Is the Ford Transit Courier reliable?

On MOT evidence the Ford Transit Courier is about average. It passes 72.6% of tests once age and mileage are accounted for, against a national average of 72.3%. That figure covers 62% 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 Ford Transit Courier?

The item recorded most often is "Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements", which appears in 18.9% of failed Ford Transit Courier 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 Ford Transit Courier?

The most common advisory is "Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements", noted on 30.6% of all Ford Transit Courier tests. An advisory is not a failure: it flags something that will likely need attention before the next test.

What mileage does a Ford Transit Courier usually have at its MOT?

The average odometer reading recorded at test is 79,832 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.

Which Ford Transit Courier years are the most reliable?

Going by MOT pass rate, Ford Transit Courier cars first registered 2020–2022 do best at 77.6%, and those registered 2014–2016 do worst at 61.4%. But that ordering is mostly age, not build year: almost every model passes less often as it wears, so the newest cars top this list whatever they are. A specific year looking strong here means little on its own; the failure items above, and the individual car's own MOT history, tell you far more.

Does a Ford Transit Courier get harder to pass as it ages?

Yes. At 3 to 5 years old, 77.6% of Ford Transit Courier tests pass. By 9 to 11 years, that falls to 61.4%. Nearly every model follows this pattern, which is why comparing raw pass rates between models is misleading unless age is accounted for.

Are most Ford Transit Courier models petrol or diesel?

Of the Ford Transit Courier cars tested, 84% are diesel, 16% are petrol. Fuel type affects which items tend to fail, particularly emissions and exhaust components.

Model reliability file

Ford Transit Courier MOT pass rate & common failures

From 30,999 recorded MOT tests of the Ford Transit Courier, published by DVSA.

Data updated 29 July 2026

Quick answer

The Ford Transit Courier passes 72.6% of MOT tests once results are adjusted for the age and mileage of the cars tested, against a national average of 72.3%. That is about average. Based on 30,999 tests. Its most commonly recorded failure is tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements, which appears in 18.9% of failed tests. Cars of this model average 79,832 miles on the odometer when tested.

At a glance

Pass rate, adjusted for age and mileage

72.6%national average72.3%unadjusted70.5%range covered62%

The Transit Courier is 0.3 percentage points above the national pass rate once age and mileage are accounted for, which is about average. The unadjusted figure is 70.5%; 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 Ford Transit Courier tests in which each item was recorded. One failed test often lists several items, so these do not sum to 100%.

1.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements18.9%
1,235 occurrencesTyre worn close to the legal limit explained
2.Stop lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning18.8%
1,230 occurrencesStop lamp not working explained
3.A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened13.0%
846 occurrencesRoad spring broken or fractured explained
4.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn10.8%
706 occurrencesSuspension arm bush worn explained
5.Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen10.5%
687 occurrencesWiper or washer not working properly explained
6.A tyre seriously damaged9.9%
648 occurrencesTyre damaged or deteriorated explained
7.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm9.6%
625 occurrencesBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained
8.A tyre cords visible or damaged8.6%
564 occurrencesTyre ply or cord exposed, or the casing separating explained
9.A headlamp or light source missing, inoperative or more than ½ not functioning in the case of LED8.4%
549 occurrencesHeadlamp not working explained
10.A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of a single lamp or all lamps6.8%
445 occurrencesLamp not working explained

Warnings without a failure

Most common advisories

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

1.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements30.6%
9,497 testsTyre worn close to the legal limit explained
2.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm7.7%
2,400 testsBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained
3.A tyre seriously damaged5.8%
1,797 testsTyre damaged or deteriorated explained
4.Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured5.4%
1,661 testsBrake disc worn, pitted or scored explained
5.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements4.1%
1,271 testsTyre worn close to the legal limit explained
6.Number plate inscription missing or illegible3.1%
961 testsRegistration plate missing, insecure or illegible explained
7.Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn2.9%
899 testsBrake disc worn, pitted or scored explained
8.Nail in tyre2.8%
876 tests

The rest of the record

Everything else recorded on the Ford Transit Courier

The 18 other defects testers recorded on this model, beyond the most common listed above. Each links to what it means and what it takes to put right.

