Volkswagen Golf MOT pass rates & common failures

Every completed first-attempt MOT on a Volkswagen Golf in Great Britain in 2025 — 882,382 tests. Figures cover every Golf first-tested in 2025, all trims grouped. How the Golf ages, what it fails on, and what mileage is normal, computed directly from the official DVSA record of every test.

Pass rate 2025
75.1%
2.8 points above the class-4 average (72.3%); unadjusted for age — the age-matched comparison is below
Tests analysed
882,382
first tests, 2025
Arrived with a dangerous fault
7.1%
of Golf first tests; national 7.3%
Typical mileage at 10 years
78,750
middle half: 58,750–101,250 miles (2,500-mile-band midpoints)

How many Volkswagen Golf cars are still on the road?

At the end of 2025, DVLA's register held 1,091,917 Volkswagen Golf cars that were taxed or on SORN: 959,230 taxed and 132,687 on SORN (Statutory Off Road Notification — kept, but declared off the road by the keeper). The MOT figures above count tests; these count cars, across the whole United Kingdom, cars only. Volkswagen Golf vans, where they exist, are counted by DVLA as goods vehicles and are not in these figures.

Still taxed, end of 2025
959,230
87.8% of the 1,091,917 Golf cars taxed or on SORN; 457 model variants grouped
On SORN, end of 2025
132,687
declared off the road by their keepers — 12.2% of that total

How the numbers are moving

The number of taxed Golf cars peaked at 1,065,866 at the end of 2018 and has since fallen by 106,636 (10.0%) to 959,230 at the end of 2025. Cars on SORN went from 49,050 at the end of 2014 to 132,687 at the end of 2025, up 170.5%. A car leaves the taxed count when it is scrapped, exported or declared off the road; the year-end counts do not say which.

Taxed Golf cars, year by year

Cars of this model taxed and on the road at the end of each year, 2014–2025.

0500k1M1.5M2014201620182020202220242025Year (count at the end of the year)Taxed Golf cars, year 2014: 1MTaxed Golf cars, year 2015: 1MTaxed Golf cars, year 2016: 1.1MTaxed Golf cars, year 2017: 1.1MTaxed Golf cars, year 2018: 1.1MTaxed Golf cars, year 2019: 1.1MTaxed Golf cars, year 2020: 1MTaxed Golf cars, year 2021: 1MTaxed Golf cars, year 2022: 1MTaxed Golf cars, year 2023: 990kTaxed Golf cars, year 2024: 973kTaxed Golf cars, year 2025: 959k959k
View this chart as a table
YearTaxed Golf cars
20141,014,969
20151,036,081
20161,055,570
20171,064,332
20181,065,866
20191,063,863
20201,047,475
20211,029,025
20221,011,319
2023989,673
2024973,487
2025959,230

Golf cars on SORN, year by year

Cars of this model declared off the road at the end of each year, 2014–2025. Its own scale — SORN counts are a fraction of the taxed count.

050k100k150k2014201620182020202220242025Year (count at the end of the year)Golf cars on SORN, year 2014: 49kGolf cars on SORN, year 2015: 61kGolf cars on SORN, year 2016: 73kGolf cars on SORN, year 2017: 84kGolf cars on SORN, year 2018: 91kGolf cars on SORN, year 2019: 100kGolf cars on SORN, year 2020: 109kGolf cars on SORN, year 2021: 111kGolf cars on SORN, year 2022: 114kGolf cars on SORN, year 2023: 122kGolf cars on SORN, year 2024: 126kGolf cars on SORN, year 2025: 133k133k
View this chart as a table
YearGolf cars on SORN
201449,050
201560,878
201673,475
201783,828
201890,975
201999,949
2020109,032
2021111,268
2022114,301
2023121,937
2024126,028
2025132,687

Which model years survive

Taxed Golf cars at the end of 2025 by year of manufacture, and each year's share of the 959,230 taxed in all. Every build year holding at least 1% has its own row; the rest share one. 53 taxed Golf cars have no recorded year of manufacture and are not in the table, so the rows add up to 959,177. A build year's count depends on how many were sold that year as well as how many have lasted.

