Citroen Berlingo: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Citroen Berlingo fails its first MOT more often than the average UK vehicle, by 8.4 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 177,163 individual Citroen Berlingo tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 68.3% first-time pass rate means roughly 32 in every 100 Citroen Berlingos presented for MOT fail on the first attempt. That is worse than average, so budget for remedial work and treat a fresh 12-month MOT as a genuine selling point rather than a given. The average Citroen Berlingo tested had covered 94,833 miles and was built around 2014.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. The Citroen Berlingo sits 8.4 points below the national average, ranked 1,797 of 2,005 models. On one bought as repairable salvage, assume the mechanical side needs more than the visible accident damage, and pad your repair estimate accordingly.

Before you bid: run the lot through the analyzer, check the car's own record, check the mileage, decode the VIN, and if it carries a marker use the write-off value calculator. See how it stacks up against the Ford Fiesta.

Looking at a specific Citroen Berlingo rather than the model in general? The free check covers its MOT and mileage history, and the full HPI report confirms the insurance write-off category, outstanding finance and whether it is recorded stolen, from licensed data for 5 credits. Already own one that has been damaged? Work out whether fixing it beats selling it with the repair or scrap calculator, and see the median recorded closing bid for a damaged Citroen Berlingo: £200 at UK salvage auction, from 3 ended listings, not independently confirmed sales.

Most common MOT failures on a Citroen Berlingo

1. Audible warning inoperative, 2.3% of tests (8.04x the national rate for this defect)
2. A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of a single lamp or all lamps, 3.8% of tests (4.22x the national rate for this defect)
3. Stop lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 5.3% of tests (3.91x the national rate for this defect)
4. A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 5.9% of tests (3.88x the national rate for this defect)
5. A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 6.9% of tests (3.09x the national rate for this defect)
6. A headlamp or light source missing, inoperative or more than ½ not functioning in the case of LED, 2.8% of tests (2.26x the national rate for this defect)
7. Windscreen washers not working or not providing sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen, 3.3% of tests (1.98x the national rate for this defect)
8. A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, 4.2% of tests (1.82x the national rate for this defect)
9. Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements, 5.2% of tests (1.63x the national rate for this defect)
10. Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen, 3.1% of tests (1.6x the national rate for this defect)

From 176,861 DVSA-tracked Citroen Berlingo tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 5.04% of these flagged Citroen Berlingo defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 5.11% nationally.

Most common MOT advisories on a Citroen Berlingo

An advisory doesn't fail the car - the tester flags it as worth watching, but it still passes. A different list from the failures above: what testers are noting on a Citroen Berlingo before it actually fails on it.

1. Stop lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 1.8% of tests (5.01x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
2. Lamp emitted colour, position or intensity not in accordance with the requirements, 4.2% of tests (3.1x the national rate for this advisory)
3. Fluid leaking excessively and likely to harm the environment or to pose a safety risk to other road users, 10.2% of tests (1.83x the national rate for this advisory)
4. Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake, 3.6% of tests (1.78x the national rate for this advisory)
5. Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements, 35.5% of tests (1.33x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
6. A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, 16.3% of tests (1.22x the national rate for this advisory)
7. Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured, 13.4% of tests
8. a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm, 10.7% of tests
9. A tyre seriously damaged, 9.7% of tests
10. Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, 3.2% of tests

From 176,861 DVSA-tracked Citroen Berlingo tests, 2024.

Citroen Berlingo pass rate by model year

From its 2000 to its 2021 model year, the Citroen Berlingo's first-time pass rate has risen 21.9 points, from 59.2% to 81.1%, the usual pattern: a newer model year is a younger car today, so it fails less. First-time pass rate for each Citroen Berlingo year:

• 2000 Citroen Berlingo - 59.2% first-time pass, 431 tests
• 2001 Citroen Berlingo - 61.7% first-time pass, 933 tests
• 2002 Citroen Berlingo - 60.9% first-time pass, 1,644 tests
• 2003 Citroen Berlingo - 61.3% first-time pass, 2,803 tests
• 2004 Citroen Berlingo - 59.9% first-time pass, 3,519 tests
• 2005 Citroen Berlingo - 58.5% first-time pass, 3,794 tests
• 2006 Citroen Berlingo - 61.2% first-time pass, 5,104 tests
• 2007 Citroen Berlingo - 62.3% first-time pass, 5,297 tests
• 2008 Citroen Berlingo - 59.2% first-time pass, 5,635 tests
• 2009 Citroen Berlingo - 60.6% first-time pass, 8,177 tests
• 2010 Citroen Berlingo - 62.2% first-time pass, 7,462 tests
• 2011 Citroen Berlingo - 62.3% first-time pass, 8,046 tests
• 2012 Citroen Berlingo - 62.9% first-time pass, 9,803 tests
• 2013 Citroen Berlingo - 65.1% first-time pass, 12,446 tests
• 2014 Citroen Berlingo - 66.2% first-time pass, 14,344 tests
• 2015 Citroen Berlingo - 68.3% first-time pass, 15,189 tests
• 2016 Citroen Berlingo - 71.5% first-time pass, 14,128 tests
• 2017 Citroen Berlingo - 72.1% first-time pass, 12,518 tests
• 2018 Citroen Berlingo - 74.9% first-time pass, 12,913 tests
• 2019 Citroen Berlingo - 80.7% first-time pass, 14,311 tests
• 2020 Citroen Berlingo - 81% first-time pass, 11,870 tests
• 2021 Citroen Berlingo - 81.1% first-time pass, 5,370 tests

Citroen Berlingo by fuel type

The Citroen Berlingo's two most-tested fuel types split by 0.8 points: diesel passes first time 68.6% of the time (166,557 tests) against 69.4% for petrol (9,256 tests).

• Diesel Citroen Berlingo - 68.6% first-time pass, 166,557 tests
• Petrol Citroen Berlingo - 69.4% first-time pass, 9,256 tests
• Electric Citroen Berlingo - 81.3% first-time pass, 214 tests

Other Citroen models

• Citroen C3 - 70.4%
• Citroen C1 - 75.1%
• Citroen C4 - 66%
• Citroen Ds3 - 60.4%
• Citroen Dispatch - 66.2%
• Citroen Xsara - 58%
• Citroen C3 Aircross - 86.4%
• Citroen C4 Cactus - 79.2%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Chevrolet Orlando - 68.5%
• Mazda Eunos - 68.5%
• Suzuki Splash - 68.4%
• Volkswagen Eos - 68.3%
• Suzuki Grand Vitara - 68.2%
• Citroen Relay - 68.2%

If this van is a salvage or write-off

• Britain's most and least reliable vans: 2.2 million MOT tests analysed
• What does Cat N mean? Category N explained
• What does Cat S mean? Category S explained
• Cat S vs Cat N: the real differences
• Do you need an HPI check on a car you know is a write-off?

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All 2,005 models ranked by MOT pass rate