Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Suzuki Alto 2009: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 61 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2009 Suzuki Alto were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Individual sidelight or tail light (front).

Summary

The 2009 Suzuki Alto follows the pattern of the model years either side.

At a glance

How 4,538 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
61 in every 100
Did not pass first time
39 in every 1001,782 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
16 yearsabout 69,892 miles
First tests counted
4,538

What failed most often

  1. Individual sidelight or tail light (front)14 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Brake light9 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Tyre tread depth (front)7 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 2009 Suzuki Alto vehicles in 2025, not a prediction that any one car will have them. Faults are grouped by part of the car. They come from MOT defect codes, not manufacturer bulletins, recalls or a diagnosis of any one car.

Lamps and electrical

One fault: horn, 5.6 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 1,782 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.

Horn

Failed on 102 first tests5.6 times as often as similar carsStrong evidence

What it means

A horn that does not work, or is likely to be confused with an emergency vehicle siren, is graded Major. Gongs, bells, sirens and anything with more than one tone, which includes a horn that alternates between its notes, are not allowed, except a gong, bell or siren on vehicles first used before a set date. Sound defects are Minor for named cases such as a bell or harsh sound, and Major under a general row.

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

Suspension

Two faults. The strongest is the suspension arm (rear): 5.3 times as often as on similar cars.

Suspension arm (rear)

Failed on 43 first tests5.3 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

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 106 first tests, 3.0 times as often as on similar cars.

Wheel bearings (front)

Failed on 76 first tests4.3 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 56 first tests, 4.0 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

Four faults. The strongest is the electronic stability control: 5.0 times as often as on similar cars.

Electronic stability control

Failed on 38 first tests5.0 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.

Rigid brake pipes (front)

Failed on 82 first tests4.6 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

Chafing, corrosion or damage to a rigid brake pipe justifies rejection once its wall thickness is reduced by a set amount, although DVSA accepts this is not easy to determine. If a tester is not sure, the benefit of the doubt applies. A leaking pipe or connection is graded Dangerous on a hydraulic system and Major on an air system.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 313 first tests, 5.8 times as often as on similar cars.

Rigid brake pipes (rear)

Failed on 118 first tests3.6 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

Chafing, corrosion or damage to a rigid brake pipe justifies rejection once its wall thickness is reduced by a set amount, although DVSA accepts this is not easy to determine. If a tester is not sure, the benefit of the doubt applies. A leaking pipe or connection is graded Dangerous on a hydraulic system and Major on an air system.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 285 first tests, 3.3 times as often as on similar cars.

Anti-lock braking system (ABS)

Failed on 54 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsPossible 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.

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: exhaust system (front), 2.6 times as often as on similar cars.

Exhaust system (front)

Failed on 48 first tests2.6 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

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.

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.

Macpherson strut (front)

Noted on 45 first tests2.7 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Coil spring (front)

Noted on 146 first tests2.6 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Wheel bearings (rear)

Noted on 25 first tests2.4 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

Suspension arm pins and bushes (front)

Noted on 346 first tests2.4 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
61in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
10in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
29in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 60.7% of 4,538 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 70.9%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 10 fixed and the 29 not fixed make the 39 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

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

4060801002009201020112012201320142015Newer cars
4060801002009Newer cars

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

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
2009 This car61 in every 1004,538
201060 in every 1003,946
201163 in every 1004,080
201265 in every 1004,255
201366 in every 10011,003
201468 in every 10012,132
201569 in every 1001,720

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 Alto.

Of 2009 Alto vehicles with under 44,000 miles, 75 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 97,000 miles or more, 50 in every 100 did.

Under 44,000879 tests
75
44,000–63,000974 tests
64
63,000–78,000 Typical car858 tests
60
78,000–97,000927 tests
54
97,000 and over900 tests
50

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 44,00063,000–78,00097,000 and over
Individual sidelight or tail light (front)0.96.610.3
Brake light1.53.75.2
Tyre tread depth (front)1.91.64.2
Windscreen wipers (front)1.92.03.0
Rigid brake pipes (rear)0.93.43.9

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

When a car fails

27in every 100

of failed cars had one item to fix.

49in every 100

of failed cars had three or more items to fix.

8in 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 2009 Suzuki Alto follows the pattern of the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Individual sidelight or tail light (front), about 14 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 60.7% of 4,538 first MOTs on the 2009 Suzuki Alto passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 70.9%. Among 1,782 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Horn appears more often than on similar cars (5.7% of those tests; 102 observed failures; about 5.6× 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 2009 Suzuki Alto at the first attempt were Individual sidelight or tail light (front) (14.4%), Brake light (9.5%) and Tyre tread depth (front) (6.6%), 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: Horn (5.7% of those tests; 102 observed failures; about 5.6× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Horn shows up more often than on similar cars (5.7% of those tests; 102 observed failures; about 5.6× 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 2009 Suzuki Alto include Horn, Suspension arm (rear), Electronic stability control. 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 2009 Suzuki Alto (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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