Mercedes-Benz Sprinter MOT pass rate & common failures

At a glance

Pass rate, adjusted for age and mileage

The Sprinter is 3.3 percentage points above the national pass rate once age and mileage are accounted for, which is above average. The unadjusted figure is 71.3%; 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 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter tests in which each item was recorded. One failed test often lists several items, so these do not sum to 100%.

1. 1.Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement20.4%

   1,176 occurrencesParking brake efficiency too low explained

2. 2.Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded14.3%

   823 occurrencesBrake pipe corroded explained

3. 3.Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen11.1%

   640 occurrencesWiper or washer not working properly explained

4. 4.The strength or continuity of the load bearing structure within 30cm of any sub-frame, spring or suspension component mounting (a 'prescribed area') is significantly reduced or inadequately repaired10.0%

   578 occurrencesSuspension mounting corroded or insecure explained

5. 5.A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning9.6%

   552 occurrencesLamp not working explained

6. 6.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn8.9%

   513 occurrencesSuspension arm bush worn explained

7. 7.A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play7.8%

   448 occurrencesBall joint worn explained

8. 8.The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements7.6%

   439 occurrencesHeadlamp aim incorrect explained

9. 9.Parking brake efficiency less than 50% of the required value7.3%

   420 occurrencesParking brake efficiency too low explained

10. 10.Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake6.2%

    356 occurrencesBrake binding or imbalanced across an axle explained

Warnings without a failure

Most common advisories

Share of all Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 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.Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded23.1%

   5,628 testsBrake pipe corroded explained

2. 2.Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured15.2%

   3,707 testsBrake disc worn, pitted or scored explained

3. 3.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn11.9%

   2,890 testsSuspension arm bush worn explained

4. 4.Play in steering rack inner joint(s)10.2%

   2,480 tests

5. 5.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements9.9%

   2,410 testsTyre worn close to the legal limit explained

6. 6.Fluid leaking excessively and likely to harm the environment or to pose a safety risk to other road users7.1%

   1,737 tests

7. 7.A tyre seriously damaged6.6%

   1,603 testsTyre damaged or deteriorated explained

8. 8.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn4.3%

   1,056 testsSuspension arm bush worn 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 Sprinter fleet

Average mileage recorded at test

127,027

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

Fuel mix of tested cars

Diesel99.8%

Compare within the range

Other Mercedes-Benz models

• Mercedes-Benz A-Class — 73.3% adjusted
• Mercedes-Benz C-Class — 77.0% adjusted
• Mercedes-Benz E-Class — 78.5% adjusted
• Mercedes-Benz GLA — 82.3% adjusted
• Mercedes-Benz Vito — 71.0% adjusted
• Mercedes-Benz GLC — 85.9% adjusted
• All Mercedes-Benz models →

Similar test volumes

Compare against other makes

• Alfa Romeo Giulietta — 69.8% adjusted, ranked 172
• Nissan NV200 — 60.0% adjusted, ranked 252
• Kia Soul — 71.1% adjusted, ranked 159
• Fiat 500C — 64.8% adjusted, ranked 224

Common questions

Is the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter reliable?

On MOT evidence the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter is above average. It passes 75.6% of tests once age and mileage are accounted for, against a national average of 72.3%, which ranks it 99 of 262 models with enough data for a fair comparison. 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 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter?

The item recorded most often is "Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement", which appears in 20.4% of failed Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 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 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter?

The most common advisory is "Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded", noted on 23.1% of all Mercedes-Benz Sprinter tests. An advisory is not a failure: it flags something that will likely need attention before the next test.

What mileage does a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter usually have at its MOT?

The average odometer reading recorded at test is 127,027 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 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter get harder to pass as it ages?

Yes. At 3 to 5 years old, 85.8% of Mercedes-Benz Sprinter tests pass. By fifteen years or more, that falls to 62.8%. Nearly every model follows this pattern, which is why comparing raw pass rates between models is misleading unless age is accounted for.

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 Mercedes-Benz