MOT Risk Index.co.uk

Volkswagen Golf — MOT statistics 2024

All Volkswagen Golf variants tested in Great Britain in 2024 — 1,323,641 MOT tests, every generation and engine together.

MOT risk index 85.1, 95% CI 84.9–85.4 (100 = national average) 100 85.1 60 160
Index
85.1
100 = age-normal
Raw fail rate
24.94%
n = 1,323,641
Dangerous /100
13
national ≈13
Diesel − petrol
+6.1 pp
fail-rate gap
Rank
7 of 25
lower index = better

This car fails its MOT about 15% less often than expected for its age.

Age-adjusted peer: Honda Jazz (index 85)— the two published results are 0.1 index points apart.

What actually fails

Named defects ranked by how much more often they appear than the national average — not by raw rate.

Family vs national defect rates across 6 component groups This family National avg Suspension 23.3 Lamps & electrical 21.3 Brakes 15.2 Body & structure 14.0 Visibility 11.6 Tyres 11.1

family vs national — top component groups, per 100 tests

Component-group comparison table
GroupThis familyNational
Suspension23.319.9
Lamps & electrical21.323.5
Brakes15.214.3
Body & structure14.08.4
Visibility11.612.0
Tyres11.110.3
What failedper 100nationalratioCheck
Transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot…7.102.702.63×Ask the seller about: A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot severely d
Suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer…4.322.251.92×Listen for knocks over bumps — worn suspension joints are common
Suspension joint dust cover severely deteriorated4.993.451.45×Listen for knocks over bumps — worn suspension joints are common
Windscreen or window damaged or seriously…5.434.271.27×Check wipers, washers and windscreen chips in the driver's view
Spring or spring component fractured or seriously…3.512.721.29×Ask the seller about: A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened
Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the…4.133.821.08×Check tyre tread depth across the full width
Aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down…3.152.991.05×Try every light and switch — lamps are a top failure
Tyre seriously damaged3.303.291.00×Check tyre tread depth across the full width
Rear registration plate lamp or light source…3.374.430.76×Try every light and switch — lamps are a top failure
Suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn4.446.030.74×Listen for knocks over bumps — worn suspension joints are common

Early warnings (advisories)

Advisories are wear the tester noted but didn't fail — what will need money soon.

Suspension 80.5 Tyres 73.1 Brakes 65.8 Emissions & leaks 10.2 Non-component advisories 9.6 Body & structure 8.6
Advisory rates table
Groupper 100
Suspension80.5
Tyres73.1
Brakes65.8
Emissions & leaks10.2
Non-component advisories9.6
Body & structure8.6

How it ages

3579111315171947%car age, years

Takeaway: a 10-year-old Golf has roughly a 18% chance of failing its MOT; from about age 18 it stays above the national age curve.

Data table
AgeVolkswagen GolfAll cars
47.7%11.6%
510.2%13.5%
611.3%15.6%
712.7%18.2%
813.6%21.3%
915.7%24.4%
1018.4%27.7%
1121.4%30.6%
1229.4%33.4%
1332.7%36.0%
1435.5%38.6%
1535.6%39.9%
1638.5%41.5%
1740.5%41.5%
1843.3%42.4%
1943.7%42.2%
2040.5%37.5%

Petrol, diesel, hybrid — which ages best?

Fail rate by fuel type: Diesel 28.2%, Petrol 22.1%, Hybrid 12.5%, Electric 11.6% 28.2% Diesel n=649k 22.1% Petrol n=657k 12.5% Hybrid n=16k 11.6% Electric n=1,274
Fuel split table
FuelTests% failing
Petrol656,83822.1%
Diesel649,03728.2%
Hybrid16,45512.5%
Electric1,27411.6%

How severe are the defects?

Defect severity per 100 tests: Minor 30.8, Major 64.8, Dangerous 13.4 30.864.813.4 Minor 30.8 Major 64.8 Dangerous 13.4

Per 100 tests on this family. National average: Minor 24.4 · Major 63.3 · Dangerous 12.9 per 100.

