At a glance
How 4,649 first tests went in 2025.
- Passed first time
- 55 in every 100
- Did not pass first time
- 45 in every 1002,086 failed first-attempt tests
- The typical car
- 16 yearsabout 135,946 miles
- First tests counted
- 4,649
What failed most often
- Individual sidelight or tail light (front)14 in every 100 failed tests
- Suspension arm pins and bushes (rear)9 in every 100 failed tests
- Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover (front)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.
These are patterns across 2009 Ford S-Max 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
Four faults. The strongest is the suspension arm pins and bushes (rear): 7.2 times as often as on similar cars.
Figures below are measured across the 2,079 of 2,086 failed first attempts (99.7%) 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.
Suspension arm pins and bushes (rear)
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.
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 246 first tests, 4.0 times as often as on similar cars.
Suspension arm (rear)
What it means
A missing bump stop rubber is not a reason to fail a suspension arm. A component that is fractured, missing or likely to fail is graded Dangerous, and one excessively damaged or corroded is Major. On some vehicles, some highly stressed parts are thin pressed steel, and many of those have hollow box sections or up-facing areas that can collect road dirt and salt, so they get special attention.
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 249 first tests, 3.8 times as often as on similar cars.
Anti-roll bar ball joint dust cover (front)
Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover (front)
What it means
A suspension joint dust cover that is severely deteriorated is Minor. It becomes Major once it is missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt, so what matters is whether it still keeps dirt out. DVSA words this for any suspension joint dust cover, and files it here under anti-roll bars.
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: seat belt condition (rear), 3.2 times as often as on similar cars.
Seat belt condition (rear)
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 43 first tests, 2.7 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
Two faults. The strongest is the diesel emissions test (compression-ignition rules for vehicles from 01/07/2008): 3.1 times as often as on similar cars.
Diesel emissions test (compression-ignition rules for vehicles from 01/07/2008)
Diesel emissions not tested
What it means
An emissions test on a diesel that is unable to be completed is graded Major. The failure wording 'not tested' carries the same Major grade.
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.
Body and structure
One fault: exhaust system (rear), 2.7 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 113 first tests, 2.1 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.
Road wheels
One fault: wheel fixings (front), 2.4 times as often as on similar cars.
Wheel fixings (front)
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.
Brakes
One wear pattern: brake pads (rear), 2.3 times as often as on similar cars.
Brake pads (rear)
What it means
A pad worn down to its wear indicator, or contaminated with oil or grease, is Major. A pad worn below the set thickness limit, missing or incorrectly mounted is Dangerous. The manual treats an illuminated brake wear indicator as no reason for failure, although DVSA also lists an illuminated indicator as a Major row.
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 270 first tests, 2.9 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.
Lamps and electrical
One fault: side repeater indicators, 2.2 times as often as on similar cars.
Side repeater indicators
What it means
Sequential or dynamic direction indicators are not a reason to fail. Where a side repeater is required, it is allowed to be part of the front direction indicator if it has a marked wraparound lens, or an amber light coming through the front lens when viewed from a set distance to the side of the rear bumper. A lens defect with no effect on the emitted light is Minor, and one that adversely affects the light is Major.
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.
Brake light (rear)
Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear)
Suspension sub-frame
Anti-roll bar (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
- 55in every 100
- Passed on the first test.
- Fixed at the station
- 8in every 100
- Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
- Failed
- 37in every 100
- Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.
First-attempt pass 55.1% of 4,649 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 63.5%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 8 fixed and the 37 not fixed make the 45 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, 54 in every 100 passed first time.
| Year | Passed first time | First tests |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 50 in every 100 | 900 |
| 2007 | 51 in every 100 | 3,106 |
| 2008 | 53 in every 100 | 3,354 |
| 2009 This car | 55 in every 100 | 4,649 |
| 2010 | 57 in every 100 | 7,489 |
| 2011 | 60 in every 100 | 5,741 |
| 2012 | 60 in every 100 | 6,343 |
| 2013 | 61 in every 100 | 5,759 |
| 2014 | 64 in every 100 | 6,014 |
| 2015 | 69 in every 100 | 3,147 |
| 2016 | 76 in every 100 | 6,601 |
| 2017 | 79 in every 100 | 5,051 |
| 2018 | 80 in every 100 | 2,300 |
| 2019 | 73 in every 100 | 2,196 |
| 2020 | 80 in every 100 | 1,088 |
| 2021 | 80 in every 100 | 659 |
| 2022 | 81 in every 100 | 715 |
If you are buying one
What this year's MOT record means for the decision in front of you.
Mileage matters most on a 2009 S-Max.
Of 2009 S-Max vehicles with under 108,000 miles, 62 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 165,000 miles or more, 50 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 108,000 | 128,000–144,000 | 165,000 and over | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Individual sidelight or tail light (front) | 3.1 | 5.7 | 8.6 |
| Suspension arm pins and bushes (rear) | 3.6 | 3.6 | 4.8 |
| Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover (front) | 2.6 | 4.7 | 4.3 |
| Brake light | 3.2 | 3.1 | 4.1 |
| Windscreen washers | 2.7 | 3.7 | 4.2 |
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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