Dacia Sandero MOT failure rate and common faults
117,375 Dacia Sandero cars aged 3 to 20 took their MOT in 2025, and 31.0% failed at the first attempt. An average car of the same age failed 21.4% of the time, which makes the Dacia Sandero 44% more likely to fail than the typical car on the road. Here is what fails, and which years to look for.
31.0%
failed first time
117,375 MOT tests in 2025
+44%
vs same age average
average car of this age mix: 21.4%
205 of 208
age adjusted rank
among cars; 1 fails least
101.5
dangerous defects per 1,000
same age average: 84.8
What fails on a Dacia Sandero MOT
Failure items recorded per 1,000 tests, by part of the car, set against an average car with exactly the same spread of ages. A figure well above average is a weak spot worth checking before you buy.
The most common Dacia Sandero MOT failures
The individual failure items testers recorded most often, per 1,000 tests.
| Failure item | Area | Per 1,000 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Coil spring: fractured or broken | Suspension | 55.0 |
| Drive shafts: constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt | Body, chassis, exhaust and drive shafts | 47.5 |
| Headlamp aim: too low | Lights and electrics | 41.6 |
| Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively | Windscreen, wipers and mirrors | 38.9 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm | Tyres | 28.3 |
| Washers: provides insufficient washer liquid | Windscreen, wipers and mirrors | 25.2 |
| Ball joint excessively worn | Suspension | 23.6 |
| Headlamp: not working on dipped beam | Lights and electrics | 21.3 |
| Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick | Brakes | 20.8 |
| Service brake performance: excessively binding | Brakes | 16.5 |
Dacia Sandero MOT failure rate by year
Every car fails more often as it ages, so each registration year is compared with the average for all cars of the same age. Years with fewer than 500 tests are left out.
| First registered | Tests | Failed | Same age average | Average mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 13,174 | 11.0% | 11.4% | 20,500 |
| 2021 | 8,083 | 14.1% | 12.8% | 25,700 |
| 2020 | 9,048 | 21.2% | 14.1% | 31,600 |
| 2019 | 12,527 | 24.5% | 16.5% | 37,400 |
| 2018 | 12,501 | 28.9% | 19.1% | 44,800 |
| 2017 | 14,629 | 34.3% | 21.8% | 52,800 |
| 2016 | 14,270 | 38.4% | 25.1% | 61,000 |
| 2015 | 14,206 | 44.2% | 28.1% | 68,100 |
| 2014 | 12,091 | 45.5% | 31.4% | 75,500 |
| 2013 | 6,828 | 42.2% | 34.3% | 78,500 |
Advisories to look for in a Dacia Sandero's MOT history
An advisory is a tester's warning that something is wearing but has not failed yet. These are the ones written most often on the Dacia Sandero, per 1,000 tests. If the car you are looking at has one of these, ask whether it has been fixed since.
- Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge230.4
- Tyres: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing227.0
- Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened107.1
- Brake pads: wearing thin64.7
- Brake discs: worn, but not excessively41.0
- Linkage pins and bushes: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement32.7
Checking a used Dacia Sandero before you buy
Against cars of the same age, the Dacia Sandero fails more often than average on lights and electrics, suspension and brakes. Start there.
Lights and electrics
Walk round the car with every light on: headlights on dip and main beam, indicators, brake lights, fog lights and the number plate lamp. A pattern of electrical faults costs more than a bulb.
Suspension
Drive over speed bumps with the radio off and listen for knocks. Look at the car side on: a corner sitting lower than the others often means a broken coil spring.
Brakes
Look through the wheel spokes at the discs for a deep lip or scoring, check the handbrake holds the car on a slope, and feel for a pull to one side when braking hard.
Averages only take you so far. The specific car's MOT history shows whether it has already failed on any of these, how often advisories were ignored, and whether the mileage climbs steadily from test to test. Read our guide to reading a car's MOT history before you go to view it.
Fuel mix of the Dacia Sandero cars tested: Petrol 79%, Diesel 18%. Average age at test 7.5 years, average recorded mileage 49,900.
Dacia Sandero MOT questions
What is the Dacia Sandero MOT failure rate?
31.0% of Dacia Sandero cars failed their first MOT test of 2025, from 117,375 tests on vehicles aged 3 to 20. An average car with the same age mix failed 21.4% of the time, so the Dacia Sandero was 44% more likely to fail.
What fails most often on a Dacia Sandero MOT?
Lights and electrics caused the most failure items, at 172 per 1,000 tests. The single most common failure item was "Coil spring: fractured or broken", recorded 55.0 times per 1,000 tests.
Which Dacia Sandero year has the best MOT record?
Measured against cars of the same age, 2022 registrations did best: 11.0% failed against an average of 11.4% for cars that age. Older cars always fail more often, so compare a year with its age group rather than with newer cars.
Does this tell me whether a particular Dacia Sandero will pass?
No. These are averages across every Dacia Sandero tested in 2025. The car in front of you has its own record: its full MOT history shows every pass, failure and advisory it has had, and it is free to view by registration.
Other Dacia models
- Dacia Duster29.0% failed
Ranked close to the Dacia Sandero
- Renault Cliorank 202
- Tesla Model Yrank 203
- Citroen DS3rank 204
- DS DS3rank 207
How these figures are calculated
Source: DVSA Anonymised MOT tests and results, 2025 release. We count first tests of cars and small vans (class 4) aged 3 to 20, so a car that fails and is retested is counted once. A failure includes faults fixed and passed within the same visit. The same age average weights the national failure rate for each age by how many Dacia Sandero cars of that age were tested, so a model is never penalised for having an older fleet. Make and model are as recorded at the test; trim levels are combined. Full method and rankings.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.