74.3%
Mercedes-Benz 200
Mercedes-Benz 200 MOT pass rate and common problems
The Mercedes-Benz 200 passed 74.3% of its initial MOT tests in 2025, 2 percentage points above the 72.3% UK average. The item testers recorded most often was position lamp not working.
Checking a specific car? Its own results, advisories and recorded mileages are in a free MOT history check.
How the 200 compares
Initial MOT tests in 2025, retests excluded. A car that failed and was repaired at the test station counts as a fail.
77.1%
Mercedes-Benz average
72.3%
UK average, all cars
The 200 runs 2.7 points behind the Mercedes-Benz average. It is 24th of the 35 Mercedes-Benz models in the data. The average 200 arrived at its test 29.8 years old with 106,119 miles recorded.
A pass rate records whether cars met the roadworthiness standard on test day. It is not a reliability score, and part of any gap reflects how old the tested cars were.
200 MOT pass rate by age
The same 2025 tests split by the car's age at test.
Mercedes-Benz 200 cars aged 6 to 10 years passed 83.9% of MOT tests. For cars aged 11 years and over that fell to 72.9%, a drop of 11 percentage points.
| Age at test | Tests | Pass rate | vs UK average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 to 5 years (small sample) | 55 | 89.1% | 16.8 pts above |
| 6 to 10 years | 391 | 83.9% | 11.6 pts above |
| 11 years and over | 3,257 | 72.9% | 0.6 pts above |
That is a typical decline as cars age. The UK average of 72.3% covers cars of every age, so compare like with like.
Where 200 failures cluster
Every failure item recorded on Mercedes-Benz 200 cars in 2025, grouped into the DVSA's test areas.
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment and suspension together account for 46.2% of recorded failure items. These are recorded failures across the model, not faults every car has.
The 10 most common 200 MOT failures
Specific items recorded on Mercedes-Benz 200 cars that failed their 2025 MOT, as a share of all recorded failure items.
Together these 10 items make up 26.9% of everything testers recorded against failed Mercedes-Benz 200 cars. The rest is spread across many smaller items, and one failed test often records several at once.
What to look at on a 200
The recorded failures above, grouped by area, biggest first.
1
Suspension
Recorded most often: component mounting prescribed areas prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength, ball joint excessively worn and ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt. 9.2% of failure items.
2
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment
Recorded most often: position lamp not working, rear fog lamp not working and headlamp aim too high. 8.7% of failure items.
3
Brakes
Recorded most often: rigid brake pipes excessively corroded, service brake performance excessively binding and rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements. 6.9% of failure items.
4
Visibility
Recorded most often: wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively. 2.2% of failure items.
The car's own MOT history matters more than any model average. A free MOT history check shows whether a specific 200 has failed on these items before, or had them noted as advisories. Buying one? See the used Mercedes-Benz 200 buying guide.
Already found one?
Check its finance, write-off, theft, mileage and keeper history with a £15 vehicle history report.
Mercedes-Benz 200 MOT FAQs
What is the Mercedes-Benz 200 MOT pass rate?
74.3% of Mercedes-Benz 200 cars passed their initial MOT first time in 2025, from 3,708 tests. That is 2 percentage points above the 72.3% average for all cars, and ranks 280th of 575 models.
What does a Mercedes-Benz 200 most commonly fail its MOT on?
The item testers recorded most often on Mercedes-Benz 200 cars failing their 2025 MOT was position lamp not working, on 4.3% of failure items. Next were component mounting prescribed areas prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength (4.3%) and rigid brake pipes excessively corroded (2.6%).
Which area causes the most Mercedes-Benz 200 MOT failures?
Across every recorded failure item, the largest area was lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment at 27.5%, followed by suspension at 18.7%.
Do older Mercedes-Benz 200 cars fail their MOT more often?
Mercedes-Benz 200 cars aged 6 to 10 years passed 83.9% of MOT tests in 2025, against 72.9% for cars aged 11 years and over.
Does this mean every Mercedes-Benz 200 has these problems?
No. These are the items testers recorded across every Mercedes-Benz 200 that failed in 2025. They show where the model most often needs attention, not the condition of any individual car.
How do I see a specific Mercedes-Benz 200's MOT history?
Enter its registration on the free Carpeep MOT history check to see that car's own test results, failures, advisories and recorded mileages.
MOT figures are aggregated from the DVSA MOT Anonymised data set for 2025: class 4 initial tests, retests excluded, with failure items from failed tests (advisories and minor defects excluded), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. MOT results describe roadworthiness at test, not mechanical reliability.