At a glance
How 13,273 first tests went in 2025.
- Passed first time
- 68 in every 100
- Did not pass first time
- 32 in every 1004,308 failed first-attempt tests
- The typical car
- 12 yearsabout 64,050 miles
- First tests counted
- 13,273
What failed most often
- Headlight aim10 in every 100 failed tests
- Individual sidelight or tail light (front)8 in every 100 failed tests
- Tyre tread depth (front)7 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.
These are patterns across 2013 Citroen C1 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.
Lamps and electrical
Two faults. The strongest is the hazard warning switch: 21 times as often as on similar cars.
Figures below are measured across the 4,305 of 4,308 failed first attempts (99.9%) 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.
Hazard warning switch
Rear fog light
What it means
A missing obligatory rear fog lamp, one that is not working, or one that does not emit a steady red light is graded Major. A rear fog lamp adversely affected by the operation of any other lamp is Major too. The manual allows it to go out when main beam is switched on or when dipped beam headlamps are switched off.
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.
Suspension
Four faults. The strongest is the anti-roll bar linkage pins and bushes (front): 20 times as often as on similar cars.
Anti-roll bar linkage pins and bushes (front)
What it means
Excessive wear in an anti-roll bar linkage pin or bush is Major. If the pin or bush is likely to become detached, it is graded Dangerous. The wording is DVSA's general one for a suspension pin, bush or joint.
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 498 first tests, 32 times as often as on similar cars.
Suspension mounting area (rear)
What it means
The load bearing structure within a set distance of a sub-frame, spring or suspension component mounting is a prescribed area. Major applies when its strength or continuity is significantly reduced or it is inadequately repaired. Dangerous applies when it is so weakened that control of the vehicle is likely to be adversely affected.
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 129 first tests, 6.9 times as often as on similar cars.
Wheel bearings (rear)
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 63 first tests, 4.6 times as often as on similar cars.
Wheel bearings (front)
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.
Brakes
Two faults. The strongest is the rigid brake pipes (rear): 3.6 times as often as on similar cars.
Rigid brake pipes (rear)
What it means
Chafing, corrosion or damage to a rigid brake pipe justifies rejection once its wall thickness is reduced by a set amount, although DVSA accepts this is not easy to determine. If a tester is not sure, the benefit of the doubt applies. A leaking pipe or connection is graded Dangerous on a hydraulic system and Major on an air system.
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 681 first tests, 4.7 times as often as on similar cars.
Brake performance (roller test, rear)
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.
Body and structure
One fault: exhaust system (rear), 3.4 times as often as on similar cars.
Exhaust system (rear)
What it means
Exhaust fumes causing a danger to health of persons on board are graded Dangerous, and so is a silencer likely to become detached. Fumes entering the cabin are Major. One or more missing or defective mountings does not necessarily make the exhaust insecure, since testers assess the overall security of the system.
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 153 first tests, 2.6 times as often as on similar cars.
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.
Noise, emissions and leaks
One fault: petrol emissions not tested, 2.8 times as often as on similar cars.
Petrol emissions not tested
What it means
On a petrol car, an emissions test recorded as not tested or unable to be completed is failed as Major. DVSA's wording gives no reason why.
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. Advisories for the faults above are shown with those faults.
Anti-roll bar pins and bushes (front)
Individual direction indicators (front)
Wheel condition (front)
Vehicle structure condition (rear)
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
- 68in every 100
- Passed on the first test.
- Fixed at the station
- 7in every 100
- Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
- Failed
- 25in every 100
- Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.
First-attempt pass 67.5% of 13,273 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 74.7%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 7 fixed and the 25 not fixed make the 32 in every 100 that did not pass first time.
Same model, other years
Passed first time in every 100, all tested in 2025.
Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb. A year earlier (2024), when these cars were a year younger, 69 in every 100 passed first time.
| Year | Passed first time | First tests |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 52 in every 100 | 584 |
| 2006 | 51 in every 100 | 3,686 |
| 2007 | 52 in every 100 | 5,910 |
| 2008 | 52 in every 100 | 8,458 |
| 2009 | 55 in every 100 | 10,477 |
| 2010 | 58 in every 100 | 11,836 |
| 2011 | 60 in every 100 | 12,693 |
| 2012 | 64 in every 100 | 12,916 |
| 2013 This car | 68 in every 100 | 13,273 |
| 2014 | 73 in every 100 | 13,005 |
| 2015 | 75 in every 100 | 17,206 |
| 2016 | 76 in every 100 | 17,491 |
| 2017 | 80 in every 100 | 8,800 |
| 2018 | 84 in every 100 | 6,976 |
| 2019 | 84 in every 100 | 5,083 |
| 2020 | 87 in every 100 | 3,630 |
| 2021 | 90 in every 100 | 4,384 |
If you are buying one
What this year's MOT record means for the decision in front of you.
Mileage matters most on a 2013 Citroen C1.
Of 2013 Citroen C1 vehicles with under 43,000 miles, 80 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 88,000 miles or more, 57 in every 100 did.
What to check at your mileage
How often each fault turned up on a failed first test, by the car's mileage. Read it as: what is likely to need looking at on a car like the one in front of you.
| Under 43,000 | 58,000–71,000 | 88,000 and over | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Headlight aim | 1.3 | 3.8 | 4.4 |
| Individual sidelight or tail light (front) | 0.3 | 1.8 | 6.6 |
| Tyre tread depth (front) | 0.8 | 3.2 | 3.1 |
| Petrol emissions (with catalyst) | 0.3 | 2.4 | 3.8 |
| Tyre condition (front) | 1.6 | 1.8 | 2.7 |
Faults per 100 first tests, by the car's mileage at the test.
When a car fails
of failed cars had one item to fix.
of failed cars had three or more items to fix.
of all first tests had a defect the tester marked dangerous (unsafe to drive away).
Every figure here is a first-attempt MOT rate from DVSA open data for this model line, for cars of this model year tested in 2025. Each mileage band holds a fifth of the tests. MOTs do not test engine or gearbox internals, so this is a pre-purchase checklist, not a full reliability score.
FAQs
Short answers about how to read this model-year guide.
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.
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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