Common problems

Volvo V50 tyre problems

How often MOT testers find tyre faults on the Volvo V50 at each age, against all cars of the same age, and which items come up most. From 126,765 DVSA MOT tests taken 2022 to 2025.

MOT data updated 28 September 2026

At 14 years, the most tested age

Tyres fails per 100 MOTs (n=20,275)10.9

All cars at 14 years (n=6,054,526)7.5

Tyres advisories and minor defects per 100 MOTs (n=20,275)32.9

All cars, same age (n=6,054,526)28.4

What stands out

At 14 years, 10.9 of every 100 MOTs of the Volvo V50 found a tyre fail (n=20,275), against 7.5 for all cars of that age (n=6,054,526).
It is above the all-car rate at every age with at least 1,000 tests (11 ages).
The gap is widest at 20 years: 11.2 per 100 MOTs against 6.4 for all cars.
The tyre fail item recorded most often at 14 years: tyre with cords exposed, on 4.4 per 100 MOTs.
The most common tyre advisory or minor defect: tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge, on 24.4 per 100 MOTs.

Tyres fails by age

Solid line: this model. Dashed line: all cars at the same age.

Volvo V50: tyres fails and advisories per 100 MOTs, by age, against all cars. Ages with fewer than 1,000 tests are not shown.
Age	Tests (n)	Fails	All cars	Advisories	All cars
10 years	3,239	9.6	6.9	29.8	26.4
11 years	7,810	11.0	7.0	31.6	27.2
12 years	13,008	9.8	7.1	31.8	27.7
13 years	17,806	10.6	7.3	32.6	28.1
14 years	20,275	10.9	7.5	32.9	28.4
15 years	18,344	10.6	7.5	33.3	28.5
16 years	16,282	10.8	7.5	32.8	28.4
17 years	13,575	11.1	7.3	34.1	28.1
18 years	8,798	11.3	7.0	34.4	27.6
19 years	5,277	10.3	6.8	32.7	26.9
20 years	2,351	11.2	6.4	32.5	26.1

Tyres fail items at 14 years

Tyres fail items on the Volvo V50 at 14 years (n=20,275), per 100 MOTs, with all cars at the same age (n=6,054,526).
Item	Per 100 MOTs	All cars	Typical repair (estimate)
Tyre with cords exposed	4.4	1.8	£88 to £145 per tyre
Tyre tread below 1.6 mm	3.3	3.1	£88 to £145 per tyre
Tyre condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords	1.8	1.2	£88 to £145 per tyre

Tyres advisories and minor defects at 14 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).

Tyres advisories and minor defects on the Volvo V50 at 14 years (n=20,275), per 100 MOTs, with all cars at the same age (n=6,054,526).
Item	Per 100 MOTs	All cars	If it needs replacing (estimate)
Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge	24.4	18.4	£88 to £145 per tyre
Tyre condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing	6.7	9.3	£88 to £145 per tyre
Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge	3.0	2.4	£88 to £145 per tyre

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.

What to check on a viewing

On the Volvo V50, the tyre items testers fail most are tyre with cords exposed; tyre tread below 1.6 mm; tyre condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords.

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: a tyre advisory that repeats from year to year has not been fixed. GOV.UK MOT history.

Questions

What are the common tyre problems on the Volvo V50?

At 14 years (20,275 MOTs), the tyre fail items testers record most often are tyre with cords exposed (4.4 per 100 MOTs), tyre tread below 1.6 mm (3.3 per 100 MOTs), tyre condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords (1.8 per 100 MOTs). The most common tyre advisories or minor defects are tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge (24.4) and tyre condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing (6.7).

Does the Volvo V50 have more tyre problems than other cars?

At 14 years it has 10.9 tyre fails per 100 MOTs against 7.5 for all cars of the same age (3.4 more). It is above the all-car rate at every age with enough tests (11 ages).

What does a tyre repair cost on the Volvo V50?

For tyre with cords exposed, an independent garage estimate is £88 to £145 per tyre. This is a guide built from the national median garage labour rate and estimated labour hours, not a quote.

Tyre problems on other Volvo models

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 V50?

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.

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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