Year of manufacture Taxed, end of 2025Share of taxed Golf cars
202531,4993.3%
202431,4253.3%
202327,3772.9%
202224,7982.6%
202128,1292.9%
202041,8614.4%
201956,6435.9%
201861,6166.4%
201770,5667.4%
201665,5856.8%
201568,7267.2%
201465,9456.9%
201356,6055.9%
201252,1645.4%
201149,0345.1%
201041,5074.3%
200938,5034.0%
200832,6233.4%
200730,6593.2%
200621,0212.2%
200513,2791.4%
200311,9201.2%
200210,1101.1%
All other build years (30 years, each under 1%)27,5822.9%

Population source: Department for Transport / DVLA vehicle licensing statistics, table VEH0124, updated 15 July 2026; counts of the cars on DVLA's register that were taxed or on SORN at the end of each year shown, United Kingdom, cars only, excluding cars recorded with no model name. SortedCars groups DVLA's model name GOLF under this model. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. SortedCars is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, DVLA or the Department for Transport.

How the Golf ages

First-time pass rate by vehicle age, Golf vs all cars, 2025.

Volkswagen GolfAll cars
50%60%70%80%90%100%3579111315171920Vehicle age (years)Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 3: 91.9%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 4: 90.9%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 5: 90%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 6: 86.9%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 7: 86.1%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 8: 84.8%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 9: 84%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 10: 81.8%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 11: 79%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 12: 75.4%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 13: 66.9%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 14: 63.8%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 15: 62.5%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 16: 62%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 17: 59%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 18: 57.9%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 19: 56.2%Volkswagen Golf, vehicle age 20: 55.7%All cars, vehicle age 3: 88.5%All cars, vehicle age 4: 87.2%All cars, vehicle age 5: 86%All cars, vehicle age 6: 83.5%All cars, vehicle age 7: 80.9%All cars, vehicle age 8: 78.2%All cars, vehicle age 9: 74.9%All cars, vehicle age 10: 71.9%All cars, vehicle age 11: 68.6%All cars, vehicle age 12: 65.8%All cars, vehicle age 13: 63.5%All cars, vehicle age 14: 61.2%All cars, vehicle age 15: 59.3%All cars, vehicle age 16: 58.3%All cars, vehicle age 17: 57.2%All cars, vehicle age 18: 57.4%All cars, vehicle age 19: 57%All cars, vehicle age 20: 57.6%All cars 57.6%Volkswagen Golf 55.7%
View this chart as a table
Age (years)Golf testsGolf pass rateAll cars
325,73491.9%88.5%
428,65790.9%87.2%
542,04690.0%86.0%
656,43286.9%83.5%
761,70686.1%80.9%
869,47784.8%78.2%
964,56284.0%74.9%
1066,99181.8%71.9%
1163,73179.0%68.6%
1254,22675.4%65.8%
1350,72666.9%63.5%
1448,26863.8%61.2%
1541,91162.5%59.3%
1640,37262.0%58.3%
1735,11959.0%57.2%
1834,07857.9%57.4%
1924,08056.2%57.0%
2015,49655.7%57.6%

Better or worse than the average car?

The Golf's pass rate minus the all-cars pass rate at each age, in percentage points. Bars above zero: the Golf beats the average car of that age. Below zero: it trails.

Golf aheadGolf behind
-12-6+0+6+12Age 3: +3.4 points vs the average car3Age 4: +3.7 points vs the average carAge 5: +4.0 points vs the average car5Age 6: +3.4 points vs the average carAge 7: +5.2 points vs the average car7Age 8: +6.6 points vs the average carAge 9: +9.1 points vs the average car9Age 10: +9.9 points vs the average carAge 11: +10.4 points vs the average car11Age 12: +9.6 points vs the average carAge 13: +3.4 points vs the average car13Age 14: +2.6 points vs the average carAge 15: +3.2 points vs the average car15Age 16: +3.7 points vs the average carAge 17: +1.8 points vs the average car17Age 18: +0.5 points vs the average carAge 19: -0.8 points vs the average car19Age 20: -1.9 points vs the average car20Vehicle age (years)
View this chart as a table
Age (years)Gap (points)
3+3.4
4+3.7
5+4.0
6+3.4
7+5.2
8+6.6
9+9.1
10+9.9
11+10.4
12+9.6
13+3.4
14+2.6
15+3.2
16+3.7
17+1.8
18+0.5
19-0.8
20-1.9

The Golf fleet on the road, by age

How many took a first MOT in 2025 at each age — the shape of the Golf fleet still in use.

