Volvo C40, Buying guide, MOT record, UK numbers and recalls
6,996 Volvo C40s are licensed in the UK. In 2025 they passed 89.9% of initial MOT tests, 17.6 points above the 72.3% UK average.
Looking at a specific C40? Check its finance, write-off, stolen, mileage and keeper history. £15, no account needed.
Volvo C40 at the MOT
89.9% of 2,003 initial tests passed in 2025, ranking the C40 42nd of 575 models.
First-time pass rate, 2025
Share of initial tests passed, retests excluded.
Where C40s fail
Share of all failure items recorded on Volvo C40 tests in 2025.
The items testers recorded most often were condition has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords (24.2%), condition has a bulge, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure (16.8%) and condition has ply or cords exposed (13.7%).
The MOT page lists every common C40 MOT failure. For one car's own results and advisories, run a free MOT history check.
What to look at on a viewing
The C40's most common failure areas, and what a tester checks in each.
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Tyres
Check tread depth across the full width of every tyre (the legal minimum is 1.6mm), and look for cuts, bulges and uneven wear.76.8% of C40 failure items
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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.10.5% of C40 failure items
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Visibility
Check the windscreen for chips or cracks in the driver's view, and that the wipers and washers clear it properly.7.4% of C40 failure items
Volvo C40s in the UK
6,996 were licensed at the end of June 2026. The number licensed has grown 265% since the end of 2022.
- Change since 2022
- +265%from 1,917 licensed
- Typical year of first use
- 2023half of those licensed at the end of 2025 were first used in 2023 or earlier
- First registered in 2025
- 30against 3,339 in 2023
- Declared off the road
- 670.9% of those registered, under SORN
Licensed Volvo C40s since 2021
Licensed at each year end and in the latest quarter.
Show the figures
| Date | Licensed |
|---|---|
| End of 2021 | 29 |
| End of 2022 | 1,917 |
| End of 2023 | 5,139 |
| End of 2024 | 7,056 |
| End of 2025 | 6,907 |
| End of June 2026 | 6,996 |
How old they are
Licensed Volvo C40s by year of first use.
- Licensed at the end of 2025
- First registered that year
A further 28 were first used before 2022.
Show the figures
| First used | Licensed, end 2025 | First registered that year |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 29 | 30 |
| 2024 | 1,902 | 1,931 |
| 2023 | 3,258 | 3,339 |
| 2022 | 1,688 | 1,914 |
Volvo C40 recalls
2 DVSA safety recalls launched from 1992 to October 2026 name the Volvo C40. Each covers vehicles built in a set period, so a recall does not mean every C40 is affected.
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Jun 2025 R/2025/211
BCM2 SW - Safety Notice
Defect and remedy
- Defect
- Affected vehicles may experience a temporary loss of braking functionality after coasting downhill with 'B' mode selected or when using One Pedal Drive. This could potentially lead to a collision.
- Remedy
- Install modified software via an Over the Air (OTA) update.
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Jan 2023 R/2023/025
There may be a potential software error in the brake control module
Defect and remedy
- Remedy
- Update the brake control module software.
Other Volvo models
The most-tested Volvo models in 2025, against the C40's 89.9% MOT pass rate.
Volvo C40 FAQs
How many Volvo C40s are there in the UK?
6,996 Volvo C40s were licensed in the UK at the end of June 2026, with a further 67 declared off the road (SORN), according to DfT vehicle licensing statistics.
Is the Volvo C40 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 an 89.9% first-time pass rate for the Volvo C40 across 2,003 tests in 2025, above the 72.3% average for all cars.
Has the Volvo C40 had any recalls?
2 DVSA safety recalls launched from 1992 to October 2026 name the Volvo C40. The most recent was published in June 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 Volvo C40?
On the car itself, start with the areas it most often fails on: tyres, lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment and visibility. 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 Volvo C40'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 C40?
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 Volvo history check. To confirm a car's identity, see the Volvo 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). 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.