Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Chevrolet Cruze 2013: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 56 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2013 Chevrolet Cruze were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Coil spring (rear).

Summary

The 2013 Chevrolet Cruze follows the pattern of the model years either side.

At a glance

How 1,078 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
56 in every 100
Did not pass first time
44 in every 100476 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
12 yearsabout 83,577 miles
First tests counted
1,078

What failed most often

  1. Coil spring (rear)19 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Individual sidelight or tail light (front)19 in every 100 failed tests

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 2013 Chevrolet Cruze vehicles in 2025, not a prediction that any one car will have them. Faults are grouped by part of the car. They come from MOT defect codes, not manufacturer bulletins, recalls or a diagnosis of any one car.

Suspension

One fault: coil spring (rear), 4.3 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 475 of 476 failed first attempts (99.8%) that recorded an odometer reading in 2025. Mileage is needed to compare like with like.

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.

Coil spring (rear)

Failed on 92 first tests4.3 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

A missing bump stop rubber is not a reason to fail a coil spring. When the vehicle is jacked and lowered, a spring that does not correctly locate as the suspension returns to its normal running position is rejected as insecurely attached. A missing spring is Major, and graded Dangerous where directional control is affected.

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

Noise, emissions and leaks

One fault: petrol engine warning light, 3.3 times as often as on similar cars.

Petrol engine warning light

Failed on 44 first tests3.3 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

The malfunction indicator lamp (MIL) on a petrol engine is a Major failure when it is illuminated indicating a malfunction. The detail line DVSA gives for the same row also names an inoperative lamp. The test covers only certain petrol vehicles, depending on their age, size and fuel type.

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

Lamps and electrical

Two faults. The strongest is the individual sidelight or tail light (front): 2.3 times as often as on similar cars.

Individual sidelight or tail light (front)

Failed on 92 first tests2.3 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A position lamp showing red light to the front or white light to the rear is Major. Rear lamps must show a steady red light, and front ones can show white, predominantly white with a blue tinge, or yellow if combined in a yellow headlamp. With a multiple light source, up to half not working is Minor and more than half is Major.

Headlight (front)

Failed on 37 first tests2.0 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

On vehicles first used on or after a set date, a halogen headlamp unit converted to take HID or LED bulbs fails for light source and lamp not compatible, which is Major. A complete unit built with those light sources is not failed for that. The precise position of the lamps is not part of the inspection beyond a visual look to see that they sit at about the same height and distance from each side.

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

Visibility

One fault: windscreen wipers (front), 2.1 times as often as on similar cars.

Windscreen wipers (front)

Failed on 27 first tests2.1 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Only a clearly damaged or worn windscreen wiper needs to be rejected. A wiper that is missing or not working is graded Major, and so is a blade that is missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen. A defective blade is graded Minor.

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.

Engine oil leaks

Noted on 106 first tests3.4 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Number plates (front)

Noted on 29 first tests3.4 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Exhaust system (front)

Noted on 21 first tests2.9 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Brake pads (rear)

Noted on 51 first tests2.4 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
56in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
10in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
34in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 55.8% of 1,078 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 66.2%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 10 fixed and the 34 not fixed make the 44 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

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

40608010020102011201220132014Older carsNewer cars
40608010020102011201220132014Older 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, 61 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
201059 in every 100445
201157 in every 100817
201260 in every 1001,262
2013 This car56 in every 1001,078
201459 in every 100406

FAQs

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

The 2013 Chevrolet Cruze follows the pattern of the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Coil spring (rear), about 19 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 55.8% of 1,078 first MOTs on the 2013 Chevrolet Cruze passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 66.2%. Among 476 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Coil spring (rear) appears more often than on similar cars (19.4% of those tests; 92 observed failures; about 4.3× 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.
Ranked by how often they were actually recorded, the items that most often failed a 2013 Chevrolet Cruze at the first attempt were Coil spring (rear) (19.4%) and Individual sidelight or tail light (front) (19.4%), each as a share of the year's failed first attempts. That is what goes wrong most often on the car. The common faults table shows a different measure: faults that are unusual compared with similar cars.
Among failed first-attempt tests we highlight patterns that appear more often than on similar cars. Top example: Coil spring (rear) (19.4% of those tests; 92 observed failures; about 4.3× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Coil spring (rear) shows up more often than on similar cars (19.4% of those tests; 92 observed failures; about 4.3× 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 2013 Chevrolet Cruze include Coil spring (rear), Petrol engine warning light, Individual sidelight or tail light (front). 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 2013 Chevrolet Cruze (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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