2004 Mercedes-Benz A-Class: MOT pass rate and reliability

66.3% of 2004 Mercedes-Benz A-Class pass the MOT first time, measured across 1,249 DVSA tests on that model year alone. The average one had covered 82,365 miles.

How the 2004 compares

  • Against all Mercedes-Benz A-Class (79.1%, 240,503 tests): -12.8 points
  • Against all 2004 cars (64%): +2.3 points
  • National first-time pass rate, all cars and years: 77%

Every Mercedes-Benz A-Class model year

Pass rates fall as cars age, so the only fair comparison for a 2004 car is other cars of the same age. The full run for the Mercedes-Benz A-Class:

Year Pass rate Tests Avg mileage
2000 60.3% 239 78,723
2001 66.4% 578 87,219
2002 63.5% 915 82,613
2003 65.1% 1,250 81,451
2004 66.3% 1,249 82,365
2005 66.7% 2,880 87,215
2006 64.9% 4,382 90,121
2007 67.4% 6,032 90,233
2008 66.3% 6,671 88,416
2009 68.1% 6,920 83,705
2010 69.6% 6,189 79,257
2011 72.2% 5,423 73,234
2012 73.3% 5,175 72,385
2013 75.7% 14,662 92,074
2014 76.3% 23,099 86,784
2015 79% 26,796 77,180
2016 81.5% 37,979 68,000
2017 83.7% 40,670 58,622
2018 86.4% 40,495 48,498
2019 87.1% 8,551 42,749

What this means if you are buying a 2004 A-Class

The 2004 is a weaker year for this model, passing 12.8 points less often than the Mercedes-Benz A-Class average. Some of that is simply age, so compare it against the 2004 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 22-year-old car fails on

A 2004 car is 22 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 above average, the point where suspension bushes, drop links and exhaust corrosion start showing up as advisories before they become failures. On a 2004 Mercedes-Benz A-Class the average at test was 82,365 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 2019 at 87.1%, and the weakest in our data is 2000 at 60.3%. That 26.8 point spread across the model's life is why comparing a 2004 car against a newer one tells you very little.

Nearby model years

All Mercedes-Benz A-Class MOT data · Every model