Severity table
SeverityThis family /100National /100
Minor30.8024.38
Major64.7763.26
Dangerous13.4212.89

Does the test month matter?

Takeaway: the spread between best and worst month is 2.8 percentage points — booking month barely matters for this family. Seasonality partly reflects registration-date clustering, not weather.

25.78% in month 1 J25.13% in month 2 F23.55% in month 3 M24.97% in month 4 A23.7% in month 5 M23.95% in month 6 J24.96% in month 7 J24.57% in month 8 A24.06% in month 9 S26.33% in month 10 O26.36% in month 11 N25.5% in month 12 D 29% 22%

bars: Volkswagen Golf · dashed: all class-4 cars

Month-by-month table
MonthVolkswagen GolfAll cars
Jan25.78%27.37%
Feb25.13%26.14%
Mar23.55%24.75%
Apr24.97%26.01%
May23.7%25.01%
Jun23.95%25.01%
Jul24.96%26.04%
Aug24.57%25.79%
Sep24.06%25.19%
Oct26.33%27.13%
Nov26.36%27.2%
Dec25.5%26.29%

Is the mileage normal?

A typical 8-year-old Golf has ~65,087 miles on the clock. Much more — ask why; much less — check for gaps in the MOT history.

69121518car age, years 170k mi 0

Does high mileage actually mean more failures?

Same age band (6–14 years), split by odometer — this separates wear from age: 9% of the lowest-mileage cars failed versus 34.2% of the highest.

<40k mi 9% 40-70k mi 14% 70-100k mi 21.2% 100-140k mi 28.3% 140k+ mi 34.2%
Odometer% failingTests
<40k miles9%102,648
40-70k miles14%269,725
70-100k miles21.2%237,343
100-140k miles28.3%165,082
140k+ miles34.2%66,921

line: median · band: middle half of the fleet (p25–p75)

Mileage by age (p25 / median / p75)
Agep25Medianp75Tests
421,85230,27640,84814,070
528,32539,01151,63182,023
636,02748,29863,159101,691
742,17856,53972,611114,885
848,98465,08782,837105,354
955,32573,12593,650106,913
1063,35683,449106,136103,754
1167,50690,048114,10087,582
1273,18897,751123,79178,066
1380,853106,778134,82476,437
1487,667114,256141,24167,359
1588,136114,533140,93666,203
1699,136125,704152,79460,670
1798,425124,238151,29161,786
1898,624125,361152,32445,744
19102,151128,844155,71231,710
20+96,970128,454162,314118,815

Regional variation (raw rates)

Every dot is a postcode area — size = how many were tested there, colour = share failing. These figures are not age-adjusted: coastal and rural areas often run older fleets and salted roads, so higher raw fail rates do not automatically mean a worse local stock of this model.

