Does the Ford C-MAX fail the MOT on body, chassis and structure more than it should?
The Ford C-MAX records 5.53 body, chassis and structure failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 4.50 expected for a car of the same age mix: more than expected for its class and age (+1.03, 95% interval +0.98 to +1.08). It ranks 220 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 Ford C-MAX by registration
What exactly fails on body, chassis and structure?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the Ford C-MAX is “A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot severely deteriorated”, recorded 15,444 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot severely deteriorated | 15,444 | 2.17 |
| A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc | 14,030 | 1.97 |
| Exhaust system leaking or insecure | 4,537 | 0.64 |
| A passenger seat insecure | 795 | 0.11 |
| A passenger seat with a defective structure or the backrest cannot be secured in the upright position. | 534 | 0.07 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 712,923 (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 Ford C-MAX gets a body, chassis and structure advisory, how often does it fail next time?
15.7% of Ford C-MAX 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 5,939 miles later (12,136 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 12,136 (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
Ford C-MAX 2005 · Ford C-MAX 2006 · Ford C-MAX 2007 · Ford C-MAX 2008 · Ford C-MAX 2009 · Ford C-MAX 2010 · Ford C-MAX 2011 · Ford C-MAX 2012 · Ford C-MAX 2013 · Ford C-MAX 2014 · Ford C-MAX 2015 · Ford C-MAX 2016 · Ford C-MAX 2017 · Ford C-MAX 2018 · Ford C-MAX 2019 · Ford C-MAX in Norway · Ford C-MAX in Finland · Ford C-MAX in the Netherlands · Ford C-MAX by postcode area · Ford C-MAX brakes failures · Ford C-MAX vehicle identification failures · Ford C-MAX lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · Ford C-MAX noise, emissions and leaks failures · Ford C-MAX road wheels failures · Ford C-MAX seat belts and airbags failures · Ford C-MAX steering failures · Ford C-MAX suspension failures · Ford C-MAX tyres failures · Ford C-MAX visibility failures