69.4%
Volvo XC70
Volvo XC70 MOT pass rate and common problems
The Volvo XC70 passed 69.4% of its initial MOT tests in 2025, 2.9 percentage points below 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 XC70 compares
Initial MOT tests in 2025, retests excluded. A car that failed and was repaired at the test station counts as a fail.
75.3%
Volvo average
72.3%
UK average, all cars
The XC70 runs 5.9 points behind the Volvo average. It is 10th of the 18 Volvo models in the data. The average XC70 arrived at its test 14.6 years old with 129,195 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.
XC70 MOT pass rate by age
The same 2025 tests split by the car's age at test.
Volvo XC70 cars aged 6 to 10 years passed 79% of MOT tests. For cars aged 11 years and over that fell to 66.6%, a drop of 12.3 percentage points.
| Age at test | Tests | Pass rate | vs UK average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 to 10 years | 3,729 | 79% | 6.7 pts above |
| 11 years and over | 12,931 | 66.6% | 5.7 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 XC70 failures cluster
Every failure item recorded on Volvo XC70 cars in 2025, grouped into the DVSA's test areas.
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment and suspension together account for 52.9% of recorded failure items. These are recorded failures across the model, not faults every car has.
The 10 most common XC70 MOT failures
Specific items recorded on Volvo XC70 cars that failed their 2025 MOT, as a share of all recorded failure items.
Together these 10 items make up 41.2% of everything testers recorded against failed Volvo XC70 cars. The rest is spread across many smaller items, and one failed test often records several at once.
What to look at on a XC70
The recorded failures above, grouped by area, biggest first.
1
Suspension
Recorded most often: coil spring fractured or broken, pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn and ball joint excessively worn. 14.4% of failure items.
2
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment
Recorded most often: position lamp not working, headlamp aim projected beam image is obviously incorrect and headlamp aim too low. 14.1% of failure items.
3
Tyres
Recorded most often: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm and condition has ply or cords exposed. 5.8% of failure items.
4
Brakes
Recorded most often: brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick. 3.4% of failure items.
The car's own MOT history matters more than any model average. A free MOT history check shows whether a specific XC70 has failed on these items before, or had them noted as advisories. Buying one? See the used Volvo XC70 buying guide.
Already found one?
Check its finance, write-off, theft, mileage and keeper history with a £15 vehicle history report.
Volvo XC70 MOT FAQs
What is the Volvo XC70 MOT pass rate?
69.4% of Volvo XC70 cars passed their initial MOT first time in 2025, from 16,660 tests. That is 2.9 percentage points below the 72.3% average for all cars, and ranks 357th of 575 models.
What does a Volvo XC70 most commonly fail its MOT on?
The item testers recorded most often on Volvo XC70 cars failing their 2025 MOT was position lamp not working, on 6.9% of failure items. Next were coil spring fractured or broken (6.4%) and pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn (5.1%).
Which area causes the most Volvo XC70 MOT failures?
Across every recorded failure item, the largest area was lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment at 29.8%, followed by suspension at 23%.
Do older Volvo XC70 cars fail their MOT more often?
Volvo XC70 cars aged 6 to 10 years passed 79% of MOT tests in 2025, against 66.6% for cars aged 11 years and over.
Does this mean every Volvo XC70 has these problems?
No. These are the items testers recorded across every Volvo XC70 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 Volvo XC70'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.