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Mercedes-Benz Sprinter, Buying guide, MOT record, UK numbers and recalls

243,553 Mercedes-Benz Sprinters are licensed in the UK. In 2025 they passed 71.3% of initial MOT tests, 1 point below the 72.3% UK average.

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Mercedes-Benz Sprinter at the MOT

71.3% of 24,406 initial tests passed in 2025, ranking the Sprinter 329th of 575 models. Mercedes-Benz Sprinters aged 3 to 5 years passed 85.2% of MOT tests in 2025; for examples aged 11 years and over that fell to 64.2%.

First-time pass rate, 2025

Share of initial tests passed, retests excluded.

  • Mercedes-Benz Sprinter71.3%
  • All Mercedes-Benz modelsThe Sprinter is 5.8 pts behind77.1%
  • All cars72.3%

Pass rate by age at test

Mercedes-Benz Sprinter tests in 2025.

  • 3 to 5 years2,801 tests85.2%
  • 6 to 10 years6,813 tests76.7%
  • 11 years and over13,819 tests64.2%

Where Sprinters fail

Share of all failure items recorded on Mercedes-Benz Sprinter tests in 2025.

  • Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment28.3%
  • Brakes27%
  • Suspension13.6%
  • Body, chassis, structure7.8%
  • Visibility7.1%

The items testers recorded most often were rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements (5.5%), rigid brake pipes excessively corroded (3.9%) and wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively (3.6%).

The MOT page lists every common Sprinter MOT failure. For one car's own results and advisories, run a free MOT history check.

Full Mercedes-Benz Sprinter MOT record

What to look at on a viewing

The Sprinter's most common failure areas, and what a tester checks in each.

  1. Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment

    Walk round with every light on: headlights, brake lights, indicators, fog lights and the number plate lamp. Check no warning lights stay on after starting.28.3% of Sprinter failure items

  2. Brakes

    Make sure the pedal feels firm, the car stops in a straight line, the handbrake holds on a slope and no brake warning light is showing.27% of Sprinter failure items

  3. Suspension

    Listen for knocks over bumps, check the car sits level, and look for leaking shock absorbers and split rubber gaiters.13.6% of Sprinter failure items

Mercedes-Benz Sprinters in the UK

243,553 were licensed at the end of June 2026, the 3rd most of any Mercedes-Benz. The number licensed has grown 43% since the end of 2014.

Change since 2014
+43%from 170,074 licensed
Typical year of first use
2019half of those licensed at the end of 2025 were first used in 2019 or earlier
First registered in 2025
14,454against 26,202 in 2019
Declared off the road
51,68018% of those registered, under SORN

Licensed Mercedes-Benz Sprinters since 2014

Licensed at each year end and in the latest quarter.

Show the figures
DateLicensed
End of 2014170,074
End of 2015182,435
End of 2016193,650
End of 2017204,263
End of 2018210,614
End of 2019218,774
End of 2020228,834
End of 2021240,029
End of 2022242,566
End of 2023241,470
End of 2024242,723
End of 2025241,633
End of June 2026243,553

How old they are

Licensed Mercedes-Benz Sprinters by year of first use.

  • Licensed at the end of 2025
  • First registered that year

A further 6,391 were first used before 2006.

Show the figures
First usedLicensed, end 2025First registered that year
202512,43414,454
202418,41419,061
202315,40715,863
202216,03516,743
202120,06021,049
202020,25122,954
201921,04126,202
201815,95121,484
201715,70924,159
201613,29622,228
201513,50524,160
201411,708
20139,895
20127,827
20115,834
20105,223
20093,385
20083,752
20073,349
20061,975

13,505 Sprinters first used in 2015 were still licensed at the end of 2025, roughly 56% of the 24,160 first registered that year.

Sprinter engine sizes

2.1 litre engines made up 60% of Mercedes-Benz Sprinter MOT tests in 2025, followed by 2.2 litre at 15%. Diesel accounts for 99% of licensed Sprinters.

Engine size at MOT, 2025

Share of 24,309 initial MOT tests in 2025.

  • 2.1 litre60.2%
  • 2.2 litre14.6%
  • 3.0 litre11.5%
  • 2.0 litre5.2%
  • 2.7 litre4.6%

Mercedes-Benz Sprinter recalls

124 DVSA safety recalls launched from 1992 to October 2026 name the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter. The 8 most recent are below. Each covers vehicles built in a set period, so a recall does not mean every Sprinter is affected.

  1. Dec 2025 R/2025/428

    Weld seam on rear axle brake mounting flange

    Sprinters built Jun 2025 · 2 vehicles across the whole recall

    Defect and remedy
    Defect
    Mercedes-Benz AG has determined that on certain Sprinter 907 model vehicles with a gross vehicle weight of 5.0 tons a brake connection flange might not have been properly welded to the support tube of the rear axle.
    Remedy
    As a remedy Mercedes-Benz AG via its Mercedes-Benz service partners will replace the rear axle on the affected vehicles.

