Volkswagen Crafter: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Volkswagen Crafter fails its first MOT more often than the average UK vehicle, by 3.5 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 7,563 individual Volkswagen Crafter tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 73.2% first-time pass rate means roughly 27 in every 100 Volkswagen Crafters 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 Volkswagen Crafter tested had covered 115,718 miles and was built around 2014.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. The Volkswagen Crafter sits 3.5 points below the national average, ranked 1,672 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 Volkswagen Crafter 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 recorded closing bids for damaged Volkswagen Crafters at UK salvage auction.

Most common MOT failures on a Volkswagen Crafter

1. Parking brake efficiency less than 50% of the required value, 3.1% of tests (8.48x the national rate for this defect)
2. Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement, 6.3% of tests (4.86x the national rate for this defect)
3. Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, 4.8% of tests (4.47x the national rate for this defect)
4. Engine MIL illuminated indicating a malfunction, 5.3% of tests (4.17x the national rate for this defect)
5. Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake, 2.1% of tests (2.01x the national rate for this defect)
6. A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play, 2.5% of tests (1.92x the national rate for this defect)
7. A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 4.1% of tests (1.82x the national rate for this defect)
8. A headlamp or light source missing, inoperative or more than ½ not functioning in the case of LED, 2.2% of tests (1.8x the national rate for this defect)
9. Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen, 2.4% of tests (1.28x the national rate for this defect)
10. Windscreen washers not working or not providing sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen, 2% of tests (1.16x the national rate for this defect)

From 53,917 DVSA-tracked Volkswagen Crafter tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 4.54% of these flagged Volkswagen Crafter defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 5.11% nationally.

Most common MOT advisories on a Volkswagen Crafter

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 Volkswagen Crafter before it actually fails on it.

1. A shock absorber bush excessively worn, 2.4% of tests (5.12x the national rate for this advisory)
2. Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement, 1.3% of tests (5.04x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
3. A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play, 4.4% of tests (3.28x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
4. Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, 19.3% of tests (3.11x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
5. Fluid leaking excessively and likely to harm the environment or to pose a safety risk to other road users, 12.8% of tests (2.3x the national rate for this advisory)
6. Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake, 3.4% of tests (1.69x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
7. A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, 18.8% of tests (1.4x the national rate for this advisory)
8. Number plate inscription missing or illegible, 3.1% of tests (1.17x the national rate for this advisory)
9. Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements, 20.4% of tests
10. Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured, 13.4% of tests

From 53,917 DVSA-tracked Volkswagen Crafter tests, 2024.

Volkswagen Crafter pass rate by model year

From its 2006 to its 2021 model year, the Volkswagen Crafter's first-time pass rate has risen 12.6 points, from 68.9% to 81.5%, the usual pattern: a newer model year is a younger car today, so it fails less. First-time pass rate for each Volkswagen Crafter year:

• 2006 Volkswagen Crafter - 68.9% first-time pass, 367 tests
• 2007 Volkswagen Crafter - 66.3% first-time pass, 1,577 tests
• 2008 Volkswagen Crafter - 64.8% first-time pass, 1,724 tests
• 2009 Volkswagen Crafter - 65.4% first-time pass, 1,210 tests
• 2010 Volkswagen Crafter - 66.2% first-time pass, 1,809 tests
• 2011 Volkswagen Crafter - 66.5% first-time pass, 2,188 tests
• 2012 Volkswagen Crafter - 64.8% first-time pass, 2,908 tests
• 2013 Volkswagen Crafter - 64.6% first-time pass, 3,416 tests
• 2014 Volkswagen Crafter - 68.4% first-time pass, 4,903 tests
• 2015 Volkswagen Crafter - 67.6% first-time pass, 5,742 tests
• 2016 Volkswagen Crafter - 70.8% first-time pass, 5,223 tests
• 2017 Volkswagen Crafter - 74.2% first-time pass, 4,061 tests
• 2018 Volkswagen Crafter - 77.2% first-time pass, 5,368 tests
• 2019 Volkswagen Crafter - 80.9% first-time pass, 7,000 tests
• 2020 Volkswagen Crafter - 77.7% first-time pass, 2,957 tests
• 2021 Volkswagen Crafter - 81.5% first-time pass, 2,960 tests

Other Volkswagen models

• Volkswagen Golf - 77.1%
• Volkswagen Polo - 71.4%
• Volkswagen Transporter - 70.8%
• Volkswagen Tiguan - 82.4%
• Volkswagen Passat - 74.7%
• Volkswagen Caddy - 73.5%
• Volkswagen Up - 84.4%
• Volkswagen Touran - 72.7%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Mazda 3 - 73.4%
• Mitsubishi Shogun - 73.3%
• Citroen C4 Grand Picasso - 73.3%
• BMW 123 - 73.2%
• BMW Z3 - 73.1%
• Fiat Talento - 73.1%

If this van is a salvage or write-off

• Britain's most and least reliable vans: 2.2 million MOT tests analysed
• 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