At a glance
How 40,499 first tests went in 2025.
- Passed first time
- 62 in every 100
- Did not pass first time
- 38 in every 10015,358 failed first-attempt tests
- The typical car
- 15 yearsabout 117,213 miles
- First tests counted
- 40,499
What failed most often
- Coil spring (front)11 in every 100 failed tests
- Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover (front)11 in every 100 failed tests
- Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test)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.
These are patterns across 2010 Volkswagen Golf 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.
Suspension
Four faults. The strongest is the suspension arm (rear): 4.1 times as often as on similar cars.
Figures below are measured across the 15,342 of 15,358 failed first attempts (99.9%) 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)
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 1,811 first tests, 3.9 times as often as on similar cars.
Suspension arm ball joint dust cover (front)
Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover (front)
What it means
A suspension joint dust cover that is severely deteriorated is Minor. It becomes Major once it is missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt, so what matters is whether it still keeps dirt out. DVSA words this for any suspension joint dust cover, and files it here under anti-roll bars.
Anti-roll bar ball joint dust cover (front)
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. The strongest is the anti-lock braking system (ABS): 3.5 times as often as on similar cars.
Anti-lock braking system (ABS)
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.
Electronic stability control
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.
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.
Lamps and electrical
Three faults. The strongest is the reversing lights: 3.4 times as often as on similar cars.
Reversing lights
What it means
Reversing lamps must show a white light to the rear, and on some vehicles the engine has to be running before they work. A lamp that does not emit a steady white light, does not face the rear or has its light intensity significantly reduced is Major. A lamp not securely attached is Minor, but one likely to become detached is Major.
Side repeater indicators
What it means
Sequential or dynamic direction indicators are not a reason to fail. Where a side repeater is required, it is allowed to be part of the front direction indicator if it has a marked wraparound lens, or an amber light coming through the front lens when viewed from a set distance to the side of the rear bumper. A lens defect with no effect on the emitted light is Minor, and one that adversely affects the light is Major.
Rear fog light
What it means
A missing obligatory rear fog lamp, one that is not working, or one that does not emit a steady red light is graded Major. A rear fog lamp adversely affected by the operation of any other lamp is Major too. The manual allows it to go out when main beam is switched on or when dipped beam headlamps are switched off.
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.
Sound deadening material
Shock absorbers (front)
Noise-suppression undertray (front)
Anti-roll bar (front)
Anti-roll bar ball joint (rear)
Suspension sub-frame (rear)
Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear)
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
- 62in every 100
- Passed on the first test.
- Fixed at the station
- 6in every 100
- Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
- Failed
- 32in every 100
- Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.
First-attempt pass 62.1% of 40,499 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 67.9%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 6 fixed and the 32 not fixed make the 38 in every 100 that did not pass first time.
Petrol and diesel
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.
Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb.
| Year | Passed first time | First tests |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 69 in every 100 | 400 |
| 1996 | 65 in every 100 | 762 |
| 1997 | 67 in every 100 | 815 |
| 1998 | 58 in every 100 | 966 |
| 1999 | 57 in every 100 | 2,054 |
| 2000 | 57 in every 100 | 3,407 |
| 2001 | 58 in every 100 | 6,179 |
| 2002 | 58 in every 100 | 11,184 |
| 2003 | 56 in every 100 | 13,117 |
| 2004 | 51 in every 100 | 9,088 |
| 2005 | 55 in every 100 | 14,756 |
| 2006 | 56 in every 100 | 22,937 |
| 2007 | 57 in every 100 | 32,607 |
| 2008 | 58 in every 100 | 33,663 |
| 2009 | 62 in every 100 | 38,839 |
| 2010 This car | 62 in every 100 | 40,499 |
| 2011 | 63 in every 100 | 46,753 |
| 2012 | 67 in every 100 | 49,327 |
| 2013 | 75 in every 100 | 52,726 |
| 2014 | 79 in every 100 | 61,863 |
| 2015 | 82 in every 100 | 65,061 |
| 2016 | 84 in every 100 | 62,677 |
| 2017 | 85 in every 100 | 67,347 |
| 2018 | 86 in every 100 | 59,286 |
| 2019 | 87 in every 100 | 50,876 |
| 2020 | 90 in every 100 | 38,117 |
| 2021 | 91 in every 100 | 27,374 |
| 2022 | 92 in every 100 | 24,414 |
If you are buying one
What this year's MOT record means for the decision in front of you.
Mileage matters most on a 2010 Golf.
Of 2010 Golf vehicles with under 84,000 miles, 70 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 152,000 miles or more, 58 in every 100 did.
Petrol or diesel?
| Typical mileage | Passed first time, as tested | Passed first time, same mileage | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diesel | 129,826 miles | 61 | 62 |
| Petrol | 94,244 miles | 65 | 62 |
Figures are in every 100 first tests. Petrol cars look better on the raw figures only because diesel cars have done more miles (typically 129,826 against 94,244). At the same mileage there is no clear difference between the two.
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 84,000 | 107,000–128,000 | 152,000 and over | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coil spring (front) | 3.2 | 4.1 | 4.8 |
| Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover (front) | 4.7 | 4.4 | 2.7 |
| Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test) | 1.0 | 3.3 | 5.5 |
| Suspension arm ball joint dust cover (front) | 2.3 | 3.2 | 3.5 |
| Tyre condition (front) | 2.2 | 3.2 | 3.1 |
Faults per 100 first tests, by the car's mileage at the test.
When a car fails
of failed cars had one item to fix.
of failed cars had three or more items to fix.
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.
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.
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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