  2. Jan 2025 R/2025/009

    Propeller shaft weld seam

    Sprinters built Nov 2023 · 2 vehicles across the whole recall

    Defect and remedy
    Defect
    On certain Sprinter model 907 vehicles a welding seam of the propeller shaft might not meet specifications.
    Remedy
    Replace the propeller shaft on the affected vehicles.

  3. Aug 2024 R/2024/301

    Replace spring U-bolts of rear axle springs

    Sprinters built Jun 2023 · 1 vehicle across the whole recall

    Defect and remedy
    Defect
    On affected vehicles the spring U-bolts may not have been subject to treatment to increase their hardness which may lead to them fracturing.
    Remedy
    Replace the spring U-bolts on the affected vehicles.

  4. May 2024 R/2024/222

    B-Pillar Reinforcement

    Sprinters built May 2023 to Jun 2023

    Defect and remedy
    Defect
    On affected vehicles the weld points of a reinforcement in the right B-pillar may not correspond to the specifications. In this case the reinforcement in the B-pillar may work loose over time and fail to transmit the belt forces to the B-pillar as intended. This would increase the risk of injury in the event of an accident.
    Remedy
    Rework the B-Pillar on the affected vehicles if necessary.

  5. Dec 2023 R/2023/348

    On affected vehicles the fuel filter heater may be deactivated. If this happens a fuel gelling may occur at low temperatures and an unexpected loss of propulsion cannot be ruled out

    Sprinters built Sep 2010 to Sep 2012 · 18 vehicles across the whole recall

    Defect and remedy
    Remedy
    Code the CDI control unit to ensure the activation of the fuel filter heater

  6. Oct 2023 R/2023/284

    On affected vehicles the wheel rim structure might not meet specifications. Micro cracks might form in the rim structure

    Sprinters built Oct 2022 · 1 vehicle across the whole recall

    Defect and remedy
    Remedy
    Change the wheel rims.

  7. Sep 2023 R/2023/265

    On affected vehicles the screw connection of the partition wall might not meet specifications

    Sprinters built Oct 2022 · 4 vehicles across the whole recall

    Defect and remedy
    Remedy
    Check and rework the screw connections

  8. Jul 2023 R/2023/192

    On affected vehicles the fuse layout of the interior blower might not meet the requirements for permanent operation under the highest blower level

    Sprinters built Mar 2018 to Dec 2019 · 44,028 vehicles across the whole recall

    Defect and remedy
    Remedy
    Replace the fuse and its supply line and relocate the fuse.
How to check a specific Sprinter for recalls

Other Mercedes-Benz models

The most-tested Mercedes-Benz models in 2025, against the Sprinter's 71.3% MOT pass rate.

All 35 Mercedes-Benz models

Mercedes-Benz Sprinter FAQs

How many Mercedes-Benz Sprinters are there in the UK?

243,553 Mercedes-Benz Sprinters were licensed in the UK at the end of June 2026, with a further 51,680 declared off the road (SORN), according to DfT vehicle licensing statistics.

Is the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter reliable?

MOT data does not measure reliability. It records whether a car met the roadworthiness standard on the day of its test. What it does show is a 71.3% first-time pass rate for the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter across 24,406 tests in 2025, below the 72.3% average for all cars.

Has the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter had any recalls?

124 DVSA safety recalls launched from 1992 to October 2026 name the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter. The most recent was published in December 2025. A recall applies to vehicles built in a set period, so check a specific car on the GOV.UK vehicle recall checker.

What should I check before buying a used Mercedes-Benz Sprinter?

On the car itself, start with the areas it most often fails on: lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment, brakes and suspension. Then check the individual car's own records. Outstanding finance, insurance write-offs and police stolen markers are not part of the MOT record, so they take a history check.

How do I check a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter's history?

Enter the registration of the specific car. A Carpeep car history check reports outstanding finance, write-off category, stolen markers, mileage history, previous keepers, MOT and tax status, import and export markers and scrapped status in one £15 report.

Already found a Sprinter?

Check its finance, write-off, theft, mileage and keeper history with a £15 vehicle history report.

Across the 1,548 vehicles of every make Carpeep has checked since November 2025, 19% had outstanding finance recorded and 13% an insurance write-off. More on the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter history check. To confirm a car's identity, see the Mercedes-Benz VIN check.

  • Outstanding finance
  • Write-off records
  • Stolen markers
  • Mileage history
  • Previous keepers

MOT figures are aggregated from the DVSA MOT Anonymised data set for 2025 (class 4 initial tests, retests excluded), which also gives the engine sizes. Licensed, SORN, fuel and registration figures are from the Department for Transport vehicle licensing statistics (VEH0120, VEH0124, VEH0160). Recalls are from the DVSA vehicle recalls data, with recalls launched up to October 2026. Government data is used under the Open Government Licence v3.0. MOT results describe roadworthiness at test, not mechanical reliability. History-check findings are anonymous counts from reports bought on Carpeep, each vehicle counted once, and are published only where at least 100 vehicles returned an answer.