2012 Fiat 500c: MOT pass rate and reliability

67.1% of 2012 Fiat 500cs pass the MOT first time, measured across 2,190 DVSA tests on that model year alone. The average one had covered 63,489 miles.

How the 2012 compares

  • Against all Fiat 500cs (70.8%, 17,086 tests): -3.7 points
  • Against all 2012 cars (70.8%): -3.7 points
  • National first-time pass rate, all cars and years: 77%

Every Fiat 500c model year

Pass rates fall as cars age, so the only fair comparison for a 2012 car is other cars of the same age. The full run for the Fiat 500c:

Year Pass rate Tests Avg mileage
2009 60.9% 796 77,805
2010 61.9% 1,487 74,773
2011 65.9% 1,331 69,709
2012 67.1% 2,190 63,489
2013 70.7% 1,995 59,371
2014 70.1% 2,351 53,404
2015 70.7% 2,554 49,040
2016 76.2% 2,214 43,197
2017 81.3% 1,585 37,274
2018 86% 571 32,231

What this means if you are buying a 2012 500c

The 2012 is a weaker year for this model, passing 3.7 points less often than the Fiat 500c average. Some of that is simply age, so compare it against the 2012 figure for all cars above rather than against newer examples. Check the exact car with the free MOT history checker before you buy, and run its VIN and mileage through our free VIN decoder and clocking check.

What a 14-year-old car fails on

A 2012 car is 14 years old now, and age drives the failure mix more than the badge does. Across all cars tested, these are the categories that actually cause failures:

  • Lights and electrical: 10.36% of all cars tested
  • Suspension: 8.65% of all cars tested
  • Tyres: 6.23% of all cars tested
  • Brakes: 6.1% of all cars tested
  • Visibility: wipers, washers, glass: 4.65% of all cars tested
  • Body, chassis and structure: 3.18% of all cars tested

That is around average, so condition and service history will tell you more than the odometer does. On a 2012 Fiat 500c the average at test was 63,489 miles, so treat anything far above that as a car that has worked harder than its peers, and anything far below as one worth checking for the faults that come from standing still.

The strongest year for this model is 2018 at 86%, and the weakest in our data is 2009 at 60.9%. That 25.1 point spread across the model's life is why comparing a 2012 car against a newer one tells you very little.

Nearby model years

All Fiat 500c MOT data · Every model