Suzuki Swift MOT failure rate and common faults
134,483 Suzuki Swift cars aged 3 to 20 took their MOT in 2025, and 27.7% failed at the first attempt. An average car of the same age failed 28.3% of the time, which makes the Suzuki Swift about as likely to fail than the typical car on the road. Here is what fails, and which years to look for.
27.7%
failed first time
134,483 MOT tests in 2025
-2%
vs same age average
average car of this age mix: 28.3%
118 of 208
age adjusted rank
among cars; 1 fails least
81.4
dangerous defects per 1,000
same age average: 104.8
What fails on a Suzuki Swift 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 Suzuki Swift 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 | 56.5 |
| Stop lamp: not working | Lights and electrics | 43.6 |
| Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively | Windscreen, wipers and mirrors | 42.1 |
| Rigid brake pipes: excessively corroded | Brakes | 37.4 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm | Tyres | 27.7 |
| Coil spring: fractured or broken | Suspension | 22.7 |
| Ball joint excessively worn | Suspension | 20.8 |
| Parking brake efficiency: efficiency below requirements | Brakes | 18.2 |
| Registration plate lamp(s): inoperative in the case of a single lamp or all lamps | Lights and electrics | 16.2 |
| Washers: provides insufficient washer liquid | Windscreen, wipers and mirrors | 15.4 |
Suzuki Swift 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 | 4,611 | 6.8% | 11.4% | 20,300 |
| 2021 | 7,495 | 10.5% | 12.8% | 25,800 |
| 2020 | 7,994 | 11.6% | 14.1% | 31,800 |
| 2019 | 10,949 | 13.4% | 16.5% | 38,100 |
| 2018 | 10,126 | 16.1% | 19.1% | 45,500 |
| 2017 | 8,065 | 20.1% | 21.8% | 50,200 |
| 2016 | 10,406 | 23.8% | 25.1% | 57,200 |
| 2015 | 12,336 | 25.8% | 28.1% | 63,200 |
| 2014 | 10,067 | 29.2% | 31.4% | 68,400 |
| 2013 | 8,698 | 32.1% | 34.3% | 75,100 |
| 2012 | 8,858 | 35.5% | 36.6% | 82,400 |
| 2011 | 6,065 | 38.6% | 38.8% | 86,100 |
| 2010 | 5,687 | 44.2% | 40.7% | 86,700 |
| 2009 | 6,265 | 45.9% | 41.8% | 89,000 |
| 2008 | 6,449 | 47.9% | 42.9% | 94,100 |
| 2007 | 6,000 | 48.9% | 42.7% | 94,200 |
| 2006 | 3,329 | 49.5% | 43.0% | 96,400 |
| 2005 | 1,083 | 51.4% | 42.4% | 95,900 |
Advisories to look for in a Suzuki Swift'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 Suzuki Swift, per 1,000 tests. If the car you are looking at has one of these, ask whether it has been fixed since.
- Rigid brake pipes: corroded, covered in grease or other material224.1
- Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge214.9
- Tyres: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing208.2
- Suspension arms: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement104.7
- Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened90.4
- Brake pads: wearing thin61.8
Checking a used Suzuki Swift before you buy
Against cars of the same age, the Suzuki Swift fails more often than average on brakes and windscreen, wipers and mirrors. 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.
Windscreen, wipers and mirrors
Look for chips or cracks in the driver's line of sight, and test the wipers and washers. Windscreen damage in the swept area is an MOT failure.
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 Suzuki Swift cars tested: Petrol 80%, Hybrid 19%. Average age at test 10.4 years, average recorded mileage 62,800.
Suzuki Swift MOT questions
What is the Suzuki Swift MOT failure rate?
27.7% of Suzuki Swift cars failed their first MOT test of 2025, from 134,483 tests on vehicles aged 3 to 20. An average car with the same age mix failed 28.3% of the time, so the Suzuki Swift was about as likely to fail.
What fails most often on a Suzuki Swift MOT?
Lights and electrics caused the most failure items, at 187 per 1,000 tests. The single most common failure item was "Position lamp: not working", recorded 56.5 times per 1,000 tests.
Which Suzuki Swift year has the best MOT record?
Measured against cars of the same age, 2022 registrations did best: 6.8% 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 Suzuki Swift will pass?
No. These are averages across every Suzuki Swift 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 Suzuki models
- Suzuki Vitara15.2% failed
- Suzuki Alto35.0% failed
- Suzuki SX428.2% failed
- Suzuki Ignis17.0% failed
- Suzuki Celerio17.1% failed
Ranked close to the Suzuki Swift
- Ford Mondeorank 115
- Citroen C1rank 117
- MG HSrank 119
- Skoda Fabiarank 120
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 Suzuki Swift 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.