MOT statistics · Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz MOT failure rates by model, 2024–25
Our analysis of DVSA's anonymised MOT data covers 3,263,534 initial MOT tests on Mercedes-Benz vehicles in Great Britain in 2024 and 2025. 23.7% failed at the first attempt — 14% less often than vehicles of the same ages and fuel types, which failed 27.6%.
- initial tests analysed
- 3,263,534initial tests analysed
- failed at the first attempt
- 23.7%failed at the first attempt
- expected for the same age and fuel mix
- 27.6%expected for the same age and fuel mix
- typical age at the test
- 8 yrstypical age at the test
Fuel mix of the vehicles tested: 33% petrol, 63% diesel and 4% hybrid or electric. Mercedes-Benz is 9 of 34 makes with 100,000+ tests, ranked from least to most often failing against same-age vehicles — see the full table.
Mercedes-Benz MOT failure rate by age
Each age band compares Mercedes-Benz vehicles with all vehicles of exactly the same ages and fuel types, so the difference is not just a matter of how old they are. Bands with fewer than 1,000 tests are left out.
Mercedes-BenzCars of the same age and fuel (all makes)
| Age | Tests | Bars | Mercedes-Benz | Same age & fuel | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3–5 years | 733,214 | 13.5% | 15.2% | 11% lower | |
| 6–9 years | 1,213,643 | 20.1% | 23.4% | 14% lower | |
| 10–14 years | 746,274 | 29.9% | 35.5% | 16% lower | |
| 15–19 years | 407,321 | 37.1% | 42.9% | 13% lower | |
| 20–40 years | 163,082 | 33.3% | 39.5% | 15% lower |
What Mercedes-Benz vehicles fail on
The share of initial tests that failed in each defect category, against what vehicles of the same ages and fuel types would show. Mercedes-Benz vehicles failed noticeably more often on wheels & tyres, seat belts & other equipment and plates & VIN.
Mercedes-BenzCars of the same age and fuel (all makes)
| Category | Bars | Mercedes-Benz | Same age & fuel | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suspension & axles | 7.7% | 8.6% | 10% lower | |
| Wheels & tyres | 7.6% | 6.8% | 12% higher | |
| Lights & electrics | 6.3% | 10.3% | 39% lower | |
| Brakes | 5.6% | 6.5% | 14% lower | |
| Visibility, glass & wipers | 3.0% | 4.3% | 29% lower | |
| Emissions, noise & leaks | 2.9% | 3.1% | About the same | |
| Body, structure & corrosion | 1.6% | 3.3% | 52% lower | |
| Seat belts & other equipment | 1.1% | 1.0% | 13% higher | |
| Steering | 0.7% | 1.9% | 63% lower | |
| Plates & VIN | 0.4% | 0.3% | 15% higher |
Categories are our grouping of DVSA's defect sections. A dash means too few failures in that category to compare.
Mercedes-Benz MOT failure rates by model
Every Mercedes-Benz model with at least 1,000 initial tests for a fuel type, most-tested first. “Same age & fuel” is the rate vehicles of the same ages and fuel types failed at; “Difference” is how far the model is from it.
