Renault Scenic: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Renault Scenic fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 14.4 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 37,513 individual Renault Scenic tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 62.3% first-time pass rate means roughly 38 in every 100 Renault Scenics 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 Renault Scenic tested had covered 84,741 miles and was built around 2011.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. The Renault Scenic sits 14.4 points below the national average, ranked 1,906 of 2,005 models. On one bought as 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 Renault Scenic 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 the median recorded closing bid for a damaged Renault Scenic: £625 at UK salvage auction, from 6 ended listings, not independently confirmed sales.

Most common MOT failures on a Renault Scenic

1. A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play, 7.8% of tests (5.96x the national rate for this defect)
2. Lamp emitted colour, position or intensity not in accordance with the requirements, 2.6% of tests (4.35x the national rate for this defect)
3. A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, 9.6% of tests (4.22x the national rate for this defect)
4. A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 5.1% of tests (3.35x the national rate for this defect)
5. Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn, 2.5% of tests (3.11x the national rate for this defect)
6. A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 6.5% of tests (2.9x the national rate for this defect)
7. Stop lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 3.7% of tests (2.75x the national rate for this defect)
8. A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, 11.1% of tests (2.2x the national rate for this defect)
9. A headlamp or light source missing, inoperative or more than ½ not functioning in the case of LED, 2.6% of tests (2.1x the national rate for this defect)
10. Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake, 2% of tests (1.97x the national rate for this defect)

From 37,447 DVSA-tracked Renault Scenic tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 4.42% of these flagged Renault Scenic defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 5.11% nationally.

Most common MOT advisories on a Renault Scenic

An advisory doesn't fail the car - the tester flags it as worth watching, but it still passes. A different list from the failures above: what testers are noting on a Renault Scenic before it actually fails on it.

1. Lamp emitted colour, position or intensity not in accordance with the requirements, 7.1% of tests (5.2x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
2. A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play, 6.3% of tests (4.7x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
3. Product on the lens or light source which obviously reduces light intensity or changes emitted colour to other than white or yellow, 3.2% of tests (2.93x the national rate for this advisory)
4. Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured, 24.8% of tests (2.03x the national rate for this advisory)
5. Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, 12.1% of tests (1.95x the national rate for this advisory)
6. Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake, 3.8% of tests (1.92x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
7. Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn, 5.4% of tests (1.71x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
8. A shock absorber damaged to the extent that it does not function or showing signs of severe leakage, 6.1% of tests (1.57x the national rate for this advisory)
9. A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, 7.1% of tests (1.5x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
10. A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, 19.4% of tests (1.45x the national rate for this advisory), also fails

From 37,447 DVSA-tracked Renault Scenic tests, 2024.

Renault Scenic pass rate by model year

From its 2002 to its 2018 model year, the Renault Scenic's first-time pass rate has risen 25 points, from 61.3% to 86.3%, the usual pattern: a newer model year is a younger car today, so it fails less. First-time pass rate for each Renault Scenic year:

• 2001 Renault Scenic - 62.4% first-time pass, 210 tests
• 2002 Renault Scenic - 61.3% first-time pass, 385 tests
• 2003 Renault Scenic - 59.9% first-time pass, 486 tests
• 2004 Renault Scenic - 57.4% first-time pass, 619 tests
• 2005 Renault Scenic - 55.4% first-time pass, 893 tests
• 2006 Renault Scenic - 57.3% first-time pass, 2,051 tests
• 2007 Renault Scenic - 57.2% first-time pass, 3,016 tests
• 2008 Renault Scenic - 57.6% first-time pass, 2,578 tests
• 2009 Renault Scenic - 59.4% first-time pass, 1,907 tests
• 2010 Renault Scenic - 60% first-time pass, 6,055 tests
• 2011 Renault Scenic - 61.2% first-time pass, 4,104 tests
• 2012 Renault Scenic - 62.2% first-time pass, 2,656 tests
• 2013 Renault Scenic - 61.1% first-time pass, 2,930 tests
• 2014 Renault Scenic - 63.2% first-time pass, 3,179 tests
• 2015 Renault Scenic - 71.5% first-time pass, 3,067 tests
• 2016 Renault Scenic - 77.6% first-time pass, 1,087 tests
• 2017 Renault Scenic - 80.5% first-time pass, 1,105 tests
• 2018 Renault Scenic - 86.3% first-time pass, 583 tests
• 2019 Renault Scenic - 86.6% first-time pass, 290 tests

Renault Scenic by fuel type

The Renault Scenic's two most-tested fuel types split by 1.6 points: diesel passes first time 63.2% of the time (23,598 tests) against 61.6% for petrol (13,661 tests).

• Diesel Renault Scenic - 63.2% first-time pass, 23,598 tests
• Petrol Renault Scenic - 61.6% first-time pass, 13,661 tests

Other Renault models

• Renault Clio - 61.6%
• Renault Captur - 79.7%
• Renault Megane - 61.1%
• Renault Trafic - 61.6%
• Renault Kadjar - 81.7%
• Renault Kangoo - 61.1%
• Renault Twingo - 66.3%
• Renault Grand Scenic - 60.6%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Nissan Terrano - 62.6%
• Fiat Grand Punto - 62.5%
• Citroen Ds4 - 62.4%
• Mitsubishi L200 Double Cab - 62.3%
• Mazda Unclassified - 62.3%
• Skoda Felicia - 62.3%

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
• Do you need an HPI check on a car you know is a write-off?

Embed this data

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All 2,005 models ranked by MOT pass rate