Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Abarth 500 2012: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 65 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2012 Abarth 500 were passes.

Summary

With 697 first tests, there are too few to say whether the 2012 Abarth 500 differs from the model years either side. Treat the faults below as a checklist.

At a glance

How 697 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
65 in every 100
Did not pass first time
35 in every 100242 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
13 yearsabout 73,469 miles
First tests counted
697

How we count this. Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Only Class 4 cars on their first MOT of the year are counted. A car that fails and is fixed at the test station still counts as a fail in the first-attempt rate. These are raw results, not adjusted for age, mileage, or peer mix. The MOT does not test engine or gearbox internals.

Note:

These are patterns across 2012 Abarth 500 vehicles in 2025, not a prediction that any one car will have them. Faults are grouped by part of the car. A wear pattern follows age and use more than the way the car was built. They come from MOT defect codes, not manufacturer bulletins, recalls or a diagnosis of any one car.

Suspension

Three faults. The strongest is the shock absorbers (rear): 3.9 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 242 failed first attempts in 2025 that had a mileage recorded, which allows a like-for-like comparison.

We only list faults with at least 20 failures and a rate of about 2.0 times that of similar cars, which keeps one-off results out of the list.

Shock absorbers (rear)

Failed on 27 first tests3.9 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Slight seepage that leaves a film of fluid on a shock absorber does not fail it. Severe leakage, or damage so that it does not function, is Major. A shock absorber missing or likely to become detached is graded Dangerous, though a missing one is only rejected if shock absorbers were fitted as standard.

Suspension arm pins and bushes (front)

Failed on 23 first tests2.1 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Pins and bushes on suspension arms fail as Major when they are excessively worn. They are graded Dangerous when likely to become detached. DVSA uses the same wording for a suspension joint.

Suspension arm ball joint (front)

Failed on 31 first tests2.0 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A suspension arm ball joint is failed under the general suspension pin, bush or joint wording. Excessively worn is Major, and likely to become detached is graded Dangerous.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Body and structure

One fault: drive shaft joints and boots (front), 3.4 times as often as on similar cars.

Drive shaft joints and boots (front)

Failed on 37 first tests3.4 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

A constant velocity boot that is only severely deteriorated is Minor. It is Major once it is missing, split or insecure so that it no longer prevents the ingress of dirt. A transmission joint excessively worn is Major, and graded Dangerous when it is so worn it is likely to fail.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Noise, emissions and leaks

One fault: petrol emissions (with catalyst), 3.1 times as often as on similar cars.

Petrol emissions (with catalyst)

Failed on 24 first tests3.1 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Emissions levels over the manufacturer's specified limits are Major, as are levels over default limits, which apply when no exact match is found for the vehicle. Dense blue or clearly visible black smoke at idle, held for a set period, is Major, except for certain older vehicles and two stroke engines where smoke is unavoidable. An induction or exhaust leak that could affect emissions levels is Major too.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Lamps and electrical

One wear pattern: headlight aim (front), 2.3 times as often as on similar cars.

Headlight aim (front)

Failed on 24 first tests2.3 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

What it means

Beam aim too high, too low or off to either side is Major. Where a driver's beam aim control is fitted, the aim is tested without altering the setting, and rechecked at the highest setting only if it would fail for being too low. Masks or converter kits on right hand dip headlamps are acceptable.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Advisories

Other things testers noted as worn or close to failing, more often than on similar cars.

An advisory is a note from the tester about something that has not failed yet. It is an early warning, not a fail.

Suspension sub-frame (rear)

Noted on 29 first tests3.5 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Brake discs (rear)

Noted on 43 first tests2.9 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Counts cover advisories recorded on failed first tests only, compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

MOT pass rates

How first tests ended, and how the pass rates are counted.

Passed first time
65in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
6in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
29in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 65.3% of 697 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 70.9%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 6 fixed and the 29 not fixed make the 35 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

Passed first time in every 100, all tested in 2025.

4060801002009201020112012201320142015Older carsNewer cars
4060801002012Older carsNewer cars

Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb. A year earlier (2024), when these cars were a year younger, 66 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
200968 in every 100674
201067 in every 100859
201165 in every 100793
2012 This car65 in every 100697
201365 in every 100495
201468 in every 100714
201567 in every 100678

FAQs

Short answers about how to read this model-year guide.

With 697 first tests, there are too few to say whether the 2012 Abarth 500 differs from the model years either side. Treat the faults below as a checklist. In 2025, 65.3% of 697 first MOTs on the 2012 Abarth 500 passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 70.9%. Among 242 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Shock absorbers (rear) appears more often than on similar cars (11.2% of those tests; 27 observed failures; about 3.9× more often than similar cars). There is no single reliability score here; this is a pre-purchase checklist built from DVSA open data, not a guarantee for any individual car.
Among failed first-attempt tests we highlight patterns that appear more often than on similar cars. Top example: Shock absorbers (rear) (11.2% of those tests; 27 observed failures; about 3.9× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Shock absorbers (rear) shows up more often than on similar cars (11.2% of those tests; 27 observed failures; about 3.9× more often than similar cars). That does not prove a design fault. Age, mileage, and how the car was used still matter. Treat it as a pre-purchase checkpoint, not a manufacturer service bulletin.
Common MOT problem areas for the 2012 Abarth 500 include Shock absorbers (rear), Drive shaft joints and boots (front), Petrol emissions (with catalyst). These are the faults that stand out compared with similar cars, not a complete list of what can go wrong on any individual car.
Advisories flag issues noted at the test and are not a fail rate. We show advisory patterns that appear more often than on similar cars among failed first-attempt tests, separate from common failure rows. Use them as early-warning checks, not as a pass/fail score.
This page highlights MOT failure patterns for the 2012 Abarth 500 (registration year) using UK DVSA open data for the selected test year. Patterns are compared with cars of a similar age and mileage. It is a buyer checklist from MOT defect statistics, not a full service history or manufacturer service-bulletin list.
No. MOT tests do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronic modules. Patterns here come from MOT defect statistics only and should not be read as engine or gearbox reliability scores.

About this data

How this page is built and what it can (and can't) say.

These figures come from UK MOT open data for this model year. We surface common failure patterns against similar cars, not a full reliability score, and not a pass/fail verdict on any individual vehicle.

2024 2025

What we include

UK Class 4 cars only. Normal MOT tests (not retests); first test per vehicle per calendar year; results pass, PRS, or fail.

Same-day repairs

PRS means the car failed items that were fixed at the test station and then passed the same day. We count PRS as a first-attempt fail in headline rates so same-day repairs do not hide problems.

How we compare

We compare this model year with other Class 4 cars of similar age and mileage in the same test year. This model family is left out of the peer group so the car is not measured against itself.

What this does not cover

  • MOTs do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronics; this is not a full reliability score.
  • Common faults come from MOT defect stats, not manufacturer TSBs or recalls.
  • Age and mileage matching reduces, but does not remove, differences in how cars were used and maintained.
  • If the data for a car is too thin to say anything useful, we say so rather than guess.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

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