Mercedes-Benz Vito MOT pass rate & common failures

At a glance

Pass rate, adjusted for age and mileage

The Vito is 1.3 percentage points below the national pass rate once age and mileage are accounted for, which is below average. The unadjusted figure is 67.2%; 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 Vito 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 weakened19.2%

   4,310 occurrencesRoad spring broken or fractured explained

2. 2.Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement15.2%

   3,409 occurrencesParking brake efficiency too low explained

3. 3.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn11.0%

   2,458 occurrencesSuspension arm bush worn explained

4. 4.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements9.7%

   2,174 occurrencesTyre worn close to the legal limit explained

5. 5.Engine MIL illuminated indicating a malfunction8.6%

   1,923 occurrencesEngine management light on, or not working explained

6. 6.Parking brake inoperative on one side7.9%

   1,775 occurrencesParking brake efficiency too low explained

7. 7.A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning7.7%

   1,727 occurrencesLamp not working explained

8. 8.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm7.3%

   1,647 occurrencesBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained

9. 9.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 repaired7.3%

   1,645 occurrencesSuspension mounting corroded or insecure explained

10. 10.Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen7.3%

    1,639 occurrencesWiper or washer not working properly explained

Warnings without a failure

Most common advisories

Share of all Mercedes-Benz Vito 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.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements24.2%

   20,641 testsTyre worn close to the legal limit explained

2. 2.Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured12.0%

   10,251 testsBrake disc worn, pitted or scored explained

3. 3.Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded11.6%

   9,925 testsBrake pipe corroded explained

4. 4.Fluid leaking excessively and likely to harm the environment or to pose a safety risk to other road users7.5%

   6,428 tests

5. 5.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm7.0%

   6,007 testsBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained

6. 6.A tyre seriously damaged5.6%

   4,763 testsTyre damaged or deteriorated explained

7. 7.Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn4.3%

   3,683 testsBrake disc worn, pitted or scored explained

8. 8.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn4.1%

   3,534 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 Vito fleet

Average mileage recorded at test

143,222

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

Fuel mix of tested cars

Diesel99.6%

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 GLC — 85.9% adjusted
• Mercedes-Benz CLA — 78.6% adjusted
• All Mercedes-Benz models →

Similar test volumes

Compare against other makes

• Fiat Panda — 65.2% adjusted, ranked 220
• Land Rover Range Rover — 82.4% adjusted, ranked 33
• Nissan X-Trail — 70.5% adjusted, ranked 167
• Dacia Duster — 66.7% adjusted, ranked 208

Common questions

Is the Mercedes-Benz Vito reliable?

On MOT evidence the Mercedes-Benz Vito is below average. It passes 71.0% of tests once age and mileage are accounted for, against a national average of 72.3%, which ranks it 161 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 Vito?

The item recorded most often is "A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened", which appears in 19.2% of failed Mercedes-Benz Vito 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 Vito?

The most common advisory is "Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements", noted on 24.2% of all Mercedes-Benz Vito 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 Vito usually have at its MOT?

The average odometer reading recorded at test is 143,222 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 Vito get harder to pass as it ages?

Yes. At 3 to 5 years old, 77.0% of Mercedes-Benz Vito tests pass. By fifteen years or more, that falls to 57.6%. 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