Volvo S80 2012: MOT failure rate for its age

25.9% of 2,254 MOT tests of the Volvo S80 first registered in 2012 failed at the first attempt (2019–2024; retests excluded). Against this model's own normal rate at the same ages the index is 105.5 (95% CI 96.9–114.0; 100 = normal for this model at that age): the 2012 build year is no different from other years of the same model at the same age. This is a rough estimate from a smaller sample.

Volvo S80 built in 2012 at a glance
Measure	Value	Unit	Compared with	Years	Tests
Failed first time	25.9	%	all ages tested	2019–2024	2254
Index against this model at the same age (95% CI 96.9–114.0)	105.5	index	100 = normal for this model at that age	2019–2024	2254
Rank among this model's 18 build years	18	of 18	1 = fails least for its age	2019–2024	2254
Tested in 2024	353	tests	median 109,568 miles	2024	353

Built 2012 against Volvo S80 normal for the age: first-time MOT failure share at each age, age 7: 23.9% vs 19.6%; age 8: 25.6% vs 23.8%; age 9: 26.5% vs 25.1%; age 10: 27.7% vs 26%; age 11: 23.4% vs 26.4%; age 12: 28.9% vs 27.5%. Axis from 0% to 30%. DVSA MOT bulk data, 2019–2024.

Check a 2012 Volvo S80 by registration · All Volvo S80 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 2012 Volvo S80 fail at each age?

Cars built in 2012 were tested at ages 7 to 12 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.

Volvo S80 built 2012: 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)
7	406 (rough estimate)	23.9	20–28.3	19.6	122
8	375 (rough estimate)	25.6	21.4–30.2	23.8	107.4
9	385 (rough estimate)	26.5	22.3–31.1	25.1	105.7
10	376 (rough estimate)	27.7	23.4–32.4	26	106.6
11	359 (rough estimate)	23.4	19.3–28	26.4	88.8
12	353 (rough estimate)	28.9	24.4–33.8	27.5	105.2

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 2,254 (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 2012 Volvo S80?

The most common failure group on cars built in 2012 is lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment: 14.5 items per 100 first tests, against 23.3 across all build years of the Volvo S80. These counts are not age-adjusted: cars built in 2012 were tested at ages 7 to 12.

Failure items per 100 first tests, Volvo S80 built 2012 against the Volvo S80 in all build years (2019–2024, not age-adjusted)
Failure group	Built 2012, per 100	All build years, per 100	Items
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment	14.5	23.3	326
Steering	7.5	4.9	168
Tyres	6.7	9.1	150
Suspension	6.1	13.2	137
Visibility	5.9	7.9	134

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 2,254 (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 2012 compare with the years around it?

Among the 18 published build years of the Volvo S80, 2012 ranks 18 (1 = fails least for its age). 2011: index 97.6. 2013: index 93.6.

Volvo S80 build years: index against the model at the same age (2019–2024)
Build year	Index (100 = normal)	95% interval	Verdict	Tests
1999	99.0	85.0–113.0	no different (rough estimate)	453
2000	105.5	95.1–115.8	no different (rough estimate)	896
2001	104.9	98.0–111.9	no different (rough estimate)	1,965
2002	103.8	98.3–109.2	no different (rough estimate)	3,216
2003	101.7	96.9–106.5	no different	4,204
2004	103.3	98.2–108.3	no different	4,001
2005	105.1	99.9–110.2	no different	4,024
2006	92.5	86.8–98.2	better (rough estimate)	3,079
2007	94.1	89.7–98.5	better	5,765
2008	96.1	91.2–101.0	no different	4,898
2009	99.0	92.6–105.4	no different (rough estimate)	3,155
2010	96.2	90.4–102.0	no different (rough estimate)	3,913
2011	97.6	90.5–104.8	no different (rough estimate)	2,752
2012	105.5	96.9–114.0	no different (rough estimate)	2,254
2013	93.6	86.1–101.2	no different (rough estimate)	2,699
2014	83.6	75.7–91.5	better (rough estimate)	2,383
2015	81.3	73.0–89.6	better (rough estimate)	2,408
2016	76.5	62.8–90.2	better (rough estimate)	900

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 52,965 (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). Volvo S80 2012 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/volvo-s80/2012/

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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