Mercedes-Benz Sl: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Mercedes-Benz Sl passes its MOT first time more often than the average UK car, by 8 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 21,088 individual Mercedes-Benz Sl tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 84.7% first-time pass rate means roughly 15 in every 100 Mercedes-Benz Sls presented for MOT fail on the first attempt. That is better than average, so a well-kept example is a reasonably safe used buy. The average Mercedes-Benz Sl tested had covered 67,963 miles and was built around 2005.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. On a Mercedes-Benz Sl bought as a repairable salvage, the mechanical side is less likely to spring surprises, so your repair estimate should hold up reasonably well.

Before you bid: run the lot through the analyzer, check the car's own record, check the mileage, decode the VIN, and if it carries a marker use the write-off value calculator. Or compare it against another model.

Looking at a specific Mercedes-Benz Sl rather than the model in general? The free check covers its MOT and mileage history, and the full HPI report confirms the insurance write-off category, outstanding finance and whether it is recorded stolen, from licensed data for 5 credits. Already own one that has been damaged? Work out whether fixing it beats selling it with the repair or scrap calculator, and see what damaged Mercedes-Benz Sls actually sold for at UK salvage auction.

Most common MOT failures on a Mercedes-Benz Sl

1. Emissions levels exceed default limits, 0.5% of tests (1.59x the national rate for this defect)
2. A tyre seriously damaged, 1.8% of tests
3. A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, 1.3% of tests
4. A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 1% of tests
5. A tyre cords visible or damaged, 0.9% of tests
6. Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, 0.9% of tests
7. A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, 0.8% of tests
8. The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements, 0.7% of tests
9. Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements, 0.6% of tests
10. Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen, 0.5% of tests

From 47,388 DVSA-tracked Mercedes-Benz Sl tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 3.61% of these flagged Mercedes-Benz Sl defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 4.97% nationally.

Mercedes-Benz Sl pass rate by model year

Pass rates fall steadily as cars age, so the model year matters as much as the model. First-time pass rate for each Mercedes-Benz Sl year:

• 1994 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 86.2% first-time pass, 390 tests
• 1995 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 84.9% first-time pass, 523 tests
• 1996 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 87.5% first-time pass, 569 tests
• 1997 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 86.1% first-time pass, 657 tests
• 1998 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 83.9% first-time pass, 677 tests
• 1999 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 85% first-time pass, 545 tests
• 2000 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 84.2% first-time pass, 487 tests
• 2001 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 86.8% first-time pass, 281 tests
• 2002 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 84.1% first-time pass, 957 tests
• 2003 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 82.5% first-time pass, 2,359 tests
• 2004 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 85.2% first-time pass, 1,817 tests
• 2005 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 83.6% first-time pass, 1,102 tests
• 2006 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 81.3% first-time pass, 792 tests
• 2007 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 82.7% first-time pass, 770 tests
• 2008 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 85.1% first-time pass, 776 tests
• 2009 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 83.4% first-time pass, 469 tests
• 2010 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 83.6% first-time pass, 347 tests
• 2011 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 87.9% first-time pass, 256 tests
• 2012 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 86.4% first-time pass, 419 tests
• 2013 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 84.3% first-time pass, 1,121 tests
• 2014 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 88.2% first-time pass, 1,061 tests
• 2015 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 87.2% first-time pass, 818 tests
• 2016 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 91.7% first-time pass, 779 tests
• 2017 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 90.7% first-time pass, 646 tests
• 2018 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 90.6% first-time pass, 406 tests
• 2019 Mercedes-Benz Sl - 93.9% first-time pass, 343 tests

Other Mercedes-Benz models

• Mercedes-Benz C - 77.4%
• Mercedes-Benz A-Class - 78.7%
• Mercedes-Benz E - 79.2%
• Mercedes-Benz A - 89.5%
• Mercedes-Benz Vito - 72.7%
• Mercedes-Benz Gla - 85.2%
• Mercedes-Benz Glc - 87.8%
• Mercedes-Benz B-Class - 74.7%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Volkswagen Move Up - 84.8%
• Lexus Is250c - 84.8%
• Skoda Citigo - 84.7%
• BMW 730 - 84.7%
• Land Rover Range Rover Evoque R-Dyn D 4x2 - 84.7%
• Tesla Model S Long Range Awd - 84.7%

If this car is a salvage or write-off

• Does a car's age affect its MOT pass rate? We checked 32.6 million tests
• What does Cat N mean? Category N explained
• What does Cat S mean? Category S explained
• Cat S vs Cat N: the real differences

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All 2,005 models ranked by MOT pass rate