Torquay (TQ): 35.9% failing, 6,754 testsExeter (EX): 35.9% failing, 15,971 testsTruro (TR): 35.7% failing, 9,535 testsBrighton (BN): 33.8% failing, 15,429 testsBournemouth (BH): 33.2% failing, 13,098 testsDorchester (DT): 33.1% failing, 6,953 testsPlymouth (PL): 32.8% failing, 14,796 testsSalisbury (SP): 32.7% failing, 8,224 testsPortsmouth (PO): 32.7% failing, 16,536 testsBath (BA): 32.4% failing, 14,561 testsTaunton (TA): 32.3% failing, 8,997 testsBristol (BS): 30.7% failing, 26,478 testsLlandrindod Wells (LD): 30.7% failing, 1,153 testsSouthampton (SO): 29% failing, 14,877 testsKirkcaldy (KY): 29% failing, 7,402 testsGloucester (GL): 28.9% failing, 20,462 testsSwindon (SN): 28.8% failing, 10,904 testsCardiff (CF): 28.7% failing, 22,557 testsIpswich (IP): 28.2% failing, 16,738 testsGuildford (GU): 28.2% failing, 21,141 testsNewport (NP): 28% failing, 11,641 testsSwansea (SA): 27.8% failing, 15,610 testsTonbridge (TN): 27.7% failing, 20,818 testsNorthampton (NN): 27.6% failing, 16,286 testsDundee (DD): 27.3% failing, 5,768 testsNorwich (NR): 27% failing, 19,000 testsCanterbury (CT): 26.8% failing, 10,614 testsLincoln (LN): 26.6% failing, 6,703 testsHuddersfield (HD): 26.5% failing, 5,878 testsColchester (CO): 26.3% failing, 8,811 testsLondon W (W): 26.2% failing, 4,425 testsOxford (OX): 26.2% failing, 19,682 testsBlackpool (FY): 26.1% failing, 3,519 testsCambridge (CB): 25.6% failing, 10,322 testsShrewsbury (SY): 25.6% failing, 8,906 testsReading (RG): 25.6% failing, 21,217 testsWorcester (WR): 25.5% failing, 7,735 testsPerth (PH): 25.5% failing, 3,342 testsLlandudno (LL): 25.2% failing, 14,878 testsRedhill (RH): 25.1% failing, 17,446 testsManchester (M): 25% failing, 21,869 testsMilton Keynes (MK): 24.9% failing, 11,950 testsGalashiels (TD): 24.9% failing, 2,908 testsWigan (WN): 24.7% failing, 4,136 testsEdinburgh (EH): 24.7% failing, 17,307 testsStoke-on-Trent (ST): 24.5% failing, 11,342 testsLondon SE (SE): 24.5% failing, 10,031 testsPaisley (PA): 24.5% failing, 4,391 testsHull (HU): 24.4% failing, 6,615 testsSt Albans (AL): 24.4% failing, 6,348 testsMedway (ME): 24.4% failing, 13,741 testsChester (CH): 24.4% failing, 10,627 testsNottingham (NG): 24.3% failing, 22,623 testsPeterborough (PE): 24.2% failing, 23,656 testsHemel Hempstead (HP): 24.1% failing, 17,589 testsStevenage (SG): 24.1% failing, 8,888 testsPreston (PR): 24% failing, 10,368 testsWalsall (WS): 23.9% failing, 6,997 testsSunderland (SR): 23.8% failing, 3,808 testsStockport (SK): 23.8% failing, 11,431 testsWolverhampton (WV): 23.8% failing, 7,677 testsYork (YO): 23.7% failing, 11,809 testsLondon NW (NW): 23.6% failing, 10,604 testsChelmsford (CM): 23.5% failing, 13,457 testsHereford (HR): 23.4% failing, 6,454 testsLancaster (LA): 23.4% failing, 7,201 testsKirkwall (KW): 23.3% failing, 1,106 testsLeeds (LS): 23.3% failing, 17,006 testsLiverpool (L): 23.2% failing, 7,485 testsIlford (IG): 23.2% failing, 5,256 testsHarrogate (HG): 23% failing, 3,322 testsLeicester (LE): 22.8% failing, 23,972 testsAberdeen (AB): 22.8% failing, 15,035 testsWatford (WD): 22.8% failing, 4,151 testsLondon SW (SW): 22.7% failing, 8,554 testsCrewe (CW): 22.6% failing, 6,519 testsSlough (SL): 22.6% failing, 10,477 testsCleveland (TS): 22.6% failing, 10,282 testsFalkirk (FK): 22.6% failing, 4,819 testsOldham (OL): 22.6% failing, 10,182 testsLuton (LU): 22.6% failing, 8,696 testsBolton (BL): 22.5% failing, 8,988 testsWarrington (WA): 22.4% failing, 10,116 testsKingston upon Thames (KT): 22.4% failing, 10,681 testsCarlisle (CA): 22.4% failing, 8,086 testsLondon E (E): 22.4% failing, 12,312 testsDudley (DY): 22.3% failing, 6,511 testsNewcastle (NE): 22.2% failing, 20,465 testsLondon N (N): 22% failing, 9,813 testsCoventry (CV): 21.9% failing, 17,331 testsGlasgow (G): 21.8% failing, 20,378 testsWakefield (WF): 21.7% failing, 12,505 testsDarlington (DL): 21.7% failing, 7,206 testsInverness (IV): 21.6% failing, 7,258 testsTelford (TF): 21.5% failing, 4,953 testsDoncaster (DN): 21.5% failing, 13,972 testsKilmarnock (KA): 21% failing, 6,724 testsSouthend-on-Sea (SS): 21% failing, 6,882 testsDartford (DA): 20.9% failing, 6,450 testsDerby (DE): 20.7% failing, 17,740 testsBirmingham (B): 20.7% failing, 41,623 testsBromley (BR): 20.7% failing, 3,776 testsCroydon (CR): 20.7% failing, 6,996 testsEnfield (EN): 20.6% failing, 8,316 testsBradford (BD): 20.5% failing, 24,328 testsHalifax (HX): 20.4% failing, 3,923 testsDumfries (DG): 20.4% failing, 3,055 testsHarrow (HA): 20.3% failing, 7,258 testsBlackburn (BB): 19.9% failing, 15,434 testsMotherwell (ML): 19.8% failing, 5,640 testsSutton (SM): 19.7% failing, 2,264 testsRomford (RM): 19.6% failing, 6,655 testsSheffield (S): 19.6% failing, 30,225 testsTwickenham (TW): 19.5% failing, 11,684 testsUxbridge (UB): 17.8% failing, 9,628 testsDurham (DH): 17.4% failing, 7,532 tests % failing 20% 33%
Toughest areas% failing
Exeter (EX)35.89%
Torquay (TQ)35.88%
Truro (TR)35.67%
Brighton (BN)33.76%
Bournemouth (BH)33.21%
Easiest areas% failing
Durham (DH)17.38%
Uxbridge (UB)17.8%
Twickenham (TW)19.51%
Romford (RM)19.58%
Sheffield (S)19.61%

