Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Suzuki Wagon-R+ 2004: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 57 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2004 Suzuki Wagon-R+ were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Individual sidelight or tail light (front).

Summary

The 2004 Suzuki Wagon-R+ follows the pattern of the model years either side.

At a glance

How 1,262 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
57 in every 100
Did not pass first time
43 in every 100541 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
21 yearsabout 73,896 miles
First tests counted
1,262

What failed most often

  1. Individual sidelight or tail light (front)12 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Suspension arm ball joint (front)11 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Tyre condition (front)10 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 2004 Suzuki Wagon-R+ 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 (rear): 8.7 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 537 of 541 failed first attempts (99.3%) 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 (rear)

Failed on 20 first tests8.7 times as often as similar carsPossible 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 36 first tests, 2.8 times as often as on similar cars.

Wheel bearings (rear)

Failed on 31 first tests4.0 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.

Coil spring (rear)

Failed on 38 first tests3.0 times as often as similar carsLikely 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.

Suspension arm ball joint (front)

Failed on 57 first tests2.5 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A suspension arm ball joint is failed under the general suspension pin, bush or joint wording. Excessively worn is Major, and 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 25 first tests, 2.2 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

Two faults and one wear pattern. The strongest is the anti-lock braking system (ABS): 2.9 times as often as on similar cars.

Anti-lock braking system (ABS)

Failed on 37 first tests2.9 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.

Rigid brake pipes (rear)

Failed on 41 first tests2.3 times as often as similar carsPossible 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.

Brake pads (front)

Failed on 22 first tests2.0 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

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.

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

Steering

One fault: track rod end, 2.6 times as often as on similar cars.

Track rod end

Failed on 22 first tests2.6 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play is Major, and one worn to the extent there is a serious risk of detachment is graded Dangerous. A dust cover that is damaged but still keeps dirt out is Minor, and one missing or no longer keeping dirt out is Major. Testers must tell wear from a joint's built-in clearance or spring loading.

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.

Exhaust system (front)

Noted on 26 first tests3.0 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Coil spring (front)

Noted on 61 first tests2.9 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Non-component advisories (front)

Noted on 55 first tests2.1 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
57in 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
35in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 57.1% of 1,262 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 64.5%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 8 fixed and the 35 not fixed make the 43 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

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

4060801002001200220032004200520062007Older carsNewer cars
4060801002004Older 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, 56 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
200154 in every 100580
200250 in every 100886
200355 in every 1001,181
2004 This car57 in every 1001,262
200558 in every 1001,002
200660 in every 100447
200761 in every 100406

FAQs

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

The 2004 Suzuki Wagon-R+ follows the pattern of the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Individual sidelight or tail light (front), about 12 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 57.1% of 1,262 first MOTs on the 2004 Suzuki Wagon-R+ passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 64.5%. Among 541 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Suspension arm (rear) appears more often than on similar cars (3.7% of those tests; 20 observed failures; about 8.7× 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 2004 Suzuki Wagon-R+ at the first attempt were Individual sidelight or tail light (front) (12.1%), Suspension arm ball joint (front) (10.6%) and Tyre condition (front) (10.1%), 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: Suspension arm (rear) (3.7% of those tests; 20 observed failures; about 8.7× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Suspension arm (rear) shows up more often than on similar cars (3.7% of those tests; 20 observed failures; about 8.7× 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 2004 Suzuki Wagon-R+ include Suspension arm (rear), Wheel bearings (rear), Coil spring (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 2004 Suzuki Wagon-R+ (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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