Common problems

Volvo C70 common problems

What MOT testers find on the Volvo C70: the parts that fail or get advisories most often at each age, against all cars of the same age. From 30,662 DVSA MOT tests taken 2022 to 2025.

MOT data updated 28 September 2026

At 16 years, the most tested age

Suspension fails per 100 MOTs (n=4,385)18.9

All cars at 16 years (n=4,858,625)17.1

Tyres advisories and minor defects per 100 MOTs (n=4,385)31.4

All cars, same age (n=4,858,625)28.4

What stands out

Tyres fails show up on 10.4 of every 100 MOTs of a Volvo C70 at 16 years old (n=4,385), against 7.5 for all cars of that age (n=4,858,625).
Lights and electrics fails are less common: 16.2 per 100 MOTs against 20.4 for all cars at the same age.
The fail item testers record most often at 16 years: driveshaft CV boot split, on 8.4 per 100 MOTs (all cars 2.9).
The most common advisory or minor defect: tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge, on 22.0 per 100 MOTs.

Problems by part at 16 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.

Volvo C70 at 16 years (n=4,385) against all cars at 16 years (n=4,858,625). Per 100 MOTs.
Area	Fails	All cars	Advisories	All cars
Suspension	18.9	17.1	31.3	33.7
Lights and electrics	16.2	20.4	13.7	15.3
Brakes	11.5	11.6	23.1	29.5
Tyres	10.4	7.5	31.4	28.4
Body and structure	10.2	7.6	11.1	12.6
Windscreen, wipers and mirrors	4.2	6.8	3.9	5.7
Exhaust, emissions and leaks	3.7	6.2	4.8	12.0
Steering	3.0	3.4	2.1	4.6
Seat belts and airbags	1.5	2.1	0.5	1.1
Road wheels	1.0	0.6	2.8	1.5
Number plates and VIN	0.3	0.6	2.8	4.8

What testers fail most on the C70 at 16 years

Fail items on the Volvo C70 at 16 years (n=4,385), per 100 MOTs, with all cars at the same age (n=4,858,625).
Item	Area	Per 100 MOTs	All cars	Typical repair (estimate)
Driveshaft CV boot split	Body and structure	8.4	2.9	£88 to £196 per boot (rough guide)
Coil spring broken	Suspension	8.2	3.9	£64 to £236 per spring (rough guide)
Handbrake too weak	Brakes	4.7	2.5
Tyre with cords exposed	Tyres	4.4	1.8	£88 to £145 per tyre
Shock absorber leaking	Suspension	4.3	1.6	£122 to £484 per axle (pair) (rough guide)
Side/position light not working	Lights and electrics	3.7	5.9	£10 to £47 per lamp
Suspension arm bush worn	Suspension	3.6	2.2	£92 to £237 per arm (rough guide)
Headlamp aim: too low	Lights and electrics	2.5	1.7	£16 to £39 per car (rough guide)
Dipped headlight not working	Lights and electrics	2.3	2.4	£18 to £86 per lamp
Malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction	Exhaust, emissions and leaks	2.3	1.9	diagnosis from £39 (rough guide)

Early warnings: advisories and minor defects at 16 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 Volvo C70 at 16 years (n=4,385), per 100 MOTs, with all cars at the same age (n=4,858,625).
Item	Area	Per 100 MOTs	All cars	If it needs replacing (estimate)
Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge	Tyres	22.0	18.2	£88 to £145 per tyre
Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened	Brakes	11.6	11.2	£148 to £376 per axle (rough guide)
Suspension arm pins and bushes: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement	Suspension	10.5	8.7	£92 to £237 per arm (rough guide)
Tyre condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing	Tyres	7.4	9.5	£88 to £145 per tyre
Brake pads: wearing thin	Brakes	7.2	6.8	£72 to £174 per axle (rough guide)
Drive shaft joints: constant velocity boot severely deteriorated	Body and structure	7.1	3.5
Coil spring: corroded	Suspension	7.0	7.4
Registration plate lamp(s): inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources	Lights and electrics	6.8	5.9
Shock absorbers: has light misting of oil	Suspension	5.8	4.1	£122 to £484 per axle (pair) (rough guide)
Linkage ball joints: ball joint has slight play	Suspension	4.9	2.7	£33 to £102 per link (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 16 years. Ages with fewer than 1,000 tests are not shown.
Age	Tests (n)	Suspension	Lights and electrics	Brakes
11 years	1,032	13.2	8.7	5.9
12 years	1,796	12.2	11.2	6.6
13 years	2,489	16.1	13.9	7.2
14 years	3,362	17.5	15.1	8.8
15 years	4,096	18.1	15.2	10.8
16 years	4,385	18.9	16.2	11.5
17 years	3,749	16.9	15.8	13.1
18 years	3,203	15.7	15.8	14.0
19 years	2,425	15.2	16.0	13.0
20 years	1,688	13.0	13.9	11.2
21 years	1,414	12.4	12.0	9.8
22 years	1,023	10.8	13.2	11.0

Mileage

At 16 years, Volvo C70 cars showing 60,000 to 90,000 miles failed 41.0% of MOTs (n=1,252); the band that failed most, 90,000 to 120,000 miles, failed 45.7% (n=1,313). For pass and fail rates by age, see MOT fail rates by model.

What to check on a viewing

On the Volvo C70, testers most often record driveshaft CV boot split; coil spring broken; handbrake too weak. 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.

Brakes

On the test drive the car should stop in a straight line without pulling, juddering or grinding.
Look at the discs through the wheels for a deep lip, heavy rust or scoring.
Check that the handbrake or electronic parking brake holds the car on a slope.
Ask when the pads, discs and brake fluid were last changed, and for the receipts.

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 Volvo C70?

At 16 years, the age with the most MOT tests (4,385), the fail items testers record most often on the Volvo C70 are driveshaft CV boot split (8.4 per 100 MOTs), coil spring broken (8.2 per 100 MOTs), handbrake too weak (4.7 per 100 MOTs). The most common advisories or minor defects are tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge (22.0) and brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened (11.6).

Which parts of the Volvo C70 fail more often than on other cars?

At 16 years: tyres (10.4 per 100 MOTs against 7.5 for all cars); body and structure (10.2 per 100 MOTs against 7.6 for all cars); suspension (18.9 per 100 MOTs against 17.1 for all cars). Compared with 4,858,625 MOTs of all cars the same age.

Volvo C70 problems by area

Other Volvo models

All Volvo 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 Volvo C70?

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