Volvo V50 MOT failure rate and common faults
25,502 Volvo V50 cars aged 3 to 20 took their MOT in 2025, and 44.8% failed at the first attempt. An average car of the same age failed 41.0% of the time, which makes the Volvo V50 9% more likely to fail than the typical car on the road. Here is what fails, and which years to look for.
44.8%
failed first time
25,502 MOT tests in 2025
+9%
vs same age average
average car of this age mix: 41.0%
159 of 208
age adjusted rank
among cars; 1 fails least
216.9
dangerous defects per 1,000
same age average: 141.3
What fails on a Volvo V50 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 Volvo V50 MOT failures
The individual failure items testers recorded most often, per 1,000 tests.
| Failure item | Area | Per 1,000 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Drive shafts: constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt | Body, chassis, exhaust and drive shafts | 80.5 |
| Position lamp: not working | Lights and electrics | 77.0 |
| Coil spring: fractured or broken | Suspension | 75.0 |
| Suspension arms: pin or bush excessively worn | Suspension | 57.8 |
| Tyres: has ply or cords exposed | Tyres | 51.7 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm | Tyres | 41.9 |
| Ball joint excessively worn | Suspension | 37.5 |
| Headlamp aim: too low | Lights and electrics | 29.8 |
| Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick | Brakes | 28.4 |
| Headlamp: not working on dipped beam | Lights and electrics | 27.7 |
Volvo V50 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | 3,004 | 41.0% | 36.6% | 121,800 |
| 2011 | 3,882 | 43.3% | 38.8% | 131,700 |
| 2010 | 4,086 | 42.9% | 40.7% | 128,900 |
| 2009 | 4,012 | 44.6% | 41.8% | 129,200 |
| 2008 | 4,437 | 47.8% | 42.9% | 138,300 |
| 2007 | 2,301 | 45.4% | 42.7% | 140,200 |
| 2006 | 2,278 | 47.2% | 43.0% | 140,700 |
| 2005 | 1,495 | 48.4% | 42.4% | 136,300 |
Advisories to look for in a Volvo V50'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 Volvo V50, 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 edge430.0
- Suspension arms: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement189.0
- Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened162.7
- Coil spring: corroded122.9
- Brake pads: wearing thin116.5
- Tyres: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing96.9
Checking a used Volvo V50 before you buy
Against cars of the same age, the Volvo V50 fails more often than average on suspension, tyres and body, chassis, exhaust and drive shafts. Start there.
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.
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.
Body, chassis, exhaust and drive shafts
Turn the steering to full lock and look behind each front wheel: the rubber boots on the drive shafts should be whole, with no grease sprayed around. Then get down with a torch and check the exhaust hangers, sills, floor and subframes for rust.
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 Volvo V50 cars tested: Diesel 81%, Petrol 19%. Average age at test 16.0 years, average recorded mileage 132,700.
Volvo V50 MOT questions
What is the Volvo V50 MOT failure rate?
44.8% of Volvo V50 cars failed their first MOT test of 2025, from 25,502 tests on vehicles aged 3 to 20. An average car with the same age mix failed 41.0% of the time, so the Volvo V50 was 9% more likely to fail.
What fails most often on a Volvo V50 MOT?
Suspension caused the most failure items, at 317 per 1,000 tests. The single most common failure item was "Drive shafts: constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt", recorded 80.5 times per 1,000 tests.
Which Volvo V50 year has the best MOT record?
Measured against cars of the same age, 2010 registrations did best: 42.9% failed against an average of 40.7% 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 Volvo V50 will pass?
No. These are averages across every Volvo V50 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 Volvo models
- Volvo XC6019.9% failed
- Volvo V4027.8% failed
- Volvo XC4010.0% failed
- Volvo XC9023.5% failed
- Volvo V6022.5% failed
- Volvo V7033.1% failed
Ranked close to the Volvo V50
- Vauxhall Merivarank 156
- Vauxhall Insigniarank 157
- Hyundai ix35rank 158
- Renault Capturrank 160
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 Volvo V50 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.