Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Volkswagen Caddy 2004: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 56 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2004 Volkswagen Caddy were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Suspension arm pins and bushes (front).

Summary

With 939 first tests, there are too few to say whether the 2004 Volkswagen Caddy differs from the model years either side.

At a glance

How 939 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
56 in every 100
Did not pass first time
44 in every 100414 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
21 yearsabout 171,316 miles
First tests counted
939

What failed most often

  1. Suspension arm pins and bushes (front)15 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Drive shaft joints and boots (front)13 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 Volkswagen Caddy 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.

Seat belts and restraints

One fault: seat belt mounting area, 4.9 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 413 of 414 failed first attempts (99.8%) 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.

Seat belt mounting area

Failed on 20 first tests4.9 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A seat belt anchorage likely to become detached in the event of a collision is graded Dangerous. The load bearing structure near an anchorage, called a prescribed area, is Major when its strength or continuity is significantly reduced or it is inadequately repaired. Anchorage points are inspected for all seat belts fitted, except a belt with no corresponding seat.

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

Suspension

Two faults. The strongest is the coil spring (front): 3.0 times as often as on similar cars.

Coil spring (front)

Failed on 33 first tests3.0 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.

Suspension arm pins and bushes (front)

Failed on 60 first tests2.8 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

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 82 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

One fault: flexible brake hoses (front), 2.9 times as often as on similar cars.

Flexible brake hoses (front)

Failed on 25 first tests2.9 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Testers reject a flexible brake hose for being excessively damaged or chafed only if it is severe enough to expose the reinforcement. Slight damage, chafing or twisting is graded Minor. A leak is graded Dangerous on a hydraulic braking system and Major on an air system, and a hose damaged and likely to fail is also Dangerous.

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.

Anti-roll bar pins and bushes (rear)

Noted on 26 first tests6.3 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
56in 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
36in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 55.9% of 939 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 63.8%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 8 fixed and the 36 not fixed make the 44 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

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

4060801002004201020152020Newer cars
406080100200420102020Newer cars

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

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
2004 This car56 in every 100939
200556 in every 1001,622
200658 in every 1002,461
200758 in every 1003,830
200860 in every 1004,793
200960 in every 1006,061
201059 in every 1008,243
201162 in every 10011,047
201263 in every 1009,053
201363 in every 10011,601
201465 in every 10011,187
201567 in every 10011,331
201669 in every 10012,380
201771 in every 10010,917
201879 in every 10010,137
201978 in every 1009,911
202081 in every 1006,191
202183 in every 1003,541
202285 in every 1002,410

FAQs

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

With 939 first tests, there are too few to say whether the 2004 Volkswagen Caddy differs from the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Suspension arm pins and bushes (front), about 15 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 55.9% of 939 first MOTs on the 2004 Volkswagen Caddy passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 63.8%. Among 414 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Seat belt mounting area appears more often than on similar cars (4.8% of those tests; 20 observed failures; about 4.9× 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 2004 Volkswagen Caddy at the first attempt were Suspension arm pins and bushes (front) (14.5%) and Drive shaft joints and boots (front) (12.6%), 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: Seat belt mounting area (4.8% of those tests; 20 observed failures; about 4.9× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Seat belt mounting area shows up more often than on similar cars (4.8% of those tests; 20 observed failures; about 4.9× 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 2004 Volkswagen Caddy include Seat belt mounting area, Coil spring (front), Flexible brake hoses (front). 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 Volkswagen Caddy (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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