Smart Forfour 2019: MOT failure rate for its age

14.7% of 5,911 MOT tests of the Smart Forfour first registered in 2019 failed at the first attempt (2019–2024; retests excluded). Against this model's own normal rate at the same ages the index is 92.3 (95% CI 86.2–98.4; 100 = normal for this model at that age): the 2019 Smart Forfour fails less often than other build years of the same model at the same age.

Smart Forfour built in 2019 at a glance
Measure	Value	Unit	Compared with	Years	Tests
Failed first time	14.7	%	all ages tested	2019–2024	5911
Index against this model at the same age (95% CI 86.2–98.4)	92.3	index	100 = normal for this model at that age	2019–2024	5911
Rank among this model's 9 build years	1	of 9	1 = fails least for its age	2019–2024	5911
Tested in 2024	1952	tests	median 22,694 miles	2024	1952

Built 2019 against Smart Forfour normal for the age: first-time MOT failure share at each age, age 3: 10.7% vs 11.6%; age 4: 15% vs 17.7%; age 5: 18.5% vs 18.6%. Axis from 0% to 20%. DVSA MOT bulk data, 2019–2024.

Check a 2019 Smart Forfour by registration · All Smart Forfour 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 2019 Smart Forfour fail at each age?

Cars built in 2019 were tested at ages 3 to 5 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.

Smart Forfour built 2019: 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)
3	2,004	10.7	9.4–12.1	11.6	92.1
4	1,955	15	13.5–16.7	17.7	85
5	1,952	18.5	16.8–20.3	18.6	99.4

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 5,911 (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 2019 Smart Forfour?

The most common failure group on cars built in 2019 is visibility: 7 items per 100 first tests, against 8.9 across all build years of the Smart Forfour. These counts are not age-adjusted: cars built in 2019 were tested at ages 3 to 5.

Failure items per 100 first tests, Smart Forfour built 2019 against the Smart Forfour in all build years (2019–2024, not age-adjusted)
Failure group	Built 2019, per 100	All build years, per 100	Items
Visibility	7	8.9	420
Tyres	6.9	9.1	414
Brakes	2.7	7.1	162
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment	2.2	14.2	135
Suspension	0.9	7.5	55

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 6,008 (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 2019 compare with the years around it?

Among the 9 published build years of the Smart Forfour, 2019 ranks 1 (1 = fails least for its age). 2018: index 94.4.

Smart Forfour build years: index against the model at the same age (2019–2024)
Build year	Index (100 = normal)	95% interval	Verdict	Tests
2004	103.3	98.4–108.3	no different (rough estimate)	3,594
2005	99.2	96.3–102.1	no different	10,374
2006	96.7	93.6–99.7	better	8,887
2007	95.2	84.2–106.2	no different (rough estimate)	702
2015	105.6	103.3–107.9	worse	33,221
2016	102.7	100.2–105.1	worse	31,503
2017	98.2	95.3–101.0	no different	25,286
2018	94.4	90.7–98.1	better	15,417
2019	92.3	86.2–98.4	better	5,911

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 134,895 (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). Smart Forfour 2019 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/smart-forfour/2019/

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.

Smart Forfour 2019: MOT failure rate for its age

How does the 2019 Smart Forfour fail at each age?

What fails most on the 2019 Smart Forfour?

How does 2019 compare with the years around it?

How to cite this page

Related pages

Other pages for this model