Does the Ford S-MAX fail the MOT on tyres more than it should?
The Ford S-MAX records 13.24 tyres failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 9.35 expected for a car of the same age mix: more than expected for its class and age (+3.89, 95% interval +3.78 to +3.99). It ranks 39 of 751 models on tyres (1 = most failures above expected).
Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · all models on tyres · check a Ford S-MAX by registration
What exactly fails on tyres?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the Ford S-MAX is “Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements”, recorded 28,355 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements | 28,355 | 5.95 |
| A tyre cords visible or damaged | 16,403 | 3.44 |
| A tyre seriously damaged | 13,441 | 2.82 |
| Tyre obviously under inflated | 1,309 | 0.27 |
| A tyre has a lump, bulge or tear caused by separation or partial failure of its structure. This includes any lifting of the tread rubber | 1,046 | 0.22 |
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 tyres advisory, how often does it fail next time?
11.4% of Ford S-MAX MOTs with a tyres advisory were followed by a fail in the same group at the next MOT, typically 12 months and 7,687 miles later (115,441 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 115,441 (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 body, chassis and structure failures · 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 visibility failures