Does the Ford S-MAX fail the MOT on body, chassis and structure more than it should?
The Ford S-MAX records 7.77 body, chassis and structure failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 5.27 expected for a car of the same age mix: more than expected for its class and age (+2.50, 95% interval +2.42 to +2.58). It ranks 159 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 S-MAX by registration
What exactly fails on body, chassis and structure?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the Ford S-MAX is “A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc”, recorded 12,404 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc | 12,404 | 2.60 |
| Exhaust system leaking or insecure | 10,924 | 2.29 |
| A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot severely deteriorated | 7,930 | 1.66 |
| A body panel or body component damaged or corroded and likely to cause injury when grazed or contacted, or insecure | 666 | 0.14 |
| A door will not open using the relevant control or close properly | 598 | 0.13 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 476,737 (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 S-MAX gets a body, chassis and structure advisory, how often does it fail next time?
15.1% of Ford S-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 7,220 miles later (15,613 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 15,613 (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 S-MAX 2006 · Ford S-MAX 2007 · Ford S-MAX 2008 · Ford S-MAX 2009 · Ford S-MAX 2010 · Ford S-MAX 2011 · Ford S-MAX 2012 · Ford S-MAX 2013 · Ford S-MAX 2014 · Ford S-MAX 2015 · Ford S-MAX 2016 · Ford S-MAX 2017 · Ford S-MAX 2018 · Ford S-MAX 2019 · Ford S-MAX 2020 · Ford S-MAX in Norway · Ford S-MAX in Finland · Ford S-MAX in the Netherlands · Ford S-MAX by postcode area · Ford S-MAX brakes failures · Ford S-MAX vehicle identification failures · Ford S-MAX lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · Ford S-MAX noise, emissions and leaks failures · Ford S-MAX road wheels failures · Ford S-MAX seat belts and airbags failures · Ford S-MAX steering failures · Ford S-MAX suspension failures · Ford S-MAX tyres failures · Ford S-MAX visibility failures