Ford Mondeo MOT failure rate and common faults
163,539 Ford Mondeo cars aged 3 to 20 took their MOT in 2025, and 32.3% failed at the first attempt. An average car of the same age failed 33.2% of the time, which makes the Ford Mondeo 3% less likely to fail than the typical car on the road. Here is what fails, and which years to look for.
32.3%
failed first time
163,539 MOT tests in 2025
-3%
vs same age average
average car of this age mix: 33.2%
115 of 208
age adjusted rank
among cars; 1 fails least
150.3
dangerous defects per 1,000
same age average: 118.8
What fails on a Ford Mondeo 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 Ford Mondeo MOT failures
The individual failure items testers recorded most often, per 1,000 tests.
| Failure item | Area | Per 1,000 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm | Tyres | 42.2 |
| Position lamp: not working | Lights and electrics | 40.1 |
| Suspension arms: pin or bush excessively worn | Suspension | 35.1 |
| Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick | Brakes | 32.3 |
| Tyres: has ply or cords exposed | Tyres | 30.8 |
| Headlamp aim: projected beam image is obviously incorrect | Lights and electrics | 25.1 |
| Registration plate lamp(s): inoperative in the case of a single lamp or all lamps | Lights and electrics | 20.7 |
| Suspension arm: corroded and seriously weakened | Suspension | 20.3 |
| Stop lamp: not working | Lights and electrics | 19.2 |
| Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively | Windscreen, wipers and mirrors | 18.1 |
Ford Mondeo 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 | 500 | 13.0% | 11.4% | 34,400 |
| 2021 | 1,171 | 15.4% | 12.8% | 51,000 |
| 2020 | 2,239 | 14.3% | 14.1% | 59,800 |
| 2019 | 4,371 | 15.5% | 16.5% | 72,300 |
| 2018 | 6,989 | 16.6% | 19.1% | 82,900 |
| 2017 | 10,842 | 17.5% | 21.8% | 90,800 |
| 2016 | 15,998 | 19.7% | 25.1% | 99,500 |
| 2015 | 17,037 | 23.9% | 28.1% | 106,600 |
| 2014 | 11,023 | 32.4% | 31.4% | 121,700 |
| 2013 | 11,878 | 34.6% | 34.3% | 128,300 |
| 2012 | 14,618 | 35.8% | 36.6% | 128,500 |
| 2011 | 11,907 | 37.3% | 38.8% | 132,900 |
| 2010 | 13,224 | 41.8% | 40.7% | 132,400 |
| 2009 | 12,409 | 42.3% | 41.8% | 135,200 |
| 2008 | 11,039 | 44.8% | 42.9% | 138,300 |
| 2007 | 8,396 | 45.3% | 42.7% | 130,800 |
| 2006 | 5,419 | 44.0% | 43.0% | 121,700 |
| 2005 | 4,479 | 44.6% | 42.4% | 121,200 |
Advisories to look for in a Ford Mondeo'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 Ford Mondeo, 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 edge374.0
- Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened165.8
- Suspension arms: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement143.6
- Suspension arm: corroded but not seriously weakened132.9
- Brake pads: wearing thin132.1
- Coil spring: corroded120.9
Checking a used Ford Mondeo before you buy
Against cars of the same age, the Ford Mondeo fails more often than average on tyres. Start there.
Tyres
Check the tread across the full width of every tyre, inner edge included. Uneven wear points to worn suspension or out of line steering geometry.
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 Ford Mondeo cars tested: Diesel 82%, Petrol 16%. Average age at test 12.5 years, average recorded mileage 116,600.
Ford Mondeo MOT questions
What is the Ford Mondeo MOT failure rate?
32.3% of Ford Mondeo cars failed their first MOT test of 2025, from 163,539 tests on vehicles aged 3 to 20. An average car with the same age mix failed 33.2% of the time, so the Ford Mondeo was 3% less likely to fail.
What fails most often on a Ford Mondeo MOT?
Lights and electrics caused the most failure items, at 214 per 1,000 tests. The single most common failure item was "Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm", recorded 42.2 times per 1,000 tests.
Which Ford Mondeo year has the best MOT record?
Measured against cars of the same age, 2016 registrations did best: 19.7% failed against an average of 25.1% 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 Ford Mondeo will pass?
No. These are averages across every Ford Mondeo 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 Ford models
- Ford Fiesta34.1% failed
- Ford Focus31.4% failed
- Ford Kuga20.6% failed
- Ford Transit37.5% failed
- Ford Transit Custom22.8% failed
- Ford Ka33.3% failed
Ranked close to the Ford Mondeo
- Hyundai i10rank 112
- Volkswagen Touranrank 113
- Mitsubishi Outlanderrank 114
- Suzuki SX4rank 116
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 Ford Mondeo 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.