Common problems

Citroen Nemo common problems

What MOT testers find on the Citroen Nemo: the parts that fail or get advisories most often at each age, against all cars of the same age. From 57,536 DVSA MOT tests taken 2022 to 2025.

MOT data updated 28 September 2026

At 13 years, the most tested age

Suspension fails per 100 MOTs (n=7,800)21.7

All cars at 13 years (n=6,612,160)14.9

Tyres advisories and minor defects per 100 MOTs (n=7,800)32.4

All cars, same age (n=6,612,160)28.1

What stands out

Suspension fails show up on 21.7 of every 100 MOTs of a Citroen Nemo at 13 years old (n=7,800), against 14.9 for all cars of that age (n=6,612,160).
Brakes fails are less common: 7.0 per 100 MOTs against 9.1 for all cars at the same age.
The fail item testers record most often at 13 years: coil spring broken, on 7.8 per 100 MOTs (all cars 4.1).
The most common advisory or minor defect: tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge, on 21.2 per 100 MOTs.

Problems by part at 13 years

How many of every 100 MOTs found a fail, or an advisory or minor defect, in each area. A test with faults in two areas counts in both.

Citroen Nemo at 13 years (n=7,800) against all cars at 13 years (n=6,612,160). Per 100 MOTs.
Area	Fails	All cars	Advisories	All cars
Suspension	21.7	14.9	30.6	27.9
Lights and electrics	18.4	17.0	16.4	10.8
Tyres	9.1	7.3	32.4	28.1
Windscreen, wipers and mirrors	9.1	5.6	10.1	4.7
Brakes	7.0	9.1	16.8	25.0
Body and structure	6.0	5.0	8.8	8.0
Exhaust, emissions and leaks	5.6	4.3	16.5	8.2
Steering	3.0	2.9	6.5	3.5
Seat belts and airbags	2.2	1.2	1.3	0.7
Number plates and VIN	0.4	0.4	3.2	3.4
Road wheels	0.3	0.5	0.9	1.3

What testers fail most on the Nemo at 13 years

Fail items on the Citroen Nemo at 13 years (n=7,800), per 100 MOTs, with all cars at the same age (n=6,612,160).
Item	Area	Per 100 MOTs	All cars	Typical repair (estimate)
Coil spring broken	Suspension	7.8	4.1	£64 to £236 per spring (rough guide)
Shock absorbers: has an excessively worn bush	Suspension	5.0	0.2	£122 to £484 per axle (pair) (rough guide)
Side/position light not working	Lights and electrics	4.3	4.8	£10 to £47 per lamp
Tyre tread below 1.6 mm	Tyres	4.1	3.0	£88 to £145 per tyre
Washers: provides insufficient washer liquid	Windscreen, wipers and mirrors	3.6	2.0	£2 to £14 per car (rough guide)
Brake light not working	Lights and electrics	3.2	3.1	£10 to £47 per lamp
Tyre with cords exposed	Tyres	2.9	1.8	£88 to £145 per tyre
Registration plate lamp(s): inoperative in the case of a single lamp or all lamps	Lights and electrics	2.6	1.8	£10 to £47 per lamp
Shock absorber leaking	Suspension	2.6	1.5	£122 to £484 per axle (pair) (rough guide)
Wipers not clearing screen	Windscreen, wipers and mirrors	2.4	2.1	£15 to £30 per blade

Early warnings: advisories and minor defects at 13 years

Advisories and minor defects are recorded, but the car still passes. Across all cars, a part with an advisory or minor defect failed at the next MOT 5.5 times in 100 (n=88,666,940 pairs of consecutive MOTs), against 0.3 times in 100 when the same part had none (n=12,936,860,350).

Advisories and minor defects on the Citroen Nemo at 13 years (n=7,800), per 100 MOTs, with all cars at the same age (n=6,612,160).
Item	Area	Per 100 MOTs	All cars	If it needs replacing (estimate)
Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge	Tyres	21.2	18.2	£88 to £145 per tyre
Engine oil leaks: leak, but not excessive	Exhaust, emissions and leaks	14.6	7.2
Tyre condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing	Tyres	12.2	9.1	£88 to £145 per tyre
Windscreen: damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view	Windscreen, wipers and mirrors	7.3	2.9
Coil spring: corroded	Suspension	7.2	5.6
Registration plate lamp(s): inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources	Lights and electrics	6.8	5.2
Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened	Brakes	6.8	10.6	£148 to £376 per axle (rough guide)
Suspension arm pins and bushes: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement	Suspension	5.9	8.0	£92 to £237 per arm (rough guide)
Shock absorbers: has light misting of oil	Suspension	5.7	4.0	£122 to £484 per axle (pair) (rough guide)
Shock absorbers: has a slightly worn bush	Suspension	5.1	0.5	£122 to £484 per axle (pair) (rough guide)

