117,049 tests in 2025
Volkswagen Up reliability and MOT pass rate
84.4% passed first time. The 15.6% fail rate is 7.0 points better than the all-car average, on a median example 10 years old with 46,925 miles.
Petrol, diesel and hybrid versions. The electric version has its own page: Volkswagen E-Up.
Pass rate
84.4%
22.6% of all cars failed; 15.6% of these did.
Fixed on the day
4.9%
Passed after a defect was put right during the visit.
Median at test
46,925 mi
10 years old.
Fail rate by age
| Age at test | Tests | Fail rate |
|---|---|---|
| 3-5 years | 7,922 | 7.3% |
| 6-9 years | 43,214 | 13.7% |
| 10-13 years | 65,826 | 17.9% |
| 14+ years | 6 | — |
What the Up 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.
- Brakes1,455 dangerous29.6%
- Suspension254 dangerous25.5%
- Tyres4,898 dangerous25.2%
- Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment7 dangerous23%
- Noise, emissions and leaks11 dangerous12.9%
- Visibility2 dangerous11.7%
- Body, chassis, structure135 dangerous11.4%
- Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems2 dangerous2.6%
Is the Up getting worse?
The fail rate rose 4.2 points to 15.7% from 2022 to 2025, against a rising rate across all cars.
| Year | Tests | Median age | Fail rate | All cars | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 117,987 | 7 | 11.5% | 22.5% | |
| 2023 | 120,664 | — | 13.5% | 22.8% | |
| 2024 | 104,352 | — | 15.5% | 23.2% | |
| 2025 | 116,049 | — | 15.7% | 22.6% |
Fail rate is first attempts at class 4 tests. Median age is the age of a typical Up 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 Up in 2025, counted by how many tests each one appeared on.
- 1Pins and bushes: pin or bush excessively worn1,791 tests
- 2Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm1,619 tests
- 3Service brake performance: excessively binding1,595 tests
- 4Catalyst emissions: Lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits1,272 tests
- 5Coil spring: fractured or broken1,251 tests
- 6Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively1,109 tests
- 7Fuel cap/sealing device: ineffective1,014 tests
- 8Condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords1,005 tests
What wears out first
Advisories are the tester flagging wear that is still legal. A typical Up collects 2.24 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.
- 1Condition: has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure16,312 tests
- 2Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm13,073 tests
- 3Brake discs: in such a condition that it is seriously weakened7,351 tests
- 4Pins and bushes: pin or bush excessively worn7,226 tests
- 5Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick3,749 tests
- 6Service brake performance: excessively binding3,458 tests
- 7Brake discs: significantly and obviously worn2,949 tests
- 8Non-component advisories: Play in steering rack inner joint(s)2,469 tests
Questions
What is the Volkswagen Up MOT pass rate?
84.4% of the 117,049 Volkswagen Up first-attempt MOTs in 2025 passed. The fail rate of 15.6% compares with 22.6% across all cars. A further 4.9% passed after a defect was fixed during the test visit.
What does a Volkswagen Up usually fail on?
The single most common failure is "Pins and bushes: pin or bush excessively worn", recorded on 1,791 failed tests, followed by "Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm" and "Service brake performance: excessively binding". By section, brakes appears in 29.6% of failures, suspension appears in 25.5% of failures, tyres appears in 25.2% of failures.
Does age change the odds?
Sharply. At 3 to 5 years old the fail rate was 7.3%; at 10-13 years it was 17.9%. The median Volkswagen Up tested in 2025 was 10 years old with 46,925 miles.
Is the Volkswagen Up getting less reliable?
The fail rate rose 4.2 points to 15.7% 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 Up 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 8 safety recalls naming the Volkswagen Up: Volkswagen Up recalls.
Other Volkswagen models
Checking a particular Up?
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.