80.8%
Mercedes-Benz CLA
Mercedes-Benz CLA MOT pass rate and common problems
The Mercedes-Benz CLA passed 80.8% of its initial MOT tests in 2025, 8.5 percentage points above the 72.3% UK average. The item testers recorded most often was tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm.
Checking a specific car? Its own results, advisories and recorded mileages are in a free MOT history check.
How the CLA 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 CLA runs 3.7 points ahead of the Mercedes-Benz average. It is 17th of the 35 Mercedes-Benz models in the data. The average CLA arrived at its test 6.5 years old with 58,894 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.
CLA MOT pass rate by age
The same 2025 tests split by the car's age at test.
Mercedes-Benz CLA cars aged 3 to 5 years passed 85.6% of MOT tests. For cars aged 11 years and over that fell to 70.6%, a drop of 15 percentage points.
| Age at test | Tests | Pass rate | vs UK average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 to 5 years | 26,075 | 85.6% | 13.3 pts above |
| 6 to 10 years | 36,997 | 76.8% | 4.5 pts above |
| 11 years and over | 3,946 | 70.6% | 1.7 pts below |
That is a steep decline with age, so the headline rate flatters older examples. The UK average of 72.3% covers cars of every age, so compare like with like.
Where CLA failures cluster
Every failure item recorded on Mercedes-Benz CLA cars in 2025, grouped into the DVSA's test areas.
Tyres and suspension together account for 49.3% of recorded failure items. These are recorded failures across the model, not faults every car has.
The 10 most common CLA MOT failures
Specific items recorded on Mercedes-Benz CLA cars that failed their 2025 MOT, as a share of all recorded failure items.
Together these 10 items make up 55.7% of everything testers recorded against failed Mercedes-Benz CLA cars. The rest is spread across many smaller items, and one failed test often records several at once.
What to look at on a CLA
The recorded failures above, grouped by area, biggest first.
1
Tyres
Recorded most often: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm, condition has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords and condition has ply or cords exposed. 24.9% of failure items.
2
Suspension
Recorded most often: coil spring fractured or broken and linkage ball joint dust cover ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt. 10.4% of failure items.
3
Visibility
Recorded most often: washers provides insufficient washer liquid and wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively. 7.2% of failure items.
4
Brakes
Recorded most often: brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick. 5.5% of failure items.
The car's own MOT history matters more than any model average. A free MOT history check shows whether a specific CLA has failed on these items before, or had them noted as advisories. Buying one? See the used Mercedes-Benz CLA buying guide.
Already found one?
Check its finance, write-off, theft, mileage and keeper history with a £15 vehicle history report.
Mercedes-Benz CLA MOT FAQs
What is the Mercedes-Benz CLA MOT pass rate?
80.8% of Mercedes-Benz CLA cars passed their initial MOT first time in 2025, from 76,233 tests. That is 8.5 percentage points above the 72.3% average for all cars, and ranks 188th of 575 models.
What does a Mercedes-Benz CLA most commonly fail its MOT on?
The item testers recorded most often on Mercedes-Benz CLA cars failing their 2025 MOT was tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm, on 8.8% of failure items. Next were condition has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords (8.1%) and condition has ply or cords exposed (8%).
Which area causes the most Mercedes-Benz CLA MOT failures?
Across every recorded failure item, the largest area was tyres at 33.8%, followed by suspension at 15.6%.
Do older Mercedes-Benz CLA cars fail their MOT more often?
Mercedes-Benz CLA cars aged 3 to 5 years passed 85.6% of MOT tests in 2025, against 70.6% for cars aged 11 years and over.
Does this mean every Mercedes-Benz CLA has these problems?
No. These are the items testers recorded across every Mercedes-Benz CLA 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 CLA'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.