| Model | Tests | Typical age | Failure rate | Same age & fuel | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C-ClassCommon problems & recalls | 723,756 | 10 yrs | 25.7% | 30.1% | 14% lower |
| A-Class | 680,414 | 7 yrs | 22.1% | 23.9% | 7% lower |
| E-Class | 463,590 | 9 yrs | 22.8% | 29.2% | 22% lower |
| GLA | 168,211 | 6 yrs | 16.4% | 19.9% | 17% lower |
| Vito | 167,670 | 9 yrs | 33.5% | 30.0% | 11% higher |
| GLC | 151,718 | 6 yrs | 13.6% | 19.4% | 29% lower |
| B-Class | 140,773 | 10 yrs | 27.7% | 30.8% | 9% lower |
| CLA | 122,452 | 6 yrs | 20.1% | 20.5% | About the same |
| SLK | 110,810 | 15 yrs | 28.2% | 37.6% | 24% lower |
| M-Class (ML) | 61,640 | 13 yrs | 28.2% | 37.7% | 24% lower |
| GLE | 57,801 | 6 yrs | 12.8% | 20.2% | 35% lower |
| CLK | 53,504 | 19 yrs | 37.4% | 41.9% | 10% lower |
| S-Class | 51,399 | 9 yrs | 17.0% | 29.9% | 42% lower |
| Sprinter | 47,417 | 12 yrs | 29.8% | 33.4% | 10% lower |
| CLS | 45,454 | 11 yrs | 26.0% | 33.2% | 20% lower |
| SL | 41,492 | 19 yrs | 17.1% | 34.7% | 50% lower |
| Citan | 39,053 | 7 yrs | 40.0% | 24.1% | 64% higher |
| V-Class | 34,095 | 7 yrs | 24.0% | 27.1% | 10% lower |
| SLC | 17,824 | 7 yrs | 14.4% | 20.0% | 26% lower |
| CLC | 16,471 | 15 yrs | 44.0% | 41.3% | About the same |
| EQC | 12,417 | 3 yrs | 14.7% | 12.0% | 17% higher |
| GLB | 11,771 | 3 yrs | 11.0% | 14.8% | 21% lower |
| X-Class | 7,505 | 5 yrs | 19.7% | 18.9% | About the same |
| EQA | 7,019 | 3 yrs | 9.3% | 11.7% | 14% lower |
| GL | 6,213 | 11 yrs | 20.0% | 35.3% | 41% lower |
| G-Class | 6,052 | 6 yrs | 13.4% | 21.6% | 34% lower |
| CL | 5,911 | 18 yrs | 21.7% | 40.0% | 43% lower |
| GLS | 4,772 | 6 yrs | 13.6% | 20.3% | 28% lower |
| R-Class | 3,487 | 14 yrs | 30.3% | 40.3% | 21% lower |
| AMG GT | 2,843 | 7 yrs | 7.1% | 20.0% | 59% lower |
Model names are as recorded at the MOT, grouped by us; a few are conversions built on a Mercedes-Benz base vehicle. “Typical age” is the median age of the vehicles tested.
How to read these figures
- They are MOT outcomes, not a reliability rating, and describe groups of vehicles — never one car.
- How vehicles are used and maintained shows up as much as how they were built: vans, taxis and high-mileage fleet vehicles fail more often than second cars.
- The comparison is with vehicles of the same age and fuel type, not the same mileage.
- Differences are the conservative end of a 95% confidence interval. Full methodology.
Looking at one Mercedes-Benz?
A model's average says nothing certain about one vehicle. Its own MOT history shows every test, the mileage at each and the faults found — free, from the registration.
More on Mercedes-Benz
MOT failure rates for other makes
Common questions
What percentage of Mercedes-Benz vehicles fail their MOT?
In our analysis of DVSA's anonymised MOT data for 2024 and 2025, 23.7% of 3,263,534 initial MOT tests on Mercedes-Benz vehicles failed at the first attempt — 14% less often than vehicles of the same ages and fuel types, which failed 27.6%. Because failure rates rise steeply with age, we compare with vehicles of the same age and fuel rather than with the overall average.
Which Mercedes-Benz models fail their MOT least and most often?
Among Mercedes-Benz models with at least 20,000 initial tests, and against vehicles of the same age and fuel: the SL failed 50% less often (17.1% of 41,492 tests). The Citan failed 64% more often (40.0% of 39,053 tests). These are MOT outcomes, which reflect how vehicles are used and maintained as well as how they are built — not a reliability rating.
How do I check a specific Mercedes-Benz's MOT history?
These figures describe groups of vehicles, never one car. Our free MOT history check shows every MOT test on record for a registration, with the mileage at each test and the faults and advisories found.
Cite this data
Free to quote and reuse with a link back to this page. Please describe the figures as our analysis of DVSA's anonymised MOT data, not as DVSA figures.
FindServiceHistory (2026). Mercedes-Benz MOT failure rates by model, 2024–25: an analysis of DVSA anonymised MOT test data. https://www.findservicehistory.com/mot-statistics/mercedes-benz
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source data: the DVSA anonymised MOT tests and results dataset. The analysis, groupings and comparisons are FindServiceHistory's own and are not endorsed by DVSA.