Citroen C4: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Citroen C4 fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 10.7 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 129,327 individual Citroen C4 tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 66% first-time pass rate means roughly 34 in every 100 Citroen C4s 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 C4 tested had covered 83,951 miles and was built around 2013.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. On a Citroen C4 bought as a 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. Or compare it against another model.

Looking at a specific Citroen C4 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 what damaged Citroen C4s actually sold for at UK salvage auction.

Most common MOT failures on a Citroen C4

1. A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 5.8% of tests (5.15x 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, 2.3% of tests (3.56x the national rate for this defect)
3. A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play, 2.8% of tests (2.92x the national rate for this defect)
4. Stop lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 2.6% of tests (2.69x the national rate for this defect)
5. A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 3.4% of tests (2.49x 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, 1.9% of tests (2.09x the national rate for this defect)
7. a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm, 3% of tests (1.98x the national rate for this defect)
8. The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements, 3.3% of tests (1.88x the national rate for this defect)
9. Windscreen washers not working or not providing sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen, 2.3% of tests (1.84x the national rate for this defect)
10. A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, 2.9% of tests (1.79x the national rate for this defect)

From 183,168 DVSA-tracked Citroen C4 tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 5.83% of these flagged Citroen C4 defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 4.97% nationally.

Citroen C4 pass rate by model year

Pass rates fall steadily as cars age, so the model year matters as much as the model. First-time pass rate for each Citroen C4 year:

• 2005 Citroen C4 - 63% first-time pass, 922 tests
• 2006 Citroen C4 - 59.9% first-time pass, 1,809 tests
• 2007 Citroen C4 - 59.5% first-time pass, 5,505 tests
• 2008 Citroen C4 - 57% first-time pass, 7,135 tests
• 2009 Citroen C4 - 58.2% first-time pass, 5,107 tests
• 2010 Citroen C4 - 58% first-time pass, 6,088 tests
• 2011 Citroen C4 - 62.6% first-time pass, 6,991 tests
• 2012 Citroen C4 - 63.6% first-time pass, 8,424 tests
• 2013 Citroen C4 - 63.1% first-time pass, 12,121 tests
• 2014 Citroen C4 - 64.5% first-time pass, 20,597 tests
• 2015 Citroen C4 - 69.6% first-time pass, 27,553 tests
• 2016 Citroen C4 - 73.1% first-time pass, 17,438 tests
• 2017 Citroen C4 - 80.8% first-time pass, 991 tests
• 2018 Citroen C4 - 82.2% first-time pass, 2,751 tests
• 2019 Citroen C4 - 83.8% first-time pass, 4,790 tests

Citroen C4 by fuel type

Diesel and petrol versions of the same car fail on different things, so the fuel type moves the number:

• Diesel Citroen C4 - 65.7% first-time pass, 101,823 tests
• Petrol Citroen C4 - 69.4% first-time pass, 26,669 tests

Other Citroen models

• Citroen C3 - 70.4%
• Citroen Berlingo - 68.3%
• Citroen C1 - 75.1%
• 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

• Peugeot Premier - 66.3%
• Citroen Dispatch - 66.2%
• Smart (Mcc) City Cabriolet - 66.1%
• SEAT Altea - 65.9%
• Jaguar S-Type - 65.9%
• Renault Megane Scenic - 65.9%

If this car is a salvage or write-off

• What does Cat N mean? Category N explained
• What does Cat S mean? Category S explained
• Cat S vs Cat N: the real differences

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All 2,005 models ranked by MOT pass rate