2009 SEAT Alhambra: MOT pass rate and reliability

52.3% of 2009 SEAT Alhambras pass the MOT first time, measured across 331 DVSA tests on that model year alone. The average one had covered 139,075 miles.

How the 2009 compares

  • Against all SEAT Alhambras (78.3%, 27,400 tests): -26 points
  • Against all 2009 cars (66.1%): -13.8 points
  • National first-time pass rate, all cars and years: 77%

Every SEAT Alhambra model year

Pass rates fall as cars age, so the only fair comparison for a 2009 car is other cars of the same age. The full run for the SEAT Alhambra:

Year Pass rate Tests Avg mileage
2003 54.6% 205 150,457
2004 57.2% 339 152,000
2005 58.1% 265 150,617
2006 59.5% 343 143,783
2007 53.9% 421 137,830
2008 56.1% 472 143,906
2009 52.3% 331 139,075
2010 64.2% 355 135,190
2011 69.9% 1,209 126,460
2012 69.6% 1,417 123,002
2013 72.4% 1,542 110,217
2014 76.5% 1,856 109,535
2015 78.5% 2,162 111,156
2016 81.7% 4,180 106,424
2017 83.7% 5,991 87,049
2018 86.1% 2,539 70,255
2019 86.4% 2,737 53,683
2020 86.9% 826 37,967

What this means if you are buying a 2009 Alhambra

The 2009 is a weaker year for this model, passing 26 points less often than the SEAT Alhambra average. Some of that is simply age, so compare it against the 2009 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 17-year-old car fails on

A 2009 car is 17 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 2009 SEAT Alhambra the average at test was 139,075 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 2020 at 86.9%, and the weakest in our data is 2009 at 52.3%. That 34.6 point spread across the model's life is why comparing a 2009 car against a newer one tells you very little.

Nearby model years

All SEAT Alhambra MOT data · Every model