5,764	35.3%
120,000 to 150,000 miles	38.1%	1,046	36.5%

Car tax rules for a 2015 car

Cars first registered from 1 March 2001 to 31 March 2017 are taxed by CO2 emissions band, from band A (the lowest emissions) to band M. The band is set by the CO2 figure on the V5C logbook.

These are the rules, not the amount for a specific car. Car tax check

ULEZ and clean air zones

Petrol cars first registered from 2006 usually meet Euro 4, the petrol standard for the London ULEZ, so they usually do not pay the daily charge.
The clean air zones in Birmingham and Bristol use the same Euro 4 petrol and Euro 6 diesel standards. The low emission zones in Scotland use them too, but enforce them with fines, not a daily charge.

The Euro standard of the car decides, not the year alone. ULEZ checker

Other years of the Volkswagen up!

2014 Volkswagen up!2016 Volkswagen up!

Other Volkswagen models first used in 2015

Model	Age at test	MOT fail rate	Tests (n)	All cars
Volkswagen Golf (2015)	10 years in 2025	18.1%	67,274	30.3%
Volkswagen Polo (2015)	10 years in 2025	28.1%	51,485	30.3%
Volkswagen Tiguan (2015)	10 years in 2025	25.1%	19,887	30.3%
Volkswagen Passat (2015)	10 years in 2025	22.9%	15,288	30.3%
Volkswagen Scirocco (2015)	10 years in 2025	26.3%	5,391	30.3%
Volkswagen Touareg (2015)	10 years in 2025	23.0%	4,125	30.3%
Volkswagen Touran (2015)	10 years in 2025	27.6%	3,849	30.3%
Volkswagen Beetle (2015)	10 years in 2025	31.9%	3,272	30.3%

More on the Volkswagen up!

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.

Found one you might buy? Vet the specific car.

These figures describe 2015 Volkswagen up! cars as a group, not any one car. The VetTheCar Buying Report looks at the car you are buying: its MOT history, what similar cars did next, and what to ask the seller.

See an example Buying Report All 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 28 September 2026.

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

Car tax and clean air zone rules are summarised from GOV.UK and Transport for London guidance. They are general rules and are not drawn from the MOT data.