Citroen Ds3: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Citroen Ds3 fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 16.3 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 72,629 individual Citroen Ds3 tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 60.4% first-time pass rate means roughly 40 in every 100 Citroen Ds3s 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 Ds3 tested had covered 79,684 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. The Citroen Ds3 sits 16.3 points below the national average, ranked 1,945 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. Or compare it against another model.

Looking at a specific Citroen Ds3 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 Ds3: £350 at UK salvage auction, from 25 ended listings, not independently confirmed sales.

Most common MOT failures on a Citroen Ds3

1. A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 11.5% of tests (7.51x the national rate for this defect)
2. A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play, 7.1% of tests (5.44x the national rate for this defect)
3. Exhaust system leaking or insecure, 4.8% of tests (4.77x the national rate for this defect)
4. A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, 10.8% of tests (4.76x the national rate for this defect)
5. Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn, 3.2% of tests (4.03x 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, 4.2% of tests (3.42x the national rate for this defect)
7. A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of a single lamp or all lamps, 2.6% of tests (2.87x the national rate for this defect)
8. A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 5.3% of tests (2.37x the national rate for this defect)
9. Windscreen washers not working or not providing sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen, 3.6% of tests (2.11x the national rate for this defect)
10. Stop lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 2.7% of tests (2x the national rate for this defect)

From 72,506 DVSA-tracked Citroen Ds3 tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 4.96% of these flagged Citroen Ds3 defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 5.11% nationally.

Most common MOT advisories on a Citroen Ds3

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 Ds3 before it actually fails on it.

1. Exhaust system leaking or insecure, 14.7% of tests (5.18x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
2. A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play, 6% of tests (4.53x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
3. A brake hose ferrule excessively corroded, 4.3% of tests (3.42x the national rate for this advisory)
4. Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake, 5.2% of tests (2.61x the national rate for this advisory)
5. Lamp emitted colour, position or intensity not in accordance with the requirements, 3.6% of tests (2.61x the national rate for this advisory)
6. Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured, 30.6% of tests (2.5x the national rate for this advisory)
7. A wheel badly distorted or wear between wheel and hub at spigot mounting, 2.5% of tests (2.35x the national rate for this advisory)
8. Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn, 5.9% of tests (1.85x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
9. A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, 7.7% of tests (1.63x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
10. Fluid leaking excessively and likely to harm the environment or to pose a safety risk to other road users, 8% of tests (1.43x the national rate for this advisory)

From 72,506 DVSA-tracked Citroen Ds3 tests, 2024.

Citroen Ds3 pass rate by model year

From its 2010 to its 2015 model year, the Citroen Ds3's first-time pass rate has risen 6.1 points, from 57.4% to 63.5%, the usual pattern: a newer model year is a younger car today, so it fails less. First-time pass rate for each Citroen Ds3 year:

• 2010 Citroen Ds3 - 57.4% first-time pass, 3,913 tests
• 2011 Citroen Ds3 - 59.8% first-time pass, 9,086 tests
• 2012 Citroen Ds3 - 59.3% first-time pass, 14,377 tests
• 2013 Citroen Ds3 - 60.4% first-time pass, 17,951 tests
• 2014 Citroen Ds3 - 61.9% first-time pass, 18,004 tests
• 2015 Citroen Ds3 - 63.5% first-time pass, 8,492 tests
• 2016 Citroen Ds3 - 77.5% first-time pass, 236 tests

Citroen Ds3 by fuel type

The Citroen Ds3's two most-tested fuel types split by 5.2 points: petrol passes first time 63.4% of the time (36,222 tests) against 58.2% for diesel (35,972 tests).

• Petrol Citroen Ds3 - 63.4% first-time pass, 36,222 tests
• Diesel Citroen Ds3 - 58.2% first-time pass, 35,972 tests

Other Citroen models

• Citroen C3 - 70.4%
• Citroen Berlingo - 68.3%
• Citroen C1 - 75.1%
• Citroen C4 - 66%
• Citroen Dispatch - 66.2%
• Citroen Xsara - 58%
• Citroen C3 Aircross - 86.4%
• Citroen C4 Cactus - 79.2%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Renault Grand Scenic - 60.6%
• Volkswagen Lt - 60.6%
• Alfa Romeo GT - 60.5%
• Volvo V50 - 60.4%
• Ldv Maxus - 60.4%
• Alfa Romeo 159 - 60.1%

If this car is a salvage or write-off

• Britain's most and least reliable cars: 33 million MOT tests analysed
• Which car models beat their age on the MOT test? 27.9 million tests, ranked
• 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?

Embed this data

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All 2,005 models ranked by MOT pass rate