Does the Ford Cortina fail the MOT on body, chassis and structure more than it should?
The Ford Cortina records 4.59 body, chassis and structure failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 14.88 expected for a car of the same age mix: less than expected for its class and age (−10.29, 95% interval −11.28 to −9.30). It ranks 629 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 Cortina by registration
What exactly fails on body, chassis and structure?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the Ford Cortina is “Vehicle structure corroded to the extent that the rigidity of the assembly is seriously reduced”, recorded 72 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Vehicle structure corroded to the extent that the rigidity of the assembly is seriously reduced | 72 | 1.24 |
| Exhaust system leaking or insecure | 51 | 0.88 |
| Body, cab or chassis excessively corroded at a mounting point | 32 | 0.55 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 5,818 (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
Other pages for this model
Ford Cortina by postcode area · Ford Cortina brakes failures · Ford Cortina lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · Ford Cortina noise, emissions and leaks failures · Ford Cortina seat belts and airbags failures · Ford Cortina steering failures · Ford Cortina suspension failures · Ford Cortina tyres failures · Ford Cortina visibility failures