017k35k52k70kAge 3: 25k3Age 4: 28kAge 5: 42k5Age 6: 56kAge 7: 61k7Age 8: 69kAge 9: 64k9Age 10: 66kAge 11: 63k11Age 12: 54kAge 13: 50k13Age 14: 48kAge 15: 41k15Age 16: 40kAge 17: 35k17Age 18: 34kAge 19: 24k19Age 20: 15k20Vehicle age (years)
View this chart as a table
Age (years)First tests
325,734
428,657
542,046
656,432
761,706
869,477
964,562
1066,991
1163,731
1254,226
1350,726
1448,268
1541,911
1640,372
1735,119
1834,078
1924,080
2015,496

What a Golf fails on

Where the failure items land when a Golf fails or needs a fix at test, 2025. Use it as a pre-purchase checklist: these are the areas to look at first.

Suspension24.3%
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment20.0%
Brakes15.6%
Tyres14.7%
Body, chassis, structure7.3%
Noise, emissions and leaks6.7%
Visibility5.9%
Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems2.2%

Share of all failure items, 2025 — the 8 biggest categories shown (96.7% of the items); smaller categories are not listed.

The advisories to watch

Where testers most often write "keep an eye on this" for a Golf, 2025 — the faults in the post.

Suspension: 34.2% of advisories34.2%Tyres: 29.0% of advisories29.0%Brakes: 21.7% of advisories21.7%Non-component advisories: 3.8% of advisoriesNoise, emissions and leaks: 3.7% of advisoriesBody, chassis, structure: 2.7% of advisories
SuspensionTyresBrakesNon-component advisoriesNoise, emissions and leaksBody, chassis, structure
View this chart as a table
CategoryShare of advisories
Suspension34.2%
Tyres29.0%
Brakes21.7%
Non-component advisories3.8%
Noise, emissions and leaks3.7%
Body, chassis, structure2.7%

Petrol, diesel or hybrid Golf?

First-time pass rate for the four most-tested Golf fuel types, 2025, against the all-cars average. Fleet ages differ by fuel — newer fleets help the electrified bars.

50%60%70%80%90%100%all cars 72.3%Petrol: 78.1% of 447,644 tests78.1%Petrol447,644 testsDiesel: 70.6% of 400,080 tests70.6%Diesel400,080 testsHybrid electric: 88.9% of 27,244 tests88.9%Hybrid27,244 testsElectric: 85.6% of 7,401 tests85.6%Electric7,401 tests
View this chart as a table
FuelTestsPass rate
Petrol447,64478.1%
Diesel400,08070.6%
Hybrid electric27,24488.9%
Electric7,40185.6%

What mileage is normal for a Golf?

Mileage recorded at test by vehicle age, 2025. The line is the typical (median) Golf; the shaded band holds the middle half. A car far outside the band, in either direction, is worth questions the recorded history can answer.

Typical Golf (median)
0k25k50k75k100k125k150k175k3579111315171920Vehicle age (years)Age 3: typical 26,250 miles (middle half 18,750–36,250)Age 4: typical 33,750 miles (middle half 26,250–48,750)Age 5: typical 38,750 miles (middle half 28,750–51,250)Age 6: typical 46,250 miles (middle half 33,750–61,250)Age 7: typical 56,250 miles (middle half 41,250–71,250)Age 8: typical 63,750 miles (middle half 46,250–81,250)Age 9: typical 71,250 miles (middle half 53,750–91,250)Age 10: typical 78,750 miles (middle half 58,750–101,250)Age 11: typical 88,750 miles (middle half 66,250–113,750)Age 12: typical 96,250 miles (middle half 73,750–121,250)Age 13: typical 103,750 miles (middle half 78,750–131,250)Age 14: typical 111,250 miles (middle half 86,250–141,250)Age 15: typical 116,250 miles (middle half 91,250–146,250)Age 16: typical 116,250 miles (middle half 88,750–143,750)Age 17: typical 126,250 miles (middle half 98,750–153,750)Age 18: typical 123,750 miles (middle half 96,250–151,250)Age 19: typical 123,750 miles (middle half 96,250–151,250)Age 20: typical 126,250 miles (middle half 98,750–153,750)126k mi

Mileage values are midpoints of 2,500-mile bands.

