52,124 tests in 2025
SEAT Arona reliability and MOT pass rate
86.4% passed first time. The 13.6% fail rate is 9.0 points better than the all-car average, on a median example 5 years old with 34,492 miles.
Pass rate
86.4%
22.6% of all cars failed; 13.6% of these did.
Fixed on the day
2.2%
Passed after a defect was put right during the visit.
Median at test
34,492 mi
5 years old.
Fail rate by age
| Age at test | Tests | Fail rate |
|---|---|---|
| 3-5 years | 26,389 | 9.9% |
| 6-9 years | 25,072 | 17.5% |
| 10-13 years | 0 | — |
| 14+ years | 0 | — |
What the Arona fails on
Share of failed tests with at least one fail item in each DVSA inspection section. A test can fail in several sections at once.
- Tyres2,231 dangerous32.9%
- Brakes1,753 dangerous31.7%
- Steering9 dangerous25.2%
- Visibility1 dangerous9.3%
- Suspension24 dangerous9.1%
- Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment1 dangerous6.2%
- Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems5.4%
- Noise, emissions and leaks1 dangerous4.3%
Is the Arona getting worse?
The fail rate rose 5.7 points to 14.1% from 2022 to 2025, against a rising rate across all cars.
| Year | Tests | Median age | Fail rate | All cars | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 28,561 | 3 | 8.4% | 22.5% | |
| 2023 | 38,471 | 4 | 11.5% | 22.8% | |
| 2024 | 39,065 | — | 13% | 23.2% | |
| 2025 | 47,004 | — | 14.1% | 22.6% |
Fail rate is first attempts at class 4 tests. Median age is the age of a typical Arona at its test that year, and it is the number to watch: across the whole fleet each extra year of age adds roughly 1.9 points to the fail rate, so a model whose age and fail rate rise together is simply getting older.
The exact defects that fail it
Every failure item DVSA recorded against a Arona in 2025, counted by how many tests each one appeared on.
- 1Track rod end: ball joint dust cover excessively damaged or deteriorated so that it no longer prevents the ingress of dirt1,392 tests
- 2Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick1,251 tests
- 3Condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords767 tests
- 4Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm637 tests
- 5Brake discs: significantly and obviously worn481 tests
- 6Condition: has ply or cords exposed432 tests
- 7Service brake performance: excessively fluctuating347 tests
- 8Condition: has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure305 tests
What wears out first
Advisories are the tester flagging wear that is still legal. A typical Arona collects 2.14 of them per test, and these are the ones that come up most. Treat it as the running-repairs list for the next year or two.
- 1Brake discs: in such a condition that it is seriously weakened6,358 tests
- 2Condition: has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure6,174 tests
- 3Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm5,422 tests
- 4Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick5,411 tests
- 5Non-component advisories: Child Seat fitted not allowing full inspection of adult belt1,929 tests
- 6Brake discs: significantly and obviously worn1,269 tests
- 7Non-component advisories: Nail in tyre1,018 tests
- 8Tread depth: tread pattern not visible over the whole tread area when minimum depth required is 1.0mm811 tests
Questions
What is the SEAT Arona MOT pass rate?
86.4% of the 52,124 SEAT Arona first-attempt MOTs in 2025 passed. The fail rate of 13.6% compares with 22.6% across all cars. A further 2.2% passed after a defect was fixed during the test visit.
What does a SEAT Arona usually fail on?
The single most common failure is "Track rod end: ball joint dust cover excessively damaged or deteriorated so that it no longer prevents the ingress of dirt", recorded on 1,392 failed tests, followed by "Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick" and "Condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords". By section, tyres appears in 32.9% of failures, brakes appears in 31.7% of failures, steering appears in 25.2% of failures.
Does age change the odds?
Sharply. At 3 to 5 years old the fail rate was 9.9%; at 6-9 years it was 17.5%. The median SEAT Arona tested in 2025 was 5 years old with 34,492 miles.
Is the SEAT Arona getting less reliable?
The fail rate rose 5.7 points to 14.1% from 2022 to 2025, against a rising rate across all cars.
First-attempt class 4 tests, 2025, from DVSA’s anonymised MOT data (OGL v3, retrieved 2026-09-12). DVSA records newer cars trim by trim; this page adds every Arona trim together. Year-on-year figures come from the same DVSA extracts for 2026 and earlier years. Full method on the pass rates hub.
DVSA has published 5 safety recalls naming the SEAT Arona: SEAT Arona recalls.
Other SEAT models
Checking a particular Arona?
The odds above are the model. The car in front of you has its own record: every test, every advisory, the mileage at each one.
Due a test? Find an approved MOT station near you.