Buying Report · £14.99
Tools

Common problems by part

Volkswagen Caravelle lights and electrics problems

DVSA MOT tests 2022–2025 · 3,518 MOT tests · Updated

At 6 years, 3.1 in 100 MOT tests of the Volkswagen Caravelle failed on lights and electrics, against 4.7 for all class 4 vehicles the same age (all test years; 3,518 MOT tests) [1].

Buying Report £14.99 incl. VAT · one car · no subscription · Not a mechanical inspection.

  • Against all class 4 vehicles the same age: fails less often than all class 4 vehicles the same age (0.5–0.8×) (all test years), 108 MOT tests with a fail
  • When it starts: clear of 1.2 times from 25 years and at every older age seen
  • Most common fail: Headlamp aim: too low, 0.7 per 100 MOT tests

Figures are for the model as a whole, not for one car.

What the MOT tests show

What we know

3.1 fails per 100 MOT tests at 6 years, against 4.7 for all class 4 vehicles tested at 6 (all test years). The Volkswagen Caravelle fails less often here.

Why it matters

A lights and electrics fail stops the car passing until it is fixed; the most common one is rated major by DVSA.

What to check

Walk round with the lights, indicators, brake lights and hazards on (ask someone to press the pedal) and check every dashboard warning light goes out after starting.

The Volkswagen Caravelle is a commercial or van-based vehicle: it is compared with all class 4 vehicles, cars and vans together, so part of any difference can come from how vans are used.

Volkswagen Caravelle lights and electrics fails by age

Volkswagen Caravelle lights and electrics fails per 100 MOT tests by ageSolid line: the Volkswagen Caravelle. Dashed line: all cars the same age. The table below lists every value.010203 years: 1.9 per 100 (all cars 2.9), 2,174 MOT tests34 years: 2.3 per 100 (all cars 3.1), 2,716 MOT tests5 years: 2.2 per 100 (all cars 3.7), 3,188 MOT tests56 years: 3.1 per 100 (all cars 4.7), 3,518 MOT tests7 years: 3.4 per 100 (all cars 5.8), 3,364 MOT tests78 years: 4.7 per 100 (all cars 7.3), 3,360 MOT tests9 years: 4.7 per 100 (all cars 9.2), 3,086 MOT tests910 years: 6.4 per 100 (all cars 11.2), 2,854 MOT tests11 years: 8.0 per 100 (all cars 13.3), 2,832 MOT tests1112 years: 8.6 per 100 (all cars 15.4), 2,788 MOT tests13 years: 11.0 per 100 (all cars 17.0), 2,522 MOT tests1314 years: 13.7 per 100 (all cars 18.3), 2,247 MOT tests15 years: 19.2 per 100 (all cars 19.5), 2,193 MOT tests1516 years: 24.2 per 100 (all cars 20.4), 2,197 MOT tests17 years: 23.2 per 100 (all cars 21.0), 2,466 MOT tests1718 years: 24.9 per 100 (all cars 21.4), 2,413 MOT tests19 years: 23.9 per 100 (all cars 21.5), 2,385 MOT tests1920 years: 22.2 per 100 (all cars 21.2), 2,498 MOT tests21 years: 22.2 per 100 (all cars 20.6), 2,484 MOT tests2122 years: 20.8 per 100 (all cars 19.7), 2,499 MOT tests23 years: 20.2 per 100 (all cars 18.6), 2,335 MOT tests2324 years: 20.8 per 100 (all cars 17.2), 2,049 MOT tests25 years: 23.7 per 100 (all cars 16.3), 1,805 MOT tests25
Fails per 100 MOT tests by age, all first-use years pooled. Volkswagen Caravelle All class 4 vehicles the same age Shaded: over 18 years, survivors only.
AgeMOT testsFails per 100All class 4 vehicles the same age
32,1741.92.9
42,7162.33.1
53,1882.23.7
63,5183.14.7
73,3643.45.8
83,3604.77.3
93,0864.79.2
102,8546.411.2
112,8328.013.3
122,7888.615.4
132,52211.017.0
142,24713.718.3
152,19319.219.5
162,19724.220.4
172,46623.221.0
182,41324.921.4
19*2,38523.921.5
20*2,49822.221.2
21*2,48422.220.6
22*2,49920.819.7
23*2,33520.218.6
24*2,04920.817.2
25*1,80523.716.3

All first-use years of the Volkswagen Caravelle pooled at each age, against all class 4 vehicles at that age over all 2022–2025 test years. * Only survivors are still tested at this age.

What fails in the lights and electrics at 6 years

Fails

  • Headlamp aim: too low: 0.7 fails per 100 MOT tests, all class 4 vehicles 0.8. Adjust headlamp aim: estimated £16–£39 (0.2–0.5 h at £78/h (ONS local-garage repair quotes, 1,058 quotes from 65 garages, Sep 2025 to Aug 2026) + parts) Headlamp aim too low MOT fail

Advisories (not fails)

Adjust headlamp aim cost

Repair figures are estimates, not quotes: how we estimate repair costs.

Buying a Volkswagen Caravelle? Check that exact car before the viewing.

Buying Report £14.99 incl. VAT · one car · no subscription · Not a mechanical inspection.

  • Model risks for this year and fuel
  • What similar cars did at their next MOT
  • Repairs ahead
  • Viewing checklist

See a sample report

How to check on a test drive

Walk round with the lights, indicators, brake lights and hazards on (ask someone to press the pedal) and check every dashboard warning light goes out after starting.

The most common advisory here in MOT records: Rear reflectors: defective or damaged by up to 50% of the reflecting surface.

Check one Volkswagen Caravelle, not the average

The figures here describe Volkswagen Caravelle cars as a group. These free tools answer for one car. Each line says what the tool reads.

Other Volkswagen Caravelle problems

Lights and electrics on rival models

Questions people ask

Does the Volkswagen Caravelle have more lights and electrics problems than other cars?

0.5 to 0.8 times the lights and electrics fail rate of all class 4 vehicles the same age at 6 years (all test years), from 3,518 MOT tests. The interval is clear of 0.8 in the same direction at 8 of the 23 ages seen (ages up to 18 with at least 100 MOT tests with a fail).

How common are Volkswagen Caravelle lights and electrics problems?

3.1 in 100 MOT tests at 6 years failed on lights and electrics, against 4.7 for all class 4 vehicles the same age (all test years; 3,518 MOT tests).

What is the most common Volkswagen Caravelle lights and electrics fail?

0.7 in 100 MOT tests at 6 years: Headlamp aim: too low (26 MOT tests with it).

At what age do Volkswagen Caravelle lights and electrics fails start?

25 years: from then on the rate stays clear of 1.2 times all class 4 vehicles the same age at every age seen, 1,805 MOT tests.

Sources

  1. Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency, Anonymised MOT tests and results, 2022 to 2025. DVSA MOT data, Open Government Licence v3.0, 59,973 MOT tests. Accessed 7 Oct 2026.
  2. Office for National Statistics, Consumer price inflation, local price quotes (car repair items). ONS price quotes, series 610236. Accessed 7 Oct 2026.

Parts: against all class 4 vehicles at the same age, all 2022–2025 test years pooled, not adjusted for mileage. Breakdowns and non-MOT faults are not in this data. How we compare