Renault tops MoT failure table

Almost a third of Renault Meganes failed an MoT test in 2007, according to figures released by the Vehicle and Operating Services Agency (VOSA) today.

A quarter of Vauxhall Corsas failed a test, while the Toyota Corolla had the lowest failure rate at just 11%.

MoT tests are a measure of roadworthiness carried out on cars every year once they are three years old.

The information was published following a Freedom of Information (FoI) request by the BBC. The broadcaster's FoI expert has scrutinised the data to produce a table of popular cars that have undergone at least 20,000 tests.

What's not included
No information is given to indicate the cars' mileage, nor how well it has been cared for, both of which will have implications on the likelihood of a car passing a test.

What Car?'s used car editor Matt Sanger said: 'MoT test data gives a great insight into how cars age, and the items that are statistically likely to fail on specific makes and models of car.

'However, due to the way the MoT is carried out, it doesnt automatically indicate how reliable a specific car is. Its quite possible for a car to fail a test at one MoT station, and pass at another.'

VOSA reluctant to publish
Despite frequent requests for the information, until now VOSA has resisted publishing the data, fearing that it would breach manufacturers' commercial confidentiality and mislead consumers.

The Information Commissioner overruled VOSA, saying that publication would be in the public interest. As a result, VOSA will publish data for 2008 and 2009 later this year, and then every year in future.

Car failure rates 2007

Make
Renault
Vauxhall
Ford
Renault
Ford
Peugeot
MINI
Volkswagen
Vauxhall
Vauxhall
Ford
FordModel
Megane
Corsa
Mondeo
Clio
Ka
206
MINI
Golf
Zafira
Astra
Focus
FiestaFailure rate %
28.1
24.7
21.8
21.2
21
20.5
20
19.2
18.9
18.4
18
15.6

• The table includes only 2004 models of the twelve most-tested cars.