Quick answers

Is a 10-year-old Golf a bad buy?
A 10-year-old Golf has roughly a 18% chance of failing its MOT. Across 1,323,641 initial tests in 2024 the family fails its MOT about 15% less often than expected for its age (MOT Risk Index 85.1, where 100 = normal for its age). For a similarly sized published sample, compare Ford Focus MOT stats: 1,348,944 tests and index 106.9.
What usually fails on a Golf MOT?
The most frequent specific failures in 2024 were: a transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot severely deteriorated; windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view; a suspension joint dust cover severely deteriorated.
Are diesel Golfs worse?
28.2% of diesel tests found a failing defect vs 22.1% of petrol — a gap of 6.1 percentage points.
What mileage is normal for a Golf?
For a typical 8-year-old Golf, the median is about 65,087 miles; the middle half of the fleet sits between 48,984 and 82,837.
How often are dangerous faults found?
About 13 dangerous defects were recorded per 100 initial Volkswagen Golf tests in 2024 (national average ≈13) — with a dangerous defect the car legally cannot be driven away.

Compare with

Same brand

All Volkswagen MOT statisticsVolkswagen Polo MOT stats

Similar risk

Honda Jazz (index 85)MINI Hatch (index 85.5)Audi A4 (index 84.6)

Same size class

how Ford Focus compareshow Vauxhall Corsa compareshow MINI Hatch compares

Data details & how to cite

Scope: class-4 vehicles (cars), initial tests only, outcomes pass / fail / fixed-on-the-spot at the station (PRS counts towards the failure rate — the defect was present at arrival). Index = observed initial failures ÷ failures expected for this fleet's exact age profile, ×100; margin of error is a 95% confidence interval. Covers ALL generations together — a 3-year-old and a 15-year-old are very different cars; a generation split is on the roadmap. Dataset release dvsa-2024-v1, frozen baseline. Full method: methodology.

Cite: MOT Risk Index (2026). Volkswagen Golf MOT statistics 2024 (dvsa-2024-v1). https://motriskindex.co.uk/cars/volkswagen-golf/ · Published 2026-07-30.