Does the Smart Forfour fail the MOT on brakes more than it should?
The Smart Forfour records 7.08 brakes failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 7.99 expected for a car of the same age mix: less than expected for its class and age (−0.91, 95% interval −1.06 to −0.76). It ranks 391 of 712 models on brakes (1 = most failures above expected).
Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · all models on brakes · check a Smart Forfour by registration
What exactly fails on brakes?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the Smart Forfour is “a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm”, recorded 2,858 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm | 2,858 | 2.10 |
| Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn | 1,181 | 0.87 |
| Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement | 984 | 0.72 |
| Parking brake inoperative on one side | 609 | 0.45 |
| Brakes imbalance across an axle such that the braking effort from any wheel is less than 70% of the maximum effort recorded from the other wheel on the same axle. | 543 | 0.40 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 136,129 (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 Smart Forfour gets a brakes advisory, how often does it fail next time?
9.9% of Smart Forfour MOTs with a brakes advisory were followed by a fail in the same group at the next MOT, typically 12 months and 4,985 miles later (16,465 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 16,465 (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
Smart Forfour 2004 · Smart Forfour 2005 · Smart Forfour 2006 · Smart Forfour 2007 · Smart Forfour 2015 · Smart Forfour 2016 · Smart Forfour 2017 · Smart Forfour 2018 · Smart Forfour 2019 · Smart Forfour in Finland · Smart Forfour in the Netherlands · Smart Forfour by postcode area · Smart Forfour body, chassis and structure failures · Smart Forfour vehicle identification failures · Smart Forfour lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · Smart Forfour noise, emissions and leaks failures · Smart Forfour road wheels failures · Smart Forfour seat belts and airbags failures · Smart Forfour steering failures · Smart Forfour suspension failures · Smart Forfour tyres failures · Smart Forfour visibility failures