Volkswagen Sharan MOT pass rate & common failures
Across 31 model years and 217,352 tests, the Volkswagen Sharan passes its MOT 82.6% of the time. That is 1.2 percentage points better than MPVs of a similar age, which fail at 18.6%. Its most common failure areas are suspension, lighting & signalling and tyres.
Best and worst Sharan years
Ranked across Sharan 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
Build year matters more than the headline suggests: 2019 cars pass 92.4% of the time while 2003 cars manage 66.5%, a 26.0-point spread.
No single area dominates — suspension (8.0%) and lighting & signalling (7.7%) are close, so failures are spread across several systems rather than one weak point.
At component level the recurring items are pins and bushes, tread depth and headlamp aim — pins and bushes alone was recorded 11,607 times.
Mileage is the strongest signal on the record: 9.0% of 0-30k cars fail, rising to 21.2% once past 150k — 2.4× the risk.
The petrol cars hold up better: 14.8% fail against 17.8% for diesel, a 2.9-point gap across 217,344 tests.
Tyres is the most common advisory, noted on 25.7% of tests — work that passed today but is likely due soon.
The trend is improving — the fail rate fell from 18.8% in 2021 to 16.6% in 2025, as the worst-kept examples leave the fleet.
How it compares
By model year
Every Sharan model year with a usable sample. Years with their own detailed report are linked.
| Year | Tests | Pass rate | Fail rate | Most common failure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 154 | 67.5% | 32.5% | Suspension |
| 1997 | 304 | 74.7% | 25.3% | Suspension |
| 1998 | 361 | 71.8% | 28.2% | Suspension |
| 1999 | 266 | 62.0% | 38.0% | Suspension |
| 2000 | 444 | 67.3% | 32.7% | Suspension |
| 2001 | 925 | 68.8% | 31.2% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2002 | 1,860 | 67.5% | 32.5% | Suspension |
| 2003 | 2,864 | 66.5% | 33.6% | Suspension |
| 2004 | 4,382 | 66.9% | 33.1% | Suspension |
| 2005 | 6,360 | 68.5% | 31.5% | Suspension |
| 2006 | 6,077 | 67.3% | 32.7% | Suspension |
| 2007 | 6,412 | 68.5% | 31.5% | Suspension |
| 2008 | 4,729 | 69.6% | 30.4% | Suspension |
| 2009 | 3,778 | 70.1% | 29.9% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2010 | 4,825 | 74.1% | 25.9% | Suspension |
| 2011 | 13,147 | 78.9% | 21.1% | Suspension |
| 2012 | 12,317 | 79.4% | 20.6% | Suspension |
| 2013 | 13,647 | 80.3% | 19.8% | Suspension |
| 2014 | 17,375 | 82.4% | 17.6% | Tyres |
| 2015 | 19,018 | 84.1% | 15.9% | Tyres |
| 2016 | 19,187 | 86.9% | 13.2% | Tyres |
| 2017 | 20,098 | 88.1% | 11.9% | Tyres |
| 2018 | 18,544 | 89.8% | 10.2% | Tyres |
| 2019 | 31,683 | 92.4% | 7.6% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2020 | 5,713 | 89.1% | 10.8% | Tyres |
| 2021 | 2,737 | 88.9% | 11.1% | Tyres |
| 2022 | 106 | 85.9% | 14.1% | Tyres |
Most common failures (all years)
| # | Category | % of tests affected | Tests |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Suspension | 8.0% | 17,283 |
| 2 | Lighting & signalling | 7.7% | 16,801 |
| 3 | Tyres | 6.2% | 13,383 |
| 4 | Brakes | 4.2% | 9,223 |
| 5 | Body, structure & corrosion | 3.3% | 7,081 |
| 6 | Visibility | 2.8% | 6,136 |
| 7 | Emissions & environmental | 2.6% | 5,740 |
| 8 | Steering | 1.2% | 2,658 |
Most common specific failures
The exact components most often recorded as failures — more specific than the categories above.
| # | Failure item | Times recorded |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pins and bushes | 11,607 |
| 2 | Tread depth | 6,738 |
| 3 | Headlamp aim | 6,255 |
| 4 | Position lamp | 5,279 |
| 5 | Component mounting prescribed areas | 4,171 |
| 6 | Malfunction indicator lamp | 4,082 |
| 7 | Brake pads | 3,609 |
| 8 | Joints | 3,501 |
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 | 25.7% | 55,937 |
| 2 | Suspension | 24.1% | 52,373 |
| 3 | Brakes | 19.6% | 42,660 |
| 4 | Other defects | 11.2% | 24,365 |
| 5 | Body, structure & corrosion | 5.1% | 11,058 |
| 6 | Emissions & environmental | 4.7% | 10,169 |
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 | 17,766 | 9.0% |
| 30-60k | 42,519 | 12.7% |
| 60-90k | 43,967 | 16.1% |
| 90-120k | 38,650 | 19.9% |
| 120-150k | 30,720 | 22.1% |
| 150k+ | 43,666 | 21.2% |
Failure rate by age
By fuel type
| Fuel | Tests | Fail rate |
|---|---|---|
| Diesel | 192,093 | 17.8% |
| Petrol | 25,251 | 14.8% |
Trend over time
| Dataset year | Tests | Fail rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 43,569 | 18.8% |
| 2022 | 44,925 | 17.6% |
| 2023 | 44,313 | 17.2% |
| 2024 | 43,340 | 16.9% |
| 2025 | 41,205 | 16.6% |
What to check before buying a Volkswagen Sharan
- Suspension (8.0% 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.
- Lighting & signalling (7.7% of tests): Often a cheap bulb, but persistent issues can mean wiring or corrosion in the units. Typical repair: £10–£150.
- Tyres (6.2% of tests): Usually a quick, known-cost fix, but check tread, age and uneven wear (which can hint at alignment or suspension issues). Typical repair: £50–£120 per tyre.
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 Volkswagen Sharan?
82.6% of the 217,352 Volkswagen Sharan MOT tests in this dataset passed, a 17.4% fail rate, across model years 1995–2025.
What does the Volkswagen Sharan most often fail its MOT on?
Suspension, recorded in 8.0% of tests, then lighting & signalling (7.7%).
Which Sharan years are best and worst for MOT results?
2019 has the best pass rate at 92.4% and 2003 the weakest at 66.5%, from 31,683 and 2,864 tests respectively.
How much does mileage affect Sharan MOT results?
Fail rates run at 9.0% for cars in the 0-30k band and 21.2% for 150k+, a 12.2-point difference.
Is the petrol or diesel Sharan more reliable at MOT time?
On MOT-testable defects the petrol fails 14.8% of the time against 17.8% for the diesel. This covers testable items only, not engine or gearbox reliability.
Methodology & source. Based on 217,352 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.