Mercedes-Benz CLS MOT failure rate and common faults
22,392 Mercedes-Benz CLS cars aged 3 to 20 took their MOT in 2025, and 25.4% failed at the first attempt. An average car of the same age failed 32.2% of the time, which makes the Mercedes-Benz CLS 21% less likely to fail than the typical car on the road. Here is what fails, and which years to look for.
25.4%
failed first time
22,392 MOT tests in 2025
-21%
vs same age average
average car of this age mix: 32.2%
47 of 208
age adjusted rank
among cars; 1 fails least
153.1
dangerous defects per 1,000
same age average: 115.5
What fails on a Mercedes-Benz CLS 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 Mercedes-Benz CLS 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 | 40.7 |
| Tyres: has ply or cords exposed | Tyres | 37.8 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm | Tyres | 37.3 |
| Rigid brake pipes: excessively corroded | Brakes | 32.1 |
| Ball joint excessively worn | Suspension | 25.4 |
| Tyres: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords | Tyres | 23.0 |
| Malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction | Engine, emissions and leaks | 20.4 |
| Road Wheels: fractured | Wheels | 14.5 |
| Ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt | Suspension | 14.2 |
| Linkage ball joint dust cover: ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt | Suspension | 13.9 |
Mercedes-Benz CLS 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 1,073 | 17.2% | 16.5% | 51,100 |
| 2018 | 948 | 17.7% | 19.1% | 58,000 |
| 2017 | 1,465 | 20.1% | 21.8% | 68,200 |
| 2016 | 2,087 | 20.4% | 25.1% | 78,300 |
| 2015 | 2,856 | 21.4% | 28.1% | 88,700 |
| 2014 | 1,729 | 25.3% | 31.4% | 93,400 |
| 2013 | 2,962 | 27.9% | 34.3% | 103,400 |
| 2012 | 1,063 | 26.3% | 36.6% | 102,900 |
| 2011 | 1,094 | 26.1% | 38.8% | 106,300 |
| 2010 | 980 | 34.0% | 40.7% | 116,000 |
| 2009 | 949 | 33.5% | 41.8% | 117,000 |
| 2008 | 1,169 | 31.2% | 42.9% | 123,600 |
| 2007 | 1,444 | 32.3% | 42.7% | 124,900 |
| 2006 | 1,144 | 29.6% | 43.0% | 118,700 |
| 2005 | 828 | 28.7% | 42.4% | 107,300 |
Advisories to look for in a Mercedes-Benz CLS'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 Mercedes-Benz CLS, 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 edge299.9
- Rigid brake pipes: corroded, covered in grease or other material206.1
- Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened115.1
- Brake pads: wearing thin94.8
- Wheel bearings: has slight play66.6
- Engine oil leaks: leak, but not excessive64.9
Checking a used Mercedes-Benz CLS before you buy
Against cars of the same age, the Mercedes-Benz CLS fails more often than average on tyres and wheels. 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.
Wheels
Look for damaged rims, missing wheel nuts and cracked alloys, particularly on the inside edge where kerb damage hides.
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 Mercedes-Benz CLS cars tested: Diesel 88%, Petrol 11%. Average age at test 12.2 years, average recorded mileage 94,500.
Mercedes-Benz CLS MOT questions
What is the Mercedes-Benz CLS MOT failure rate?
25.4% of Mercedes-Benz CLS cars failed their first MOT test of 2025, from 22,392 tests on vehicles aged 3 to 20. An average car with the same age mix failed 32.2% of the time, so the Mercedes-Benz CLS was 21% less likely to fail.
What fails most often on a Mercedes-Benz CLS MOT?
Tyres caused the most failure items, at 137 per 1,000 tests. The single most common failure item was "Coil spring: fractured or broken", recorded 40.7 times per 1,000 tests.
Which Mercedes-Benz CLS year has the best MOT record?
Measured against cars of the same age, 2011 registrations did best: 26.1% failed against an average of 38.8% 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 Mercedes-Benz CLS will pass?
No. These are averages across every Mercedes-Benz CLS 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 Mercedes-Benz models
- Mercedes-Benz A-Class21.5% failed
- Mercedes-Benz C-Class24.8% failed
- Mercedes-Benz E-Class22.3% failed
- Mercedes-Benz GLA16.8% failed
- Mercedes-Benz GLC13.7% failed
- Mercedes-Benz Vito32.5% failed
Ranked close to the Mercedes-Benz CLS
- Audi Q3rank 44
- BMW 3 Seriesrank 45
- Toyota RAV4rank 46
- Suzuki Vitararank 48
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 Mercedes-Benz CLS 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.