Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Peugeot 407 2006: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 53 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2006 Peugeot 407 were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Anti-lock braking system (ABS).

Summary

The 2006 Peugeot 407 follows the pattern of the model years either side.

At a glance

How 1,266 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
53 in every 100
Did not pass first time
47 in every 100600 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
19 yearsabout 122,616 miles
First tests counted
1,266

What failed most often

  1. Anti-lock braking system (ABS)19 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Drive shaft joints and boots (front)19 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Suspension arm ball joint (front)12 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 2006 Peugeot 407 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.

Brakes

Two faults and one wear pattern. The strongest is the electronic stability control: 7.5 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 577 of 600 failed first attempts (96.2%) that recorded an odometer reading in 2025. Mileage is needed to compare like with like. 3.8% of failures are excluded because no mileage was recorded, so treat these shares as indicative for this model year.

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.

Electronic stability control

Failed on 37 first tests7.5 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.

Anti-lock braking system (ABS)

Failed on 108 first tests6.8 times as often as similar carsStrong evidence

What it means

ABS is failed as removed only where it has obviously been removed, because not every vehicle in the age range where removal is not permitted has ABS. A warning lamp that does not light or shows an ABS fault is Major, as is a missing or excessively damaged wheel speed sensor. Every failure row for this component is Major.

Brake discs (front)

Failed on 21 first tests2.5 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.

Suspension

One fault: anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear), 5.6 times as often as on similar cars.

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear)

Failed on 20 first tests5.6 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Excessive wear on an anti-roll bar linkage ball joint is Major. A joint likely to become detached is graded Dangerous.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 38 first tests, 6.3 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.

Body and structure

One fault: drive shaft joints and boots (front), 2.5 times as often as on similar cars.

Drive shaft joints and boots (front)

Failed on 108 first tests2.5 times as often as similar carsPossible 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.

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.

Wheel bearings (front)

Noted on 23 first tests2.6 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front)

Noted on 30 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Brake discs (rear)

Noted on 85 first tests2.1 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

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
53in 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
40in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 52.6% of 1,266 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 60.0%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 7 fixed and the 40 not fixed make the 47 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

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

406080100200520062007200820092010Older carsNewer cars
406080100200520062007200820092010Newer 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, 55 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
200550 in every 100771
2006 This car53 in every 1001,266
200753 in every 1001,255
200852 in every 100866
200953 in every 100937
201053 in every 100889

FAQs

Short answers about how to read this model-year guide.

The 2006 Peugeot 407 follows the pattern of the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Anti-lock braking system (ABS), about 19 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 52.6% of 1,266 first MOTs on the 2006 Peugeot 407 passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 60.0%. Among 600 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Anti-lock braking system (ABS) appears more often than on similar cars (18.7% of those tests; 108 observed failures; about 6.8× 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 2006 Peugeot 407 at the first attempt were Anti-lock braking system (ABS) (18.7%), Drive shaft joints and boots (front) (18.7%) and Suspension arm ball joint (front) (11.8%), 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: Anti-lock braking system (ABS) (18.7% of those tests; 108 observed failures; about 6.8× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Anti-lock braking system (ABS) shows up more often than on similar cars (18.7% of those tests; 108 observed failures; about 6.8× 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 2006 Peugeot 407 include Anti-lock braking system (ABS), Electronic stability control, Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (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 2006 Peugeot 407 (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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