Volkswagen Jetta MOT failures and reliability
In 2023 the Volkswagen Jetta took 15,432 MOT tests in Britain and passed 65% of them first time, below 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
- 15,432
- First-time pass rate
- 65%
- All cars
- 71%
What the Jetta fails on
Share of tests with at least one failure in each area, against the figure for all cars.
- Suspension16.4% (all cars 9.0%)
- Lights and electrics11.3% (all cars 11.3%)
- Brakes9.0% (all cars 6.8%)
- Tyres7.2% (all cars 6.4%)
- Body and structure5.6% (all cars 3.5%)
- Exhaust and emissions4.6% (all cars 3.1%)
- Visibility4.5% (all cars 4.8%)
- Seat belts and airbags2.9% (all cars 1.0%)
Most common failure items
Share of tests on which each item was recorded.
- Coil spring: fractured or broken 6.3%
- Suspension arms, pins and bushes: pin or bush excessively worn 3.7%
- Joints: constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt 3.0%
- Linkage ball joint dust cover: ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt 2.7%
- Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm 2.7%
- Malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction 2.7%
- Rbt (sp): efficiency below requirements 2.3%
- Tyres, condition: has ply or cords exposed 2.3%
Most common advisories
- Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge 21.3%
- Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened 12.0%
- Suspension arms, pins and bushes: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement 12.0%
- Tyres, condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing 7.4%
- Coil spring: corroded 7.3%
- Brake pads: wearing thin 7.1%
- Engine oil leaks: leak, but not excessive 5.8%
- Registration plates: deteriorated but not likely to be misread 3.5%
Pass rate by year of registration
Older cars fail more often whatever the model, so compare a car with others of the same age.
| First registered | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 1,895 | 59% |
| 2007 | 2,559 | 59% |
| 2008 | 1,851 | 62% |
| 2009 | 1,232 | 63% |
| 2010 | 747 | 64% |
| 2011 | 1,001 | 65% |
| 2012 | 1,280 | 65% |
| 2013 | 1,127 | 68% |
| 2014 | 1,061 | 69% |
| 2015 | 1,176 | 73% |
| 2016 | 800 | 76% |
| 2017 | 352 | 75% |
Typical mileage by age
Average odometer reading at the MOT, by the car's age in years at the test.
| Age at test | Average mileage |
|---|---|
| 6 years | 52,366 miles |
| 7 years | 65,242 miles |
| 8 years | 73,876 miles |
| 9 years | 86,389 miles |
| 10 years | 94,226 miles |
| 11 years | 106,194 miles |
| 12 years | 110,736 miles |
| 13 years | 110,840 miles |
| 14 years | 111,626 miles |
| 15 years | 126,210 miles |
| 16 years | 132,533 miles |
| 17 years | 134,191 miles |
Check a particular Jetta
Model figures tell you what to look out for. To see one car's own MOT history, mileage and tax, enter its registration.
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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.