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585,499 tests in 2025

Volkswagen Polo reliability and MOT pass rate

73% passed first time. The 27% fail rate is 4.4 points worse than the all-car average, on a median example 11 years old with 63,750 miles.

MOT pass rates / Volkswagen

Pass rate

73%

22.6% of all cars failed; 27% of these did.

Fixed on the day

5.8%

Passed after a defect was put right during the visit.

Median at test

63,750 mi

11 years old.

Fail rate by age

Age at testTestsFail rate
3-5 years72,2458.5%
6-9 years163,78220.6%
10-13 years158,53527.7%
14+ years190,15539%

What the Polo 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.

  1. Suspension3,000 dangerous41.3%
  2. Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment485 dangerous31.9%
  3. Brakes14,037 dangerous29.4%
  4. Tyres35,071 dangerous21.5%
  5. Body, chassis, structure875 dangerous18.2%
  6. Noise, emissions and leaks87 dangerous15.8%
  7. Visibility63 dangerous13.4%
  8. Steering287 dangerous13%

Is the Polo getting worse?

The fail rate rose 2.4 points to 27.3% from 2022 to 2025, against a rising rate across all cars.

YearTestsMedian ageFail rate All cars
2022617,411924.9%22.5%
2023624,238—26.6%22.8%
2024542,722—27.6%23.2%
2025576,212—27.3%22.6%

Fail rate is first attempts at class 4 tests. Median age is the age of a typical Polo 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 Polo in 2025, counted by how many tests each one appeared on.

  1. 1Pins and bushes: pin or bush excessively worn18,486 tests
  2. 2Coil spring: fractured or broken13,794 tests
  3. 3Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm12,730 tests
  4. 4Track rod end: ball joint dust cover excessively damaged or deteriorated so that it no longer prevents the ingress of dirt12,500 tests
  5. 5Rbt (sp): efficiency below requirements11,801 tests
  6. 6Joints: constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt11,782 tests
  7. 7Linkage ball joint dust cover: ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt10,821 tests
  8. 8Shock absorbers: has a serious fluid leak10,587 tests

What wears out first

Advisories are the tester flagging wear that is still legal. A typical Polo collects 2.64 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.

  1. 1Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm95,626 tests
  2. 2Condition: has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure66,770 tests
  3. 3Pins and bushes: pin or bush excessively worn53,853 tests
  4. 4Brake discs: in such a condition that it is seriously weakened53,244 tests
  5. 5Shock absorbers: has a serious fluid leak35,549 tests
  6. 6Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick28,811 tests
  7. 7Exhaust system: has a major leak of exhaust gases26,979 tests
  8. 8Engine oil leaks: leaking excessively from engine25,963 tests

Questions

What is the Volkswagen Polo MOT pass rate?

73% of the 585,499 Volkswagen Polo first-attempt MOTs in 2025 passed. The fail rate of 27% compares with 22.6% across all cars. A further 5.8% passed after a defect was fixed during the test visit.

What does a Volkswagen Polo usually fail on?

The single most common failure is "Pins and bushes: pin or bush excessively worn", recorded on 18,486 failed tests, followed by "Coil spring: fractured or broken" and "Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm". By section, suspension appears in 41.3% of failures, lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment appears in 31.9% of failures, brakes appears in 29.4% of failures.

Does age change the odds?

Sharply. At 3 to 5 years old the fail rate was 8.5%; at 14+ years it was 39%. The median Volkswagen Polo tested in 2025 was 11 years old with 63,750 miles.

Is the Volkswagen Polo getting less reliable?

The fail rate rose 2.4 points to 27.3% 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 Polo 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 24 safety recalls naming the Volkswagen Polo: Volkswagen Polo recalls.

Other Volkswagen models

Checking a particular Polo?

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.