84.2%
SEAT Arona
SEAT Arona MOT pass rate and common problems
The SEAT Arona passed 84.2% of its initial MOT tests in 2025, 11.9 percentage points above the 72.3% UK average. The item testers recorded most often was track rod end ball joint dust cover excessively damaged or deteriorated so that it no longer prevents the ingress of dirt.
Checking a specific car? Its own results, advisories and recorded mileages are in a free MOT history check.
How the Arona compares
Initial MOT tests in 2025, retests excluded. A car that failed and was repaired at the test station counts as a fail.
74%
SEAT average
72.3%
UK average, all cars
The Arona runs 10.3 points ahead of the SEAT average. It is 3rd of the 11 SEAT models in the data. The average Arona arrived at its test 5.2 years old with 37,085 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.
Arona MOT pass rate by age
The same 2025 tests split by the car's age at test.
SEAT Arona cars aged 3 to 5 years passed 87% of MOT tests. For cars aged 6 to 10 years that fell to 77.4%, a drop of 9.6 percentage points.
| Age at test | Tests | Pass rate | vs UK average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 to 5 years | 33,630 | 87% | 14.7 pts above |
| 6 to 10 years | 17,624 | 77.4% | 5.1 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 Arona failures cluster
Every failure item recorded on SEAT Arona cars in 2025, grouped into the DVSA's test areas.
Brakes and tyres together account for 50.1% of recorded failure items. These are recorded failures across the model, not faults every car has.
The 10 most common Arona MOT failures
Specific items recorded on SEAT Arona cars that failed their 2025 MOT, as a share of all recorded failure items.
Together these 10 items make up 58.9% of everything testers recorded against failed SEAT Arona cars. The rest is spread across many smaller items, and one failed test often records several at once.
What to look at on a Arona
The recorded failures above, grouped by area, biggest first.
1
Tyres
Recorded most often: condition has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords, tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm, condition has ply or cords exposed and condition has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure. 21.2% of failure items.
2
Brakes
Recorded most often: brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick, brake discs significantly and obviously worn and service brake performance excessively fluctuating. 18.6% of failure items.
3
Steering
Recorded most often: track rod end ball joint dust cover excessively damaged or deteriorated so that it no longer prevents the ingress of dirt. 13.6% of failure items.
4
Visibility
Recorded most often: washers provides insufficient washer liquid. 2.8% of failure items.
The car's own MOT history matters more than any model average. A free MOT history check shows whether a specific Arona has failed on these items before, or had them noted as advisories. Buying one? See the used SEAT Arona buying guide.
Already found one?
Check its finance, write-off, theft, mileage and keeper history with a £15 vehicle history report.
SEAT Arona MOT FAQs
What is the SEAT Arona MOT pass rate?
84.2% of SEAT Arona cars passed their initial MOT first time in 2025, from 57,243 tests. That is 11.9 percentage points above the 72.3% average for all cars, and ranks 135th of 575 models.
What does a SEAT Arona most commonly fail its MOT on?
The item testers recorded most often on SEAT Arona cars failing their 2025 MOT was track rod end ball joint dust cover excessively damaged or deteriorated so that it no longer prevents the ingress of dirt, on 13.6% of failure items. Next were brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick (11.1%) and condition has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords (7.2%).
Which area causes the most SEAT Arona MOT failures?
Across every recorded failure item, the largest area was brakes at 25.2%, followed by tyres at 24.9%.
Do older SEAT Arona cars fail their MOT more often?
SEAT Arona cars aged 3 to 5 years passed 87% of MOT tests in 2025, against 77.4% for cars aged 6 to 10 years.
Does this mean every SEAT Arona has these problems?
No. These are the items testers recorded across every SEAT Arona 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 SEAT Arona'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.