Skoda Fabia MOT pass rate & common failures
The Skoda Fabia appears in 1,413,453 MOT tests spanning model years 2000–2025, and 80.9% of them passed. That is 1.5 percentage points better than superminis of a similar age, which fail at 20.6%. Its most common failure areas are lighting & signalling, suspension and brakes.
Best and worst Fabia years
Ranked across Fabia years with at least 1,000 tests. Older cars fail more simply because they are older — compare years close together in age before drawing conclusions.
What the MOT record shows
The strongest year on this record is 2022 (94.0% pass rate); the weakest is 2004 (70.1%). Older cars carry more of the difference than the average implies.
No single area dominates — lighting & signalling (8.9%) and suspension (7.4%) are close, so failures are spread across several systems rather than one weak point.
At component level the recurring items are headlamp aim, pins and bushes and wipers — headlamp aim alone was recorded 53,089 times.
Mileage is the strongest signal on the record: 8.0% of 0-30k cars fail, rising to 30.2% once past 150k — 3.8× the risk.
Split by fuel, diesel examples fail 7.6pp more often than petrol ones (24.9% vs 17.3%) — worth weighing if you have a choice.
Advisories point at the next bill rather than this one: tyres was flagged on 26.2% of tests without failing them.
How it compares
By model year
Every Fabia model year with a usable sample. Years with their own detailed report are linked.
| Year | Tests | Pass rate | Fail rate | Most common failure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 2,963 | 71.1% | 28.9% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2001 | 12,263 | 71.0% | 28.9% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2002 | 16,890 | 71.6% | 28.4% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2003 | 24,668 | 70.2% | 29.8% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2004 | 36,277 | 70.1% | 29.9% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2005 | 48,722 | 70.8% | 29.2% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2006 | 58,116 | 71.4% | 28.6% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2007 | 66,208 | 72.5% | 27.5% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2008 | 77,434 | 72.6% | 27.4% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2009 | 93,011 | 75.2% | 24.8% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2010 | 72,253 | 78.3% | 21.7% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2011 | 77,627 | 79.1% | 20.9% | Suspension |
| 2012 | 87,386 | 81.0% | 18.9% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2013 | 113,354 | 82.9% | 17.1% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2014 | 87,495 | 84.6% | 15.4% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2015 | 103,907 | 85.5% | 14.5% | Suspension |
| 2016 | 112,890 | 85.4% | 14.6% | Suspension |
| 2017 | 103,797 | 86.8% | 13.2% | Suspension |
| 2018 | 94,585 | 88.4% | 11.6% | Visibility |
| 2019 | 65,131 | 90.6% | 9.3% | Visibility |
| 2020 | 31,376 | 90.8% | 9.2% | Tyres |
| 2021 | 18,966 | 90.8% | 9.2% | Tyres |
| 2022 | 7,734 | 94.0% | 6.0% | Tyres |
| 2023 | 387 | 97.2% | 2.8% | Lighting & signalling |
Most common failures (all years)
| # | Category | % of tests affected | Tests |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lighting & signalling | 8.9% | 126,185 |
| 2 | Suspension | 7.4% | 104,784 |
| 3 | Brakes | 6.4% | 89,917 |
| 4 | Tyres | 5.1% | 72,030 |
| 5 | Visibility | 3.8% | 54,288 |
| 6 | Body, structure & corrosion | 3.6% | 51,361 |
| 7 | Emissions & environmental | 2.9% | 40,929 |
| 8 | Steering | 1.4% | 19,261 |
Most common specific failures
The exact components most often recorded as failures — more specific than the categories above.
| # | Failure item | Times recorded |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Headlamp aim | 53,089 |
| 2 | Pins and bushes | 48,277 |
| 3 | Wipers | 40,280 |
| 4 | Position lamp | 40,117 |
| 5 | Headlamp | 38,250 |
| 6 | Service brake performance | 34,816 |
| 7 | Tread depth | 33,620 |
| 8 | Joints | 27,920 |
Top advisory categories
Advisories aren't failures, but they flag work likely needed soon — useful when budgeting.
| # | Category | % of tests with advisory | Tests |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tyres | 26.2% | 369,675 |
| 2 | Suspension | 20.3% | 287,449 |
| 3 | Brakes | 19.2% | 270,863 |
| 4 | Other defects | 10.3% | 146,331 |
| 5 | Lighting & signalling | 7.5% | 106,104 |
| 6 | Body, structure & corrosion | 6.8% | 95,376 |
Failure rate by mileage
Higher-mileage cars tend to fail more — often the most useful guide to real condition.
| Mileage band | Tests | Fail rate |
|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 244,918 | 8.0% |
| 30-60k | 425,091 | 14.7% |
| 60-90k | 347,008 | 21.8% |
| 90-120k | 221,484 | 27.0% |
| 120-150k | 106,707 | 29.4% |
| 150k+ | 67,727 | 30.2% |
Failure rate by age
By fuel type
| Fuel | Tests | Fail rate |
|---|---|---|
| Petrol | 1,090,713 | 17.3% |
| Diesel | 322,715 | 24.9% |
Trend over time
| Dataset year | Tests | Fail rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 278,177 | 18.4% |
| 2022 | 284,470 | 18.3% |
| 2023 | 286,932 | 19.0% |
| 2024 | 284,452 | 19.9% |
| 2025 | 279,422 | 19.8% |
What to check before buying a Skoda Fabia
- Lighting & signalling (8.9% of tests): Often a cheap bulb, but persistent issues can mean wiring or corrosion in the units. Typical repair: £10–£150.
- Suspension (7.4% of tests): Worn drop links, bushes, springs or shocks — listen for knocks over bumps and check for uneven tyre wear. Typical repair: £150–£450 per corner.
- Brakes (6.4% of tests): Pads/discs are routine wear; binding, imbalance or corroded pipes are more serious — test for pulling under braking. Typical repair: £100–£350 per axle.
Repair costs are rough UK ballpark ranges to set expectations, not quotes — actual prices vary widely by car, parts and garage.
Frequently asked questions
What is the MOT pass rate for the Skoda Fabia?
80.9% of the 1,413,453 Skoda Fabia MOT tests in this dataset passed, a 19.1% fail rate, across model years 2000–2025.
What does the Skoda Fabia most often fail its MOT on?
Lighting & signalling, recorded in 8.9% of tests, then suspension (7.4%).
Which Fabia years are best and worst for MOT results?
2022 has the best pass rate at 94.0% and 2004 the weakest at 70.1%, from 7,734 and 36,277 tests respectively.
How much does mileage affect Fabia MOT results?
Fail rates run at 8.0% for cars in the 0-30k band and 30.2% for 150k+, a 22.3-point difference.
Is the petrol or diesel Fabia more reliable at MOT time?
On MOT-testable defects the petrol fails 17.3% of the time against 24.9% for the diesel. This covers testable items only, not engine or gearbox reliability.
Methodology & source. Based on 1,413,453 MOT tests. Dataset: DVSA MOT testing data (2021,2022,2023,2024,2025). Data last updated 2026-07-27. Figures reflect MOT-testable defects only — read the methodology for how these are calculated and what they don't measure.