Peugeot 406: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Peugeot 406 fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 15.1 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 3,076 individual Peugeot 406 tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 61.6% first-time pass rate means roughly 38 in every 100 Peugeot 406s presented for MOT fail on the first attempt. That is worse than average, so budget for remedial work and treat a fresh 12-month MOT as a genuine selling point rather than a given. The average Peugeot 406 tested had covered 139,627 miles and was built around 2001.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. On a Peugeot 406 bought as a repairable salvage, assume the mechanical side needs more than the visible accident damage, and pad your repair estimate accordingly.

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 Peugeot 406 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 Peugeot 406s actually sold for at UK salvage auction.

Most common MOT failures on a Peugeot 406

1. The strength or continuity of the load bearing structure within 30cm of any sub-frame, spring or suspension component mounting (a 'prescribed area') is significantly reduced or inadequately repaired, 8.4% of tests (10.12x the national rate for this defect)
2. The strength or continuity of the load bearing structure within 30cm of any seat belt anchorage (a 'prescribed area') is significantly reduced or inadequately repaired, 2.2% of tests (9.67x the national rate for this defect)
3. Brakes imbalance across an axle such that the braking effort from any wheel is less than 70% of the maximum effort recorded from the other wheel on the same axle., 3.7% of tests (9.25x the national rate for this defect)
4. Exhaust system leaking or insecure, 4.7% of tests (6.22x the national rate for this defect)
5. Lamp emitted colour, position or intensity not in accordance with the requirements, 2.5% of tests (5.81x the national rate for this defect)
6. Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement, 4.6% of tests (4.66x the national rate for this defect)
7. Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake, 3.3% of tests (4.35x the national rate for this defect)
8. The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements, 6.1% of tests (3.44x the national rate for this defect)
9. Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen, 3.4% of tests (2.47x the national rate for this defect)
10. A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 3.1% of tests (2.33x the national rate for this defect)

From 5,164 DVSA-tracked Peugeot 406 tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 3.14% of these flagged Peugeot 406 defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 4.97% nationally.

Peugeot 406 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 Peugeot 406 year:

• 1998 Peugeot 406 - 60.2% first-time pass, 226 tests
• 1999 Peugeot 406 - 62.6% first-time pass, 270 tests
• 2000 Peugeot 406 - 64.8% first-time pass, 421 tests
• 2001 Peugeot 406 - 64.6% first-time pass, 565 tests
• 2002 Peugeot 406 - 61.7% first-time pass, 596 tests
• 2003 Peugeot 406 - 59% first-time pass, 610 tests

Peugeot 406 by fuel type

Diesel and petrol versions of the same car fail on different things, so the fuel type moves the number:

• Diesel Peugeot 406 - 61.9% first-time pass, 2,055 tests
• Petrol Peugeot 406 - 62.6% first-time pass, 992 tests

Other Peugeot models

• Peugeot 208 - 75.2%
• Peugeot Partner - 71.5%
• Peugeot 207 - 59.8%
• Peugeot 308 - 70%
• Peugeot 3008 - 74.7%
• Peugeot 107 - 69.7%
• Peugeot 2008 - 76.4%
• Peugeot 108 - 85.6%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Alfa Romeo 147 - 61.7%
• Renault Clio - 61.6%
• Renault Trafic - 61.6%
• Suzuki Wagon-R+ - 61.5%
• Citroen C-Crosser - 61.5%
• Peugeot 407 - 61.3%

If this car is a salvage or write-off

• 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