Volkswagen Jetta: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Volkswagen Jetta fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 7 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 13,435 individual Volkswagen Jetta tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 69.7% first-time pass rate means roughly 30 in every 100 Volkswagen Jettas 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 Jetta tested had covered 111,620 miles and was built around 2010.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. On a Volkswagen Jetta 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 Volkswagen Jetta 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 Volkswagen Jettas actually sold for at UK salvage auction.

Most common MOT failures on a Volkswagen Jetta

1. 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, 1.4% of tests (6.14x the national rate for this defect)
2. A direction indicator lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 1.6% of tests (3.33x the national rate for this defect)
3. A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 4.1% of tests (3.07x the national rate for this defect)
4. A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, 4.5% of tests (2.75x the national rate for this defect)
5. A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 2.9% of tests (2.56x the national rate for this defect)
6. Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake, 1.8% of tests (2.3x the national rate for this defect)
7. 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, 1.8% of tests (2.16x the national rate for this defect)
8. Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement, 1.8% of tests (1.86x the national rate for this defect)
9. A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, 6.7% of tests (1.82x the national rate for this defect)
10. The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements, 3.1% of tests (1.77x the national rate for this defect)

From 19,959 DVSA-tracked Volkswagen Jetta tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 4.78% of these flagged Volkswagen Jetta defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 4.97% nationally.

Volkswagen Jetta 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 Volkswagen Jetta year:

• 2006 Volkswagen Jetta - 66.4% first-time pass, 1,405 tests
• 2007 Volkswagen Jetta - 66.3% first-time pass, 2,030 tests
• 2008 Volkswagen Jetta - 64.8% first-time pass, 1,545 tests
• 2009 Volkswagen Jetta - 71.8% first-time pass, 1,053 tests
• 2010 Volkswagen Jetta - 72% first-time pass, 654 tests
• 2011 Volkswagen Jetta - 69.1% first-time pass, 908 tests
• 2012 Volkswagen Jetta - 72.1% first-time pass, 1,151 tests
• 2013 Volkswagen Jetta - 70.7% first-time pass, 1,050 tests
• 2014 Volkswagen Jetta - 71.1% first-time pass, 977 tests
• 2015 Volkswagen Jetta - 74.8% first-time pass, 1,126 tests
• 2016 Volkswagen Jetta - 78.2% first-time pass, 770 tests
• 2017 Volkswagen Jetta - 78.3% first-time pass, 350 tests

Volkswagen Jetta by fuel type

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

• Diesel Volkswagen Jetta - 69.5% first-time pass, 11,103 tests
• Petrol Volkswagen Jetta - 73.7% first-time pass, 2,227 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

• Toyota Granvia - 69.8%
• Nissan Sunny - 69.8%
• Peugeot 107 - 69.7%
• Honda Prelude - 69.7%
• Mazda Bt-50 - 69.7%
• Ford Galaxy - 69.6%

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