Known faults

Ford Transit Courier common problems, by part and by year

The same failure record read the way a buyer asks the question: which parts wear out on a Transit Courier, when they start, and how each registration year compares — including the steps that mark a generation change.

Transit Courier common problems and results by year

How wear changes the picture

Transit Courier pass rate by age and registration year

How often the Ford Transit Courier passes at each age, with the years those cars were first registered. Tests are from 2025, so a car aged 3 to 5 was first used in 2020–2022.

3–5 yrsreg. 2020–202278%

6–8 yrsreg. 2017–201969%

9–11 yrsreg. 2014–201661%

Read this as an age curve rather than a verdict on particular model years. Nearly every car passes less often as it gets older, so a newer Transit Courier outscoring an older one says more about wear than about how that year’s cars were built. Bands holding too few tests to be meaningful are omitted rather than shown as a rate.

What gets tested

The Transit Courier fleet

Average mileage recorded at test: 79,832
Fuel mix of tested cars: Diesel83.7%
Petrol16.3%

Trim names grouped into this model (6)

Recorded exactly as DVSA holds them. Trim-level names are rolled up so one model is not split across a dozen thin pages.

TRANSIT COURIER LEADER ECOBLUE
TRANSIT COURIER LIMITED
TRANSIT COURIER LIMITED ECOBLU
TRANSIT COURIER LIMITED ECOBST
TRANSIT COURIER TREND
TRANSIT COURIER TREND ECOBLUE

Check a specific Ford Transit Courier

A model average tells you the pattern. Its own MOT record tells you the car.

Compare within the range

Other Ford models

Ford Fiesta — 67.1% adjusted
Ford Focus — 71.6% adjusted
Ford Kuga — 75.3% adjusted
Ford Transit — 68.0% adjusted
Ford Transit Custom — 77.3% unadjusted
Ford Mondeo — 76.0% adjusted
All Ford models

Similar test volumes

Compare against other makes

Lexus CT — 85.0% adjusted, ranked 19
Suzuki Ignis — 73.5% adjusted, ranked 127
Lexus NX — 89.3% adjusted, ranked 5
Porsche Cayenne — 85.3% adjusted, ranked 18

Common questions

Is the Ford Transit Courier reliable?: On MOT evidence the Ford Transit Courier is about average. It passes 72.6% of tests once age and mileage are accounted for, against a national average of 72.3%. That figure covers 62% 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 Ford Transit Courier?: The item recorded most often is "Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements", which appears in 18.9% of failed Ford Transit Courier 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 Ford Transit Courier?: The most common advisory is "Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements", noted on 30.6% of all Ford Transit Courier tests. An advisory is not a failure: it flags something that will likely need attention before the next test.
What mileage does a Ford Transit Courier usually have at its MOT?: The average odometer reading recorded at test is 79,832 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.
Which Ford Transit Courier years are the most reliable?: Going by MOT pass rate, Ford Transit Courier cars first registered 2020–2022 do best at 77.6%, and those registered 2014–2016 do worst at 61.4%. But that ordering is mostly age, not build year: almost every model passes less often as it wears, so the newest cars top this list whatever they are. A specific year looking strong here means little on its own; the failure items above, and the individual car's own MOT history, tell you far more.
Does a Ford Transit Courier get harder to pass as it ages?: Yes. At 3 to 5 years old, 77.6% of Ford Transit Courier tests pass. By 9 to 11 years, that falls to 61.4%. Nearly every model follows this pattern, which is why comparing raw pass rates between models is misleading unless age is accounted for.
Are most Ford Transit Courier models petrol or diesel?: Of the Ford Transit Courier cars tested, 84% are diesel, 16% are petrol. 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.