Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

CUPRA Formentor 2022: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 89 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2022 CUPRA Formentor were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Tyre tread depth (front).

Summary

A 2022 CUPRA Formentor passed first time about 2 in every 100 less often than the average of the 2021 and 2023 model years.

At a glance

How 8,129 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
89 in every 100
Did not pass first time
11 in every 100861 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
3 yearsabout 25,063 miles
First tests counted
8,129

What failed most often

  1. Tyre tread depth (front)18 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Tyre condition (front)18 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Shock absorbers (front)16 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 2022 CUPRA Formentor 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 shock absorbers (front): 24 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 861 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 (front)

Failed on 136 first tests24 times as often as similar carsStrong 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.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 101 first tests, 14 times as often as on similar cars.

Shock absorbers (rear)

Failed on 30 first tests3.8 times as often as similar carsLikely 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.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.

Seat belts and restraints

One fault: airbag warning light, 8.2 times as often as on similar cars.

Airbag warning light

Failed on 58 first tests8.2 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

The airbag warning lamp (SRS MIL in DVSA's wording) is failed only if it indicates a system malfunction, which is Major. A lamp lit to show the passenger airbag is disabled is not to be regarded as a defect. Dashboard messages are not a defect in their own right, though they can help the tester confirm a malfunction.

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, 4.0 times as often as on similar cars.

Petrol engine warning light

Failed on 40 first tests4.0 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.

Visibility

One fault: windscreen washers, 2.4 times as often as on similar cars.

Windscreen washers

Failed on 96 first tests2.4 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Windscreen washers that are not working, or do not provide sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen, are graded Major. They must provide enough fluid for the wipers to clear the windscreen effectively. Vehicles with an opening windscreen, or some other adequate view to the front, left and right, are not inspected for washers.

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

Tyres

One wear pattern: tyre tread depth (front), 2.2 times as often as on similar cars.

Tyre tread depth (front)

Failed on 156 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

What it means

Only primary grooves count when tread depth is assessed: those holding the wear indicators, or cut as deep as those when new. Shallower secondary grooves are ignored. Tread depth below the minimum for the vehicle is Dangerous, and so is a pattern not visible over the whole tread, but that second row applies only to vehicles that need the lower minimum.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. 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
89in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
2in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
9in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 89.4% of 8,129 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 90.7%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 2 fixed and the 9 not fixed make the 11 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

By fuel type

First testsTypical mileagePassed first time, as testedPassed first time, same mileage
Petrol7,49224,679 miles9089
Hybrid63732,142 miles8890

Figures are in every 100 first tests. Cars with more miles usually fail more often, so the same-mileage figure gives every fuel the mileage mix of all the cars in this year.

Same model, other years

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

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
202188 in every 1006,247
2022 This car89 in every 1008,129

Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb.

If you are buying one

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

Mileage matters most on a 2022 Formentor.

Of 2022 Formentor vehicles with under 18,000 miles, 94 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 35,000 miles or more, 85 in every 100 did.

Under 18,0001,721 tests
94
18,000–23,0001,653 tests
90
23,000–28,000 Typical car1,635 tests
89
28,000–35,0001,474 tests
88
35,000 and over1,645 tests
85

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 18,00023,000–28,00035,000 and over
Tyre tread depth (front)1.52.32.2
Tyre condition (front)1.51.81.9
Shock absorbers (front)0.11.62.7
Windscreen washers0.51.21.8
Headlight aim0.50.71.3

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

When a car fails

54in every 100

of failed cars had one item to fix.

19in every 100

of failed cars had three or more items to fix.

4in 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.

A 2022 CUPRA Formentor passed first time about 2 in every 100 less often than the average of the 2021 and 2023 model years. In 2025, 89.4% of 8,129 first MOTs on the 2022 CUPRA Formentor passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 90.7%. Among 861 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Shock absorbers (front) appears more often than on similar cars (15.8% of those tests; 136 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 2022 CUPRA Formentor at the first attempt were Tyre tread depth (front) (18.1%), Tyre condition (front) (17.7%) and Shock absorbers (front) (15.8%), 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: Shock absorbers (front) (15.8% of those tests; 136 observed failures; about 24× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Shock absorbers (front) shows up more often than on similar cars (15.8% of those tests; 136 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 2022 CUPRA Formentor include Shock absorbers (front), Airbag warning light, Petrol engine warning light. These are the faults that stand out compared with similar cars, not a complete list of what can go wrong on any individual car.
This page highlights MOT failure patterns for the 2022 CUPRA Formentor (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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