2008 Ford S-Max: MOT pass rate and reliability

62.3% of 2008 Ford S-Max pass the MOT first time, measured across 4,459 DVSA tests on that model year alone. The average one had covered 141,515 miles.

How the 2008 compares

  • Against all Ford S-Max (70.5%, 73,026 tests): -8.2 points
  • Against all 2008 cars (64.7%): -2.4 points
  • National first-time pass rate, all cars and years: 77%

Every Ford S-Max model year

Pass rates fall as cars age, so the only fair comparison for a 2008 car is other cars of the same age. The full run for the Ford S-Max:

Year Pass rate Tests Avg mileage
2006 58.9% 1,424 139,714
2007 60.2% 4,464 143,270
2008 62.3% 4,459 141,515
2009 62.1% 5,818 133,914
2010 66.1% 8,729 125,374
2011 67.8% 6,363 120,625
2012 67.9% 6,937 111,065
2013 66.9% 6,253 101,396
2014 69.1% 6,506 93,081
2015 76% 3,309 81,144
2016 82.4% 6,862 72,268
2017 83.1% 5,305 66,048
2018 83.7% 2,395 53,536
2019 81.6% 2,339 46,112
2020 86.4% 1,165 36,413
2021 84.3% 686 32,207

What this means if you are buying a 2008 S-Max

The 2008 is a weaker year for this model, passing 8.2 points less often than the Ford S-Max average. Some of that is simply age, so compare it against the 2008 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 an 18-year-old car fails on

A 2008 car is 18 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 very high mileage. Clutches, dual-mass flywheels and head gaskets have usually been through at least one repair by this point, so ask for evidence rather than assume the car is original everywhere. On a 2008 Ford S-Max the average at test was 141,515 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 2020 at 86.4%, and the weakest in our data is 2006 at 58.9%. That 27.5 point spread across the model's life is why comparing a 2008 car against a newer one tells you very little.

Nearby model years

All Ford S-Max MOT data · Every model