Dacia Sandero MOT pass rate & common failures

At a glance

Pass rate, adjusted for age and mileage

The Sandero is 7.9 percentage points below the national pass rate once age and mileage are accounted for, which is well below average. The unadjusted figure is 69.1%; the difference is what the age and mileage of this model’s fleet was hiding.

DVSA recorded wording

Most common failure items

Share of failed Dacia Sandero tests in which each item was recorded. One failed test often lists several items, so these do not sum to 100%.

1. 1.A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened22.7%

   6,412 occurrencesRoad spring broken or fractured explained

2. 2.A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc17.8%

   5,027 occurrencesDriveshaft CV joint gaiter split or missing explained

3. 3.Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen11.5%

   3,255 occurrencesWiper or washer not working properly explained

4. 4.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements11.3%

   3,174 occurrencesTyre worn close to the legal limit explained

5. 5.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn9.3%

   2,614 occurrencesSuspension arm bush worn explained

6. 6.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm8.5%

   2,385 occurrencesBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained

7. 7.The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements7.2%

   2,040 occurrencesHeadlamp aim incorrect explained

8. 8.Windscreen washers not working or not providing sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen6.1%

   1,729 occurrencesWiper or washer not working properly explained

9. 9.A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play5.8%

   1,626 occurrencesBall joint worn explained

10. 10.Audible warning inoperative5.7%

    1,619 occurrencesHorn not working, or of the wrong type explained

Warnings without a failure

Most common advisories

Share of all Dacia Sandero tests carrying each advisory. The denominator differs from the failure list above because an advisory can be issued on a car that passed.

1. 1.A tyre seriously damaged22.6%

   26,657 testsTyre damaged or deteriorated explained

2. 2.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements20.4%

   24,059 testsTyre worn close to the legal limit explained

3. 3.Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured10.7%

   12,578 testsBrake disc worn, pitted or scored explained

4. 4.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm6.5%

   7,613 testsBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained

5. 5.Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn4.1%

   4,826 testsBrake disc worn, pitted or scored explained

6. 6.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn3.3%

   3,844 testsSuspension arm bush worn explained

7. 7.Child Seat fitted not allowing full inspection of adult belt2.8%

   3,279 tests

8. 8.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements2.6%

   3,043 testsTyre worn close to the legal limit explained

How wear changes the picture

Pass rate by vehicle age

Bands holding too few tests to be meaningful are omitted rather than shown as a rate.

What gets tested

The Sandero fleet

Average mileage recorded at test

49,733

Across examples of every age, so this is a description of the fleet rather than an annual figure.

Fuel mix of tested cars

Petrol79.2%

Diesel17.8%

Petrol and gas bi-fuel2.9%

Compare within the range

Other Dacia models

• Dacia Duster — 66.7% adjusted
• Dacia Logan — 72.6% adjusted
• Dacia Jogger — 84.3% unadjusted
• All Dacia models →

Similar test volumes

Compare against other makes

• Audi Q5 — 81.6% adjusted, ranked 42
• Volvo XC60 — 79.1% adjusted, ranked 62
• Land Rover Defender — 74.4% adjusted, ranked 117
• Land Rover Discovery Sport — 81.9% adjusted, ranked 40

Common questions

Is the Dacia Sandero reliable?

On MOT evidence the Dacia Sandero is well below average. It passes 64.4% of tests once age and mileage are accounted for, against a national average of 72.3%. That figure covers 78% of the national age and mileage range, which is enough to quote but not to rank. This measures how often the car meets the MOT standard, not how often it breaks down or what a repair costs.

What is the most common MOT failure on a Dacia Sandero?

The item recorded most often is "A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened", which appears in 22.7% of failed Dacia Sandero tests. Because one failed test can list several items, these shares do not add up to 100%.

What do testers most often warn about on a Dacia Sandero?

The most common advisory is "A tyre seriously damaged", noted on 22.6% of all Dacia Sandero tests. An advisory is not a failure: it flags something that will likely need attention before the next test.

What mileage does a Dacia Sandero usually have at its MOT?

The average odometer reading recorded at test is 49,733 miles. This is the mileage across all tested examples of every age, not an annual figure, so treat it as a description of the fleet rather than a target for one car.

Does a Dacia Sandero get harder to pass as it ages?

Yes. At 3 to 5 years old, 85.1% of Dacia Sandero tests pass. By 12 to 14 years, that falls to 57.8%. Nearly every model follows this pattern, which is why comparing raw pass rates between models is misleading unless age is accounted for.

Are most Dacia Sandero models petrol or diesel?

Of the Dacia Sandero cars tested, 79% are petrol, 18% are diesel, 3% are petrol and gas bi-fuel. Fuel type affects which items tend to fail, particularly emissions and exhaust components.

How this was worked out

Method and limits

Figures come from the DVSA anonymised MOT testing dataset, published under the Open Government Licence. Only class 4 initial tests are counted: retests are excluded so a car appears once, and abandoned tests are excluded entirely. The adjusted rate is directly standardised across twenty-five age and mileage bands and reweighted onto the national distribution, so this model is compared against cars that have lived a similar life rather than against a younger or lighter-used fleet.

An MOT measures whether a car met a legal standard on the day. It is not a breakdown record, a service history or a running-cost estimate, and a pass rate is a property of a fleet rather than a prediction about one car.

Further reading

Make sense of the numbers

• How to judge reliability from evidence rather than reputation
• What counts as high or low mileage for a car’s age
• The most common MOT failures and how to avoid them
• What to check before buying a used Dacia