Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Citroen C1 2015: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 75 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2015 Citroen C1 were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Tyre condition (front).

Summary

The 2015 Citroen C1 follows the pattern of the model years either side.

At a glance

How 17,206 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
75 in every 100
Did not pass first time
25 in every 1004,221 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
10 yearsabout 53,525 miles
First tests counted
17,206

What failed most often

  1. Tyre condition (front)10 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Tyre tread depth (front)9 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test)9 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 2015 Citroen C1 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

Two faults. The strongest is the anti-roll bar linkage pins and bushes (front): 24 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 4,221 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.

Anti-roll bar linkage pins and bushes (front)

Failed on 175 first tests24 times as often as similar carsStrong evidence

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 547 first tests, 43 times as often as on similar cars.

Wheel bearings (front)

Failed on 121 first tests4.9 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

Excessive play in a wheel bearing, or a bearing that is excessively rough, is Major. Play so excessive that the bearing is likely to break up or directional control is impaired is Dangerous, and so is a bearing so rough that it is likely to overheat or break up.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 48 first tests, 2.8 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.

Brakes

Five faults and one wear pattern. The strongest is the brake performance (roller test, rear): 3.3 times as often as on similar cars.

Brake performance (roller test, rear)

Failed on 288 first tests3.3 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

A wheel with no recorded braking effort on the roller test is graded Dangerous. Inadequate effort, a brake grabbing severely, abnormal lag and excessive fluctuation in effort are each Major. So is significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied, which indicates a binding brake.

Handbrake performance (roller test, rear)

Failed on 87 first tests3.2 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

A parking brake that is inoperative on one side is Major. When tested on the road, the failure is the vehicle deviating excessively from a straight line. Vehicles whose parking brake was already tested as the secondary brake are not tested again for this.

Electronic stability control

Failed on 131 first tests3.2 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

An ESC warning lamp is failed only when the tester is certain it indicates an ESC malfunction, because the lamp takes various forms and the owner's handbook may need checking. The system is also called ESP, VDC or DSC, among many other names. Every failure row is Major, covering the lamp, wheel speed sensors, wiring, other components and the switch.

Handbrake lever

Failed on 90 first tests3.2 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

A parking brake lever pivot or ratchet mechanism that is obviously worn is graded Minor. It is Major when worn to the extent that the brake may inadvertently release, and also when the ratchet is not holding correctly. A lever must have obvious excessive travel before being rejected.

Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test)

Failed on 382 first tests3.0 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

A parking brake with efficiency below the minimum requirement is Major, and graded Dangerous where efficiency is less than half of the required value. On a roller brake tester, the requirement counts as met if more than half of the wheels of a brake system lock. The check applies only to vehicles whose parking brake was not already tested as the secondary brake.

Brake discs (front)

Failed on 210 first tests2.6 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

What it means

A brake disc or drum must be significantly worn before it is rejected, and being worn below the manufacturer's recommended limits is not a reason in itself. Significantly and obviously worn is Major, as is contamination with oil or grease. A disc or drum that is fractured, insecure, seriously weakened or missing is graded Dangerous.

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

Noise, emissions and leaks

Two faults. The strongest is the petrol engine warning light: 3.0 times as often as on similar cars.

Petrol engine warning light

Failed on 368 first tests3.0 times as often as similar carsPossible 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.

Petrol emissions (with catalyst)

Failed on 222 first tests2.2 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.

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)

Noted on 103 first tests16 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

Suspension mounting area (rear)

Noted on 48 first tests9.0 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Suspension sub-frame (front)

Noted on 246 first tests4.9 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

Macpherson strut (front)

Noted on 69 first tests4.9 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Rigid brake pipes (rear)

Noted on 335 first tests4.6 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

Wheel condition (front)

Noted on 153 first tests4.5 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

Coil spring (front)

Noted on 103 first tests2.9 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

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
75in 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
19in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 75.5% of 17,206 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 80.8%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 6 fixed and the 19 not fixed make the 25 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

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

4060801002005201020152020Older carsNewer cars
406080100201020152020Older 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, 77 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
200552 in every 100584
200651 in every 1003,686
200752 in every 1005,910
200852 in every 1008,458
200955 in every 10010,477
201058 in every 10011,836
201160 in every 10012,693
201264 in every 10012,916
201368 in every 10013,273
201473 in every 10013,005
2015 This car75 in every 10017,206
201676 in every 10017,491
201780 in every 1008,800
201884 in every 1006,976
201984 in every 1005,083
202087 in every 1003,630
202190 in every 1004,384

If you are buying one

What this year's MOT record means for the decision in front of you.

Mileage matters most on a 2015 Citroen C1.

Of 2015 Citroen C1 vehicles with under 36,000 miles, 85 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 74,000 miles or more, 64 in every 100 did.

Under 36,0003,472 tests
85
36,000–48,0003,400 tests
81
48,000–60,000 Typical car3,541 tests
76
60,000–74,0003,351 tests
71
74,000 and over3,439 tests
64

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 36,00048,000–60,00074,000 and over
Tyre condition (front)1.52.13.4
Tyre tread depth (front)0.92.53.2
Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test)0.41.94.5
Petrol engine warning light2.02.03.2
Brake performance (roller test, rear)0.51.82.8

Faults per 100 first tests, by the car's mileage at the test.

When a car fails

42in every 100

of failed cars had one item to fix.

30in every 100

of failed cars had three or more items to fix.

7in every 100

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.

The 2015 Citroen C1 follows the pattern of the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Tyre condition (front), about 10 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 75.5% of 17,206 first MOTs on the 2015 Citroen C1 passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 80.8%. Among 4,221 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Anti-roll bar linkage pins and bushes (front) appears more often than on similar cars (4.1% of those tests; 175 observed failures; about 24× 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 2015 Citroen C1 at the first attempt were Tyre condition (front) (9.6%), Tyre tread depth (front) (9.1%) and Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test) (9.0%), 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: Anti-roll bar linkage pins and bushes (front) (4.1% of those tests; 175 observed failures; about 24× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Anti-roll bar linkage pins and bushes (front) shows up more often than on similar cars (4.1% of those tests; 175 observed failures; about 24× 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 2015 Citroen C1 include Anti-roll bar linkage pins and bushes (front), Wheel bearings (front), Brake performance (roller test, rear). 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 2015 Citroen C1 (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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