2006 Mercedes-Benz R-Class: MOT pass rate and reliability

71.2% of 2006 Mercedes-Benz R-Class pass the MOT first time, measured across 302 DVSA tests on that model year alone. The average one had covered 127,298 miles.

How the 2006 compares

  • Against all Mercedes-Benz R-Class (74.7%, 2,063 tests): -3.5 points
  • Against all 2006 cars (64.1%): +7.1 points
  • National first-time pass rate, all cars and years: 77%

Every Mercedes-Benz R-Class model year

Pass rates fall as cars age, so the only fair comparison for a 2006 car is other cars of the same age. The full run for the Mercedes-Benz R-Class:

Year Pass rate Tests Avg mileage
2006 71.2% 302 127,298
2007 71.4% 315 129,216
2008 77% 265 125,691
2010 74.3% 222 125,720
2011 78.1% 343 120,125
2012 77.9% 276 109,827

What this means if you are buying a 2006 R-Class

The 2006 is a weaker year for this model, passing 3.5 points less often than the Mercedes-Benz R-Class average. Some of that is simply age, so compare it against the 2006 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 20-year-old car fails on

A 2006 car is 20 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 high mileage, so timing belts, clutches, suspension bushes and corrosion are the items worth budgeting for rather than the MOT itself. On a 2006 Mercedes-Benz R-Class the average at test was 127,298 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 2011 at 78.1%, and the weakest in our data is 2006 at 71.2%. That 6.9 point spread across the model's life is why comparing a 2006 car against a newer one tells you very little.

Nearby model years

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