Repair estimates are a guide for an independent garage: labour at the national median local garage rate (median £78 an hour from 65 garages, ONS price quotes) times estimated labour hours, plus a parts band. Labour hours and most parts bands are estimates, not quotes, and prices vary by model, engine and region. A warning light fault shows the cost of the diagnosis only.

How problems change with age

Fails per 100 MOTs in the three most common areas at 13 years. Ages with fewer than 1,000 tests are not shown.
Age	Tests (n)	Suspension	Lights and electrics	Tyres
6 years	1,758	13.9	12.7	10.2
7 years	3,616	18.1	13.7	9.8
8 years	5,139	20.1	14.5	10.6
9 years	6,134	20.9	15.1	9.7
10 years	6,485	21.9	16.7	9.4
11 years	5,940	21.3	16.6	9.5
12 years	6,792	20.1	17.6	8.6
13 years	7,800	21.7	18.4	9.1
14 years	6,596	22.3	20.5	9.6
15 years	4,866	22.9	21.9	9.3
16 years	2,410	22.5	23.5	9.2

Mileage

At 13 years, Citroen Nemo cars showing 60,000 to 90,000 miles failed 40.6% of MOTs (n=1,874); the band that failed most, over 150,000 miles, failed 48.3% (n=1,180). For pass and fail rates by age, see Citroen Nemo MOT fail rates.

What to check on a viewing

On the Citroen Nemo, testers most often record coil spring broken; shock absorbers: has an excessively worn bush; side/position light not working. Look at these first, then the areas below.

Suspension

Listen for knocks or clonks over speed bumps and rough roads on the test drive.
Push down hard on each corner: the car should settle at once rather than keep bouncing.
Look behind the wheels for broken or heavily rusted coil springs and split rubber bushes.
Check that the car sits level and that no tyre is worn on one edge only.

Lights and electrics

With someone outside, try every light: dipped and main beam, indicators, brake lights, fog lights and number plate lamps.
Check that the warning lights come on with the ignition and go out once the engine runs.
Look for misted, cracked or yellowed headlamp lenses.

Tyres

Check the tread across the full width of all four tyres, and the spare if there is one.
Look for cuts, bulges and cracking in the sidewalls.
Wear on one edge only can point to worn suspension or the tracking being out.

Ask for the car's MOT history and service record: advisories that repeat from one year to the next show what has been left. GOV.UK MOT history.

Questions

What are the most common problems on the Citroen Nemo?

At 13 years, the age with the most MOT tests (7,800), the fail items testers record most often on the Citroen Nemo are coil spring broken (7.8 per 100 MOTs), shock absorbers: has an excessively worn bush (5.0 per 100 MOTs), side/position light not working (4.3 per 100 MOTs). The most common advisories or minor defects are tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge (21.2) and engine oil leaks: leak, but not excessive (14.6).

Which parts of the Citroen Nemo fail more often than on other cars?

At 13 years: suspension (21.7 per 100 MOTs against 14.9 for all cars); windscreen, wipers and mirrors (9.1 per 100 MOTs against 5.6 for all cars); tyres (9.1 per 100 MOTs against 7.3 for all cars). Compared with 6,612,160 MOTs of all cars the same age.

Citroen Nemo problems by area

Other Citroen models

All Citroen models · Common problems by make

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.

The all cars figures cover all class 4 vehicles (cars and light vans) tested at the same age.

Looking at a Citroen Nemo?

These figures describe the model, not the car in front of you. Found one you might buy? See what the VetTheCar Buying Report covers, or use the tools that work without a registration.

See a sample report Car tools · MOT fail rates by model · Compare models by MOT record

Repair estimates: ONS consumer price quotes for local garage labour (09/2025 to 08/2026), the MOT inspection manual for defect wording, and estimated labour hours and parts bands. Not affiliated with or endorsed by ONS.

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