Honda Civic vs Volkswagen Golf
On MOT-testable defects, the Volkswagen Golf (fail rate 18.6%) performed better than the Honda Civic (20.9%) across comparable years. The biggest divergence was lighting & signalling, where the Civic recorded failures more often.
20.9%
Civic fail rate
18.6%
Golf fail rate
2.39pp
Difference
Side by side
| Metric | Honda Civic | Volkswagen Golf |
|---|---|---|
| MOT tests analysed | 1,771,579 | 5,284,210 |
| Pass rate | 79.1% | 81.5% |
| Fail rate | 20.9% | 18.6% |
Where they differ
| Category | Civic | Golf |
|---|---|---|
| Lighting & signalling | 14.5% | 7.6% |
| Visibility | 4.5% | 0.0% |
| Body, structure & corrosion | 0.0% | 3.3% |
| Brakes | 6.8% | 5.5% |
| Suspension | 9.0% | 8.1% |
| Tyres | 5.3% | 5.5% |
Methodology & source. Dataset: DVSA MOT testing data (2021,2022,2023,2024,2025). Data last updated 2026-07-01. Figures reflect MOT-testable defects only — read the methodology for how these are calculated and what they don't measure.