View this chart as a table
Age (years)Lower quarterTypical (median)Upper quarter
318,75026,25036,250
426,25033,75048,750
528,75038,75051,250
633,75046,25061,250
741,25056,25071,250
846,25063,75081,250
953,75071,25091,250
1058,75078,750101,250
1166,25088,750113,750
1273,75096,250121,250
1378,750103,750131,250
1486,250111,250141,250
1591,250116,250146,250
1688,750116,250143,750
1798,750126,250153,750
1896,250123,750151,250
1996,250123,750151,250
2098,750126,250153,750

What fails at each age

The Golf's failure mix by age band, 2025 — each band's top categories at their true share of that band's failure items; the pale remainder is everything else. How the mix shifts with age is the point of the chart.

TyresSuspensionBrakesVisibilityLamps, reflectors and electrical equipmentNoise, emissions and leaksBody, chassis, structureEverything else
View this chart as a table
Age bandCategoryShare of the band's failure items
3-5 yrsTyres51.4%
3-5 yrsSuspension13.0%
3-5 yrsBrakes9.9%
3-5 yrsVisibility8.0%
3-5 yrsLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment6.1%
3-5 yrsEverything else11.6%
6-9 yrsTyres37.7%
6-9 yrsSuspension20.3%
6-9 yrsBrakes15.9%
6-9 yrsLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment9.0%
6-9 yrsVisibility6.4%
6-9 yrsEverything else10.7%
10-13 yrsSuspension30.9%
10-13 yrsTyres20.4%
10-13 yrsBrakes18.4%
10-13 yrsLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment12.0%
10-13 yrsNoise, emissions and leaks5.7%
10-13 yrsEverything else12.6%
14+ yrsSuspension27.3%
14+ yrsLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment18.1%
14+ yrsBrakes17.2%
14+ yrsBody, chassis, structure10.2%
14+ yrsTyres9.3%
14+ yrsEverything else17.9%

More vehicles we've checked

How these figures are computed. Every number on this page is calculated by SortedCars from the DVSA anonymised MOT results dataset (every MOT test in Great Britain — 2025 for single-year figures; trend figures state their span, currently 2023–2025). Where a figure comes from a sample or uses banded values (mileage is banded to 2,500 miles), the page says so beside the figure. Test class 4 only, first tests only — retests are excluded. Class 4 is the car MOT class and also covers car-derived vans, pickups and motorhomes tested to the same standard; where this page says "cars" it means class 4. Pass rate = passes ÷ (passes + failures + pass-after-rectification): a vehicle that failed and was fixed during the visit counts as a fail. Pass rates describe fleets, not individual machines: they reflect how cars were driven, maintained and used as well as how they were built, and beyond recorded mileage none of that is in the data. A well-kept example of a model with a weak average can still pass; a neglected example of a strong one can still fail. No figure is shown for any group with fewer than 500 tests. Alias spellings of a make in the DVSA file are counted under one make name, and all trims and variants of a model are grouped under one model name, using SortedCars' grouping tables. The taxed and SORN counts on this page are the one exception: they are not computed from MOT records but taken from the Department for Transport's vehicle licensing statistics (DfT/DVLA table VEH0124, updated 15 July 2026, Open Government Licence v3.0), which count the cars on DVLA's register that were taxed or on SORN at the end of each year shown, UK-wide, cars only. They describe a model as a whole, grouped under SortedCars' model names, and say nothing about any one car. “Dangerous” is DVSA's statutory defect category (in force since May 2018): a defect posing an immediate risk to road safety — driving the vehicle before repair is an offence. What these figures are for. These statistics are general information about groups of vehicles. They are not advice, a valuation or a recommendation to buy, avoid or price any particular vehicle, and no decision about one car should rest on them alone — check the car itself and its own records. We take care over the calculations, but we cannot guarantee they are complete, current or free of error, and we accept no liability for loss arising from reliance on them. This does not limit any liability that cannot lawfully be limited — see our Terms & Conditions. If you believe any figure on this page is inaccurate, contact us. SortedCars is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, the DVSA or DVLA. DVSA publishes the raw test records; the statistics on this page are SortedCars' own calculations from them. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.