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Volkswagen Transporter seat belts and airbags problems

DVSA MOT tests 2022–2025 · 78,853 MOT tests · Updated

At 6 years, 0.8 in 100 MOT tests of the Volkswagen Transporter failed on seat belts and airbags, against 0.4 for all class 4 vehicles the same age (all test years; 78,853 MOT tests) [1].

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  • Against all class 4 vehicles the same age: fails 2.1–2.4× as often as all class 4 vehicles the same age (all test years), 641 MOT tests with a fail
  • By age: seen at 23 ages from 3 to 25 years, 1,135,020 MOT tests
  • MOT tests at 6 years: 78,853 for the Volkswagen Transporter

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

What the MOT tests show

What we know

0.8 fails per 100 MOT tests at 6 years, against 0.4 for all class 4 vehicles tested at 6 (all test years). The Volkswagen Transporter fails more often here.

Why it matters

A seat belts and airbags fail stops the car passing until it is fixed.

What to check

Pull every seat belt out fully and let it retract, check each buckle latches and releases, and make sure the airbag light goes out after start-up.

The Volkswagen Transporter 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 Transporter seat belts and airbags fails by age

Volkswagen Transporter seat belts and airbags fails per 100 MOT tests by ageSolid line: the Volkswagen Transporter. Dashed line: all cars the same age. The table below lists every value.01233 years: 0.7 per 100 (all cars 0.3), 63,918 MOT tests34 years: 0.6 per 100 (all cars 0.3), 71,475 MOT tests5 years: 0.7 per 100 (all cars 0.3), 73,400 MOT tests56 years: 0.8 per 100 (all cars 0.4), 78,853 MOT tests7 years: 0.8 per 100 (all cars 0.4), 78,401 MOT tests78 years: 1.1 per 100 (all cars 0.5), 74,570 MOT tests9 years: 1.2 per 100 (all cars 0.6), 69,159 MOT tests910 years: 1.4 per 100 (all cars 0.7), 61,476 MOT tests11 years: 1.5 per 100 (all cars 0.9), 55,678 MOT tests1112 years: 1.5 per 100 (all cars 1.0), 50,231 MOT tests13 years: 1.7 per 100 (all cars 1.2), 44,819 MOT tests1314 years: 1.6 per 100 (all cars 1.5), 45,003 MOT tests15 years: 1.8 per 100 (all cars 1.7), 46,430 MOT tests1516 years: 1.9 per 100 (all cars 2.1), 46,962 MOT tests17 years: 2.2 per 100 (all cars 2.5), 47,883 MOT tests1718 years: 2.5 per 100 (all cars 2.7), 44,453 MOT tests19 years: 2.5 per 100 (all cars 2.9), 37,867 MOT tests1920 years: 2.7 per 100 (all cars 3.1), 32,891 MOT tests21 years: 2.9 per 100 (all cars 3.1), 29,310 MOT tests2122 years: 3.2 per 100 (all cars 3.1), 24,948 MOT tests23 years: 3.4 per 100 (all cars 3.2), 22,028 MOT tests2324 years: 3.1 per 100 (all cars 3.2), 19,236 MOT tests25 years: 3.6 per 100 (all cars 3.3), 16,029 MOT tests25
Fails per 100 MOT tests by age, all first-use years pooled. Volkswagen Transporter All class 4 vehicles the same age Shaded: over 18 years, survivors only.
AgeMOT testsFails per 100All class 4 vehicles the same age
363,9180.70.3
471,4750.60.3
573,4000.70.3
678,8530.80.4
778,4010.80.4
874,5701.10.5
969,1591.20.6
1061,4761.40.7
1155,6781.50.9
1250,2311.51.0
1344,8191.71.2
1445,0031.61.5
1546,4301.81.7
1646,9621.92.1
1747,8832.22.5
1844,4532.52.7
19*37,8672.52.9
20*32,8912.73.1
21*29,3102.93.1
22*24,9483.23.1
23*22,0283.43.2
24*19,2363.13.2
25*16,0293.63.3

All first-use years of the Volkswagen Transporter 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 seat belts and airbags at 6 years

Advisories (not fails)

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By engine and fuel

  • 2.0 diesel: 0.8 per 100 at 6 years, fails 1.7–2.0× as often as diesel class 4 vehicles the same age (all test years; 77,615 MOT tests)
  • 1.9 diesel: 1.9 per 100 at 16 years, fails less often than diesel class 4 vehicles the same age (0.7–0.8×) (all test years; 27,374 MOT tests)
  • 2.5 diesel: 2.2 per 100 at 17 years, about average for diesel class 4 vehicles the same age (all test years; 20,009 MOT tests)

How to check on a test drive

Pull every seat belt out fully and let it retract, check each buckle latches and releases, and make sure the airbag light goes out after start-up.

The most common advisory here in MOT records: Seat belt condition: buckle slightly damaged.

Check one Volkswagen Transporter, not the average

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

Other Volkswagen Transporter problems

Seat belts and airbags on rival models

Questions people ask

Does the Volkswagen Transporter have more seat belts and airbags problems than other cars?

2.1 to 2.4 times the seat belts and airbags fail rate of all class 4 vehicles the same age at 6 years (all test years), from 78,853 MOT tests. The interval is clear of 1.2 in the same direction at 11 of the 23 ages seen (ages up to 18 with at least 100 MOT tests with a fail).

How common are Volkswagen Transporter seat belts and airbags problems?

0.8 in 100 MOT tests at 6 years failed on seat belts and airbags, against 0.4 for all class 4 vehicles the same age (all test years; 78,853 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, 1,135,020 MOT tests. 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