Mercedes-Benz SL 2003: MOT failure rate for its age

20.0% of 12,529 MOT tests of the Mercedes-Benz SL first registered in 2003 failed at the first attempt (2019–2024; retests excluded). Against this model's own normal rate at the same ages the index is 104.7 (95% CI 100.6–108.8; 100 = normal for this model at that age): close to other build years of the same model at the same age (within 5 points of normal).

Mercedes-Benz SL built in 2003 at a glance
Measure	Value	Unit	Compared with	Years	Tests
Failed first time	20.0	%	all ages tested	2019–2024	12529
Index against this model at the same age (95% CI 100.6–108.8)	104.7	index	100 = normal for this model at that age	2019–2024	12529
Rank among this model's 23 build years	16	of 23	1 = fails least for its age	2019–2024	12529
Tested in 2024	2347	tests	median 74,801 miles	2024	2347

Built 2003 against Mercedes-Benz SL normal for the age: first-time MOT failure share at each age, age 16: 19.3% vs 20.1%; age 17: 20.8% vs 20%; age 18: 20.2% vs 19.2%; age 19: 20.5% vs 18.7%; age 20: 18.7% vs 18.1%; age 21: 20.4% vs 19.5%. Axis from 0% to 30%. DVSA MOT bulk data, 2019–2024.

Check a 2003 Mercedes-Benz SL by registration · All Mercedes-Benz SL MOT statistics · Download the build-year table (CSV)

Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · full dataset (v5).

How does the 2003 Mercedes-Benz SL fail at each age?

Cars built in 2003 were tested at ages 16 to 21 between 2019 and 2024. Each row compares their first-time failure share with what this model normally shows at that age, after allowing for the overall failure level of each test year.

Mercedes-Benz SL built 2003: first-time MOT failure by age, against the model's normal rate at that age (2019–2024)
Age	Tests	Failed, %	95% interval	Normal for this model at that age, %	Index (100 = normal)
16	1,232	19.3	17.2–21.6	20.1	96.1
17	1,048	20.8	18.5–23.4	20	103.8
18	2,733	20.2	18.7–21.7	19.2	105.1
19	2,661	20.5	19–22.1	18.7	109.5
20	2,508	18.7	17.3–20.3	18.1	103.7
21	2,347	20.4	18.8–22.1	19.5	104.9

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 12,529 (initial tests) · Method: normal rate = this model's first-time failure share at that age across its build years (cells of 400+ tests), adjusted for each test year's overall level; cells of 30+ tests, under 500 marked rough · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV

What fails most on the 2003 Mercedes-Benz SL?

The most common failure group on cars built in 2003 is suspension: 13.1 items per 100 first tests, against 8.9 across all build years of the Mercedes-Benz SL. These counts are not age-adjusted: cars built in 2003 were tested at ages 16 to 21.

Failure items per 100 first tests, Mercedes-Benz SL built 2003 against the Mercedes-Benz SL in all build years (2019–2024, not age-adjusted)
Failure group	Built 2003, per 100	All build years, per 100	Items
Suspension	13.1	8.9	1,637
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment	9	7.4	1,131
Brakes	8	5.6	1,003
Tyres	6.3	6.2	787
Visibility	5.9	4.9	740

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 12,529 (initial tests of this build year) · Method: failure items grouped by DVSA's top-level defect groups, per 100 initial tests; groups with 30+ items · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV

How does 2003 compare with the years around it?

Among the 23 published build years of the Mercedes-Benz SL, 2003 ranks 16 (1 = fails least for its age). 2002: index 106.2. 2004: index 100.3.

Mercedes-Benz SL build years: index against the model at the same age (2019–2024)
Build year	Index (100 = normal)	95% interval	Verdict	Tests
1998	110.1	89.8–130.4	no different (rough estimate)	502
1999	95.8	80.1–111.5	no different (rough estimate)	794
2000	107.6	93.3–121.8	no different (rough estimate)	1,071
2001	94.0	79.3–108.8	no different (rough estimate)	894
2002	106.2	99.0–113.3	no different	4,277
2003	104.7	100.6–108.8	worse	12,529
2004	100.3	95.8–104.8	no different	10,173
2005	96.2	90.6–101.7	no different	6,298
2006	100.3	93.1–107.5	no different (rough estimate)	3,977
2007	98.6	90.9–106.3	no different (rough estimate)	3,454
2008	95.9	88.7–103.0	no different (rough estimate)	3,912
2009	103.0	93.9–112.2	no different (rough estimate)	2,661
2010	106.6	95.5–117.6	no different (rough estimate)	1,937
2011	90.6	78.2–103.0	no different (rough estimate)	1,415
2012	110.4	99.3–121.4	no different (rough estimate)	2,337
2013	109.1	102.4–115.8	worse	6,789
2014	100.6	93.6–107.6	no different	6,428
2015	92.3	84.2–100.4	no different	4,934
2016	105.1	95.8–114.4	no different	4,690
2017	87.6	77.4–97.8	better (rough estimate)	3,452
2018	90.7	75.5–105.8	no different (rough estimate)	1,698
2019	89.2	70.9–107.6	no different (rough estimate)	1,252
2020	93.4	60.0–126.8	no different (rough estimate)	425

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 85,899 (initial tests) · Method: observed failures against those expected for the same model at the same ages, test-year level adjusted; verdict follows the printed one-decimal bound · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV

How to cite this page

MOT Risk Index (2026). Mercedes-Benz SL 2003 MOT statistics (data release dvsa-2024-v2; full dataset motriskindex-families-2024-v5, DOI 10.5281/zenodo.22975051), updated 30 September 2026. motriskindex.co.uk/cars/mercedes-sl/2003/

How every figure is calculated: methodology. Age, test year and build year are tied together (age = test year − build year), so the test-year level is taken as observed, not estimated.

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