Mazda 6 MOT failure rate and common faults
56,034 Mazda 6 cars aged 3 to 20 took their MOT in 2025, and 30.7% failed at the first attempt. An average car of the same age failed 30.1% of the time, which makes the Mazda 6 about as likely to fail than the typical car on the road. Here is what fails, and which years to look for.
30.7%
failed first time
56,034 MOT tests in 2025
+2%
vs same age average
average car of this age mix: 30.1%
132 of 208
age adjusted rank
among cars; 1 fails least
129.6
dangerous defects per 1,000
same age average: 110.1
What fails on a Mazda 6 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 Mazda 6 MOT failures
The individual failure items testers recorded most often, per 1,000 tests.
| Failure item | Area | Per 1,000 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Position lamp: not working | Lights and electrics | 50.3 |
| Ball joint excessively worn | Suspension | 39.2 |
| Coil spring: fractured or broken | Suspension | 35.4 |
| Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick | Brakes | 35.2 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm | Tyres | 28.5 |
| Parking brake efficiency: efficiency below requirements | Brakes | 28.4 |
| Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively | Windscreen, wipers and mirrors | 26.4 |
| Ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt | Suspension | 26.1 |
| Headlamp aim: projected beam image is obviously incorrect | Lights and electrics | 23.6 |
| Rigid brake pipes: excessively corroded | Brakes | 19.3 |
Mazda 6 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 | 718 | 8.8% | 11.4% | 30,600 |
| 2021 | 656 | 9.9% | 12.8% | 35,000 |
| 2020 | 1,046 | 11.1% | 14.1% | 41,000 |
| 2019 | 4,388 | 13.2% | 16.5% | 53,500 |
| 2018 | 3,212 | 17.8% | 19.1% | 64,400 |
| 2017 | 4,649 | 22.6% | 21.8% | 76,000 |
| 2016 | 6,720 | 26.2% | 25.1% | 84,700 |
| 2015 | 6,262 | 29.1% | 28.1% | 94,000 |
| 2014 | 5,706 | 31.7% | 31.4% | 102,000 |
| 2013 | 3,761 | 34.1% | 34.3% | 106,200 |
| 2012 | 2,556 | 39.5% | 36.6% | 107,100 |
| 2011 | 3,349 | 41.1% | 38.8% | 116,900 |
| 2010 | 4,198 | 41.6% | 40.7% | 122,600 |
| 2009 | 3,005 | 41.3% | 41.8% | 123,100 |
| 2008 | 2,512 | 46.5% | 42.9% | 125,300 |
| 2007 | 1,767 | 47.4% | 42.7% | 108,200 |
| 2006 | 966 | 44.7% | 43.0% | 101,700 |
| 2005 | 563 | 47.8% | 42.4% | 98,000 |
Advisories to look for in a Mazda 6'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 Mazda 6, 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 edge288.6
- Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened165.4
- Suspension arm: corroded but not seriously weakened144.7
- Brake pads: wearing thin138.3
- Suspension arms: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement131.7
- Sub-frame: corroded but not seriously weakened119.2
Checking a used Mazda 6 before you buy
Against cars of the same age, the Mazda 6 fails more often than average on brakes and suspension. Start there.
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.
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.
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 Mazda 6 cars tested: Diesel 52%, Petrol 48%. Average age at test 11.1 years, average recorded mileage 93,400.
Mazda 6 MOT questions
What is the Mazda 6 MOT failure rate?
30.7% of Mazda 6 cars failed their first MOT test of 2025, from 56,034 tests on vehicles aged 3 to 20. An average car with the same age mix failed 30.1% of the time, so the Mazda 6 was about as likely to fail.
What fails most often on a Mazda 6 MOT?
Brakes caused the most failure items, at 178 per 1,000 tests. The single most common failure item was "Position lamp: not working", recorded 50.3 times per 1,000 tests.
Which Mazda 6 year has the best MOT record?
Measured against cars of the same age, 2020 registrations did best: 11.1% failed against an average of 14.1% 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 Mazda 6 will pass?
No. These are averages across every Mazda 6 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 Mazda models
- Mazda 230.4% failed
- Mazda 331.2% failed
- Mazda CX-519.6% failed
- Mazda MX-521.7% failed
- Mazda CX-316.5% failed
- Mazda CX-308.7% failed
Ranked close to the Mazda 6
- Ford C-Maxrank 130
- Mercedes-Benz CLArank 131
- Vauxhall Agilarank 133
- Skoda Rapidrank 134
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 Mazda 6 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.