2012 Volvo Xc90: MOT pass rate and reliability

76.2% of 2012 Volvo Xc90s pass the MOT first time, measured across 2,913 DVSA tests on that model year alone. The average one had covered 114,788 miles.

How the 2012 compares

  • Against all Volvo Xc90s (75.7%, 58,468 tests): +0.5 points
  • Against all 2012 cars (70.8%): +5.4 points
  • National first-time pass rate, all cars and years: 77%

Every Volvo Xc90 model year

Pass rates fall as cars age, so the only fair comparison for a 2012 car is other cars of the same age. The full run for the Volvo Xc90:

Year Pass rate Tests Avg mileage
2003 60.9% 667 154,248
2004 62.6% 2,073 160,818
2005 63.1% 2,975 158,163
2006 63.7% 2,340 149,583
2007 62.5% 2,440 148,148
2008 67.8% 1,574 142,641
2009 70.5% 3,259 136,435
2010 70% 5,907 130,721
2011 70% 4,214 124,795
2012 76.2% 2,913 114,788
2013 74.9% 2,420 107,674
2014 76.2% 2,278 100,128
2015 79.6% 2,697 88,982
2016 81% 5,229 82,862
2017 84.9% 5,508 72,396
2018 86.3% 6,240 60,871
2019 87.4% 5,047 49,909
2020 88.1% 656 41,593

What this means if you are buying a 2012 Xc90

The 2012 sits close to the Volvo Xc90 average, so there is no strong model-year signal either way. Judge the individual car on its own history. 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 14-year-old car fails on

A 2012 car is 14 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 2012 Volvo Xc90 the average at test was 114,788 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 88.1%, and the weakest in our data is 2003 at 60.9%. That 27.2 point spread across the model's life is why comparing a 2012 car against a newer one tells you very little.

Nearby model years

All Volvo Xc90 MOT data · Every model