Mercedes Benz 500 MOT failures and reliability

In 2023 the Mercedes Benz 500 took 1,063 MOT tests in Britain and passed 79% of them first time, above the national average of 71% for all cars. The figures below come from the DVSA's record of every test, so they show what testers actually found on these cars rather than what owners report.

MOT tests in 2023

1,063

First-time pass rate

79%

All cars

71%

What the 500 fails on

Share of tests with at least one failure in each area, against the figure for all cars.

• Lights and electrics10.1% (all cars 11.3%)
• Brakes5.5% (all cars 6.8%)
• Suspension4.4% (all cars 9.0%)
• Exhaust and emissions4.0% (all cars 3.1%)
• Visibility3.9% (all cars 4.8%)
• Body and structure3.7% (all cars 3.5%)
• Tyres1.8% (all cars 6.4%)
• Steering1.6% (all cars 1.8%)

Most common failure items

Share of tests on which each item was recorded.

1. Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively 2.0%
2. Service brake performance: excessively binding 1.9%
3. Non catalyst emissions: emissions carbon monoxide content excessive 1.8%
4. Position lamp: not working 1.8%
5. Headlamp aim: too low 1.6%
6. Ball joint dust cover: ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt 1.6%
7. Rear fog lamp: not working 1.4%
8. Washers: provides insufficient washer liquid 1.0%

Most common advisories

1. Engine oil leaks: leak, but not excessive 10.5%
2. Rigid brake pipes: corroded, covered in grease or other material 8.5%
3. Coil spring: corroded 5.7%
4. Tyres, condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing 5.6%
5. Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge 4.8%
6. Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened 3.7%
7. Exhaust system: has a minor leak of exhaust gases 3.2%
8. Transmission oil leaks: leak, but not excessive 2.8%

Check a particular 500

Model figures tell you what to look out for. To see one car's own MOT history, mileage and tax, enter its registration.

Other Mercedes Benz models

• Mercedes Benz C Class
• Mercedes Benz A Class
• Mercedes Benz E Class
• Mercedes Benz Vito
• Mercedes Benz GLA
• Mercedes Benz GLC
• Mercedes Benz B Class
• Mercedes Benz SLK
• Mercedes Benz CLA
• Mercedes Benz ML
• Mercedes Benz CLK
• Mercedes Benz S Class
• Mercedes Benz GLE
• Mercedes Benz CLS
• Mercedes Benz Sprinter
• Mercedes Benz SL
• Mercedes Benz Citan
• Mercedes Benz V Class
• Mercedes Benz CLC
• Mercedes Benz SLC
• Mercedes Benz Viano
• Mercedes Benz GL
• Mercedes Benz X Class
• Mercedes Benz CL
• Mercedes Benz 190
• Mercedes Benz 300
• Mercedes Benz GLS
• Mercedes Benz R Class
• Mercedes Benz A 200
• Mercedes Benz G Class
• Mercedes Benz C 320
• Mercedes Benz GT
• Mercedes Benz 280

Source: Department for Transport, Anonymised MOT tests and results, 2023, cars and light vans, normal tests only. Pass rates are first-time passes; a pass after repair at the test station counts as a fail. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.