Does the Fiat 500L fail the MOT on body, chassis and structure more than it should?
The Fiat 500L records 2.15 body, chassis and structure failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 2.33 expected for a car of the same age mix: about as expected for its class and age (the difference is within its interval or under 0.5 items per 100 tests) (−0.18, 95% interval −0.26 to −0.10). It ranks 288 of 663 models on body, chassis and structure (1 = most failures above expected).
Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · all models on body, chassis and structure · check a Fiat 500L by registration
What exactly fails on body, chassis and structure?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the Fiat 500L is “Exhaust system leaking or insecure”, recorded 993 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Exhaust system leaking or insecure | 993 | 0.76 |
| A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot severely deteriorated | 374 | 0.29 |
| An engine mounting/bracket severely damaged or deteriorated resulting in excessive movement | 280 | 0.22 |
| A door will not open using the relevant control or close properly | 251 | 0.19 |
| A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc | 205 | 0.16 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 129,994 (initial tests) · Method: failure items (major and minor) grouped by DVSA's defect tree; wordings with 30+ items · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV
If a Fiat 500L gets a body, chassis and structure advisory, how often does it fail next time?
10.1% of Fiat 500L MOTs with a body, chassis and structure advisory were followed by a fail in the same group at the next MOT, typically 12 months and 5,135 miles later (1,715 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 1,715 (advisories followed) · Method: the same vehicles followed to their next ordinary MOT · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV
Other pages for this model
Fiat 500L 2011 · Fiat 500L 2012 · Fiat 500L 2013 · Fiat 500L 2014 · Fiat 500L 2015 · Fiat 500L 2016 · Fiat 500L 2017 · Fiat 500L 2018 · Fiat 500L 2019 · Fiat 500L in the Netherlands · Fiat 500L by postcode area · Fiat 500L brakes failures · Fiat 500L vehicle identification failures · Fiat 500L lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · Fiat 500L noise, emissions and leaks failures · Fiat 500L road wheels failures · Fiat 500L seat belts and airbags failures · Fiat 500L steering failures · Fiat 500L suspension failures · Fiat 500L tyres failures · Fiat 500L visibility failures