Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Mercedes-Benz GLE 2018: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 86 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLE were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Tyre condition (front).

Summary

At the same mileage, a petrol 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLE passed first time more often than a diesel one: 91 in every 100 against 86 in every 100.

At a glance

How 5,485 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
86 in every 100
Did not pass first time
14 in every 100760 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
7 yearsabout 60,989 miles
First tests counted
5,485

What failed most often

  1. Tyre condition (front)21 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Drive shaft joints and boots (front)10 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Tyre tread depth (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.

Note:

These are patterns across 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLE 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.

Number plates and VIN

One fault: number plates (front), 3.9 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 760 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.

Number plates (front)

Failed on 20 first tests3.9 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A number plate that is missing, illegible, showing an incorrect registration or so insecure that it is likely to fall off is Major. Testers do not measure the characters or their spacing and reject them only if they are obviously incorrect. Delamination and the position of fixing screws or bolts get particular attention, as they can prevent number plate recognition cameras identifying the vehicle.

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

Body and structure

One fault: drive shaft joints and boots (front), 3.5 times as often as on similar cars.

Drive shaft joints and boots (front)

Failed on 74 first tests3.5 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

A constant velocity boot that is only severely deteriorated is Minor. It is Major once it is missing, split or insecure so that it no longer prevents the ingress of dirt. A transmission joint excessively worn is Major, and graded Dangerous when it is so worn it is likely to fail.

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

Noise, emissions and leaks

One fault: diesel engine warning light, 2.4 times as often as on similar cars.

Diesel engine warning light

Failed on 58 first tests2.4 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

An engine malfunction indicator lamp that is illuminated to show a malfunction is graded Major on a diesel, but only on the diesels the test covers, which depends on the vehicle type and when it was first used. DVSA lists it under exhaust emissions for compression ignition engines, and the detail line for the row also names an inoperative lamp.

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

Tyres

Two wear patterns. The strongest is the tyre condition (front): 2.2 times as often as on similar cars.

Tyre condition (front)

Failed on 161 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

What it means

Exposed or damaged ply or cords are graded Dangerous. A cut in excess of the requirements and deep enough to reach the ply or cords is Major, and testers may open the cut with a blunt instrument to check its depth. A tyre contacting the vehicle through flexing or suspension movement is not a defect; fouling fails only at the time of test.

Tyre tread depth (rear)

Failed on 59 first tests2.1 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.

Suspension

One fault: coil spring (rear), 2.0 times as often as on similar cars.

Coil spring (rear)

Failed on 53 first tests2.0 times as often as similar carsPossible 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.

MOT pass rates

How first tests ended, and how the pass rates are counted.

Passed first time
86in 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
12in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 86.1% of 5,485 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 87.9%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 2 fixed and the 12 not fixed make the 14 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Petrol and diesel

First testsTypical mileagePassed first time, as testedPassed first time, same mileage
Diesel4,98462,150 miles8686
Petrol44252,648 miles9191

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.

40608010020152016201720182019202020212022Older carsNewer cars
4060801002018Older 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, 87 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
201589 in every 1001,200
201686 in every 1005,138
201786 in every 1004,298
2018 This car86 in every 1005,485
201987 in every 1003,269
202088 in every 1004,588
202187 in every 1004,258
202287 in every 1003,302

If you are buying one

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

Mileage makes a modest difference on a 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLE.

Of 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLE vehicles with under 45,000 miles, 89 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 81,000 miles or more, 82 in every 100 did.

Under 45,0001,129 tests
89
45,000–56,0001,072 tests
87
56,000–67,000 Typical car1,115 tests
87
67,000–81,0001,085 tests
85
81,000 and over1,084 tests
82

Petrol or diesel?

Typical mileagePassed first time,
as tested		Passed first time,
same mileage
Diesel62,150 miles8686
Petrol52,648 miles9191

Figures are in every 100 first tests. Part of the gap is mileage: diesel cars have done more miles. Even at the same mileage, petrol passed more often (91 against 86 in every 100).

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 45,00056,000–67,00081,000 and over
Tyre condition (front)2.43.92.8
Drive shaft joints and boots (front)0.61.12.4
Tyre tread depth (front)1.20.82.1
Diesel engine warning light0.40.92.6
Brake pads (rear)1.10.71.6

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

When a car fails

60in every 100

of failed cars had one item to fix.

13in every 100

of failed cars had three or more items to fix.

5in 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.

At the same mileage, a petrol 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLE passed first time more often than a diesel one: 91 in every 100 against 86 in every 100. In 2025, 86.1% of 5,485 first MOTs on the 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLE passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 87.9%. Among 760 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Number plates (front) appears more often than on similar cars (2.6% of those tests; 20 observed failures; about 3.9× 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 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLE at the first attempt were Tyre condition (front) (21.2%), Drive shaft joints and boots (front) (9.7%) and Tyre tread depth (front) (9.2%), 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: Number plates (front) (2.6% of those tests; 20 observed failures; about 3.9× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Number plates (front) shows up more often than on similar cars (2.6% of those tests; 20 observed failures; about 3.9× 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 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLE include Number plates (front), Drive shaft joints and boots (front), Diesel 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 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLE (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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