1998 Ford Escort: MOT pass rate and reliability

70% of 1998 Ford Escorts pass the MOT first time, measured across 414 DVSA tests on that model year alone. The average one had covered 57,517 miles.

How the 1998 compares

  • Against all Ford Escorts (81.5%, 10,094 tests): -11.5 points
  • Against all 1998 cars (70%): +0 points
  • National first-time pass rate, all cars and years: 77%

Every Ford Escort model year

Pass rates fall as cars age, so the only fair comparison for a 1998 car is other cars of the same age. The full run for the Ford Escort:

Year Pass rate Tests Avg mileage
1990 83.7% 910 51,665
1991 85.9% 270 55,474
1992 86.9% 267 51,523
1993 83.1% 354 53,355
1994 79.8% 337 55,938
1995 76.2% 432 53,183
1996 72.3% 577 56,491
1997 65.4% 538 55,617
1998 70% 414 57,517
1999 62.1% 211 56,913
2000 65.1% 455 84,577
2001 67.8% 385 100,903
2002 66.2% 293 107,459

What this means if you are buying a 1998 Escort

The 1998 is a weaker year for this model, passing 11.5 points less often than the Ford Escort average. Some of that is simply age, so compare it against the 1998 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 28-year-old car fails on

A 1998 car is 28 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 1998 Ford Escort the average at test was 57,517 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 1992 at 86.9%, and the weakest in our data is 1999 at 62.1%. That 24.8 point spread across the model's life is why comparing a 1998 car against a newer one tells you very little.

Nearby model years

All Ford Escort MOT data · Every model