Pass rate
95.9%
Above average — 9.9 pts ahead of the 86.0% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 242 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £23–£70
2017 Bentley Mulsanne MOT pass rate
- 2017
- typical 21,000 mi
Check your postcode
Most common fault
Tyres
62.5% of faults · 19.8% nationally
mostly tread below the limit, cuts and sidewall bulges.
Which year to buy
- Best 2020 98.6% pass
- Avoid 2011 93.4% pass
Across the 11 years on record, a spread of 5.2 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 95.7%
- Typical mileage
- 21k mi
The 2017 Bentley Mulsanne MOT pass rate is 95.9% of its MOT tests — 9.9 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Tyres is the biggest single reason it fails, at 62.5% of what testers record.
Expert verdict
Tyres: 3.2× the national share
Tyres make up 62.5% of everything recorded on the 2017 Bentley Mulsanne, against 19.8% nationally — 42.7 points above. Check all four tyres yourself, including the inner shoulders, and look at the date stamp — a tyre can pass on tread and still be six years old.
- Beats its own age and mileage. Once you allow for how old and how far these cars have been driven, the expected pass rate is 86.0% and this one manages 95.9% — 9.9 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict.
- Based on a small sample. 242 tests back this page. That is enough to publish and to index, not enough to treat the decimal places as precise — read the pattern, not the second digit.
Written from this page's own figures: fault shares against the national composition, the like-for-like pass rate, and the priced repair list. How these are worked out
Watching a Bentley Mulsanne? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2017 Bentley Mulsanne compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 86.0%, so this figure is 9.9 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 95.7%. The median 2017 Bentley Mulsanne in this dataset had covered 21,000 mi.
Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 95.0% of the time, April–September 97.6%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords", noted on 1.24% of tests.
- 242 recorded tests behind this page.
- 95.9% overall pass rate, 95.7% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the Bentley Mulsanne, the average is 96.1% — best year 2020 (98.6%), worst 2011 (93.4%).
Figures count every completed test on this vehicle-year in the dataset, including retests. See methodology for the exact definition.
This page's data
- Tests analysed
- 242
- Typical mileage (median)
- 21,000 mi
- Make and model
- Bentley Mulsanne
- Updated
- 2026-11-07
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Tyres
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the Mulsanne MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 86% so small gaps stay visible.
Where the Bentley Mulsanne is most common
Across all Mulsanne model years on record (2010–2020): 1,311 Bentley Mulsanne cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 2,256 tests. London (SW) has the most, with 123 cars tested there. Cars are counted by the postcode area of the MOT station, so this is where they were tested, not necessarily where their owners live.
| # | Postcode area | Cars | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | London (SW) | 123 | 95.8% |
| 2 | London (NW) | 46 | 91.1% |
| 3 | Leicester (LE) | 46 | 97.5% |
| 4 | Kingston upon Thames (KT) | 45 | 93.7% |
| 5 | Birmingham (B) | 43 | 94.9% |
| 6 | Chelmsford (CM) | 36 | 93.7% |
| 7 | Crawley (RH) | 34 | 95.9% |
| 8 | Warrington (WA) | 34 | 100.0% |
| 9 | Leeds (LS) | 31 | 100.0% |
| 10 | Reading (RG) | 30 | 100.0% |
| 11 | Hounslow (TW) | 30 | 97.7% |
| 12 | London (W) | 27 | 91.5% |
| 13 | Peterborough (PE) | 27 | 100.0% |
| 14 | Enfield (EN) | 27 | 100.0% |
| 15 | Hayes (UB) | 26 | 100.0% |
| 16 | High Wycombe (HP) | 23 | 94.7% |
| 17 | Guildford (GU) | 23 | 96.8% |
| 18 | Gloucester (GL) | 22 | 97.4% |
| 19 | Slough (SL) | 22 | 100.0% |
| 20 | St Albans (AL) | 21 | — |
The twenty areas with the most Bentley Mulsanne cars in the record, sorted by car count — sort the columns for a different question. Cars tested at a station whose postcode area could not be resolved are counted in the model's total but in no area, so the shares add up to slightly under 100% even across every area, and an area's cars are a subset of the model's. Pass rate is blank below 30 tests in an area, where a percentage is noise rather than a finding. How this model's pass rate varies by postcode →
Regional pass rates for the Mulsanne
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 62 | 93.5% |
| London | 59 | 94.9% |
| North West | 27 | 100.0% |
| East of England | 25 | 96.0% |
| East Midlands | 16 | 100.0% |
| Yorkshire | 16 | 93.8% |
Regions come from the postcode area recorded at the test station. Areas on region borders are assigned to the region with the majority of their population.
What fails a 2017 Mulsanne
Everything a tester recorded on this vehicle, grouped into the inspection sections that produced it. The notch on each bar is the national share, so you can see at a glance whether this car is unusual or just ordinary.
A test can record several items, so these percentages do not add up to 100%. The exact strings, with prices, are in the full DVSA record at the bottom of this page.
Before your test
Three checks worth doing on a 2017 Mulsanne
These are not generic tips — they are the faults recorded most often on this exact model, rewritten as things you can check yourself. All three take about ten minutes and cost nothing.
-
Check the lights 0.8% of tests
“malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or indicates a malfunction”
Switch everything on and walk round the car: both headlamps on dip and main, every indicator, both brake lights, reverse, fog and the two number-plate lamps. A bulb is a few pounds and a five-minute job.
-
Check the number plates 0.8% of tests
“registration plates does not conform to the specified requirements”
Check both plates are present, legible and correctly spaced, with the postcode of the supplier and the BS AU 145e mark. A private plate in the wrong style is a fail before the car is even looked at.
-
Check leaks 0.4% of tests
“hydraulic fluid leaks fluid leaking excessively”
Park on clean cardboard overnight. A few drips are an advisory; a steady patch under the engine, gearbox or a shock absorber is a fail. Have the source identified before the test rather than after.
Shares are the proportion of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item, so they overlap: one test can record several.
What it costs to get a 2017 Mulsanne through its MOT
Across the 8 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £23–£70 — and 42% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 8 common items
- £23–£70
- Cheapest common item: malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or…
- £3–£12
- Dearest common item: hydraulic fluid leaks fluid leaking…
- £60–£250
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 88%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 42%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 242 MOT tests on this vehicle. They exclude diagnostics, retest fees and garage labour where the part is a DIY fit, and they are not figures from the DVSA dataset. Older and higher-mileage examples cost more than the average. How these estimates are built → · All MOT repair costs → · Cheapest cars to put through a test →
Every year of the Mulsanne, side by side
11 model years on record, from 2010 to 2020. Across them the pass rate runs from 93.4% to 98.6% — a spread of 5.2 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2010 96.7% individual direction indicators…
- 2011 93.4% malfunction indicator lamp…
- 2012 94.4% malfunction indicator lamp…
- 2013 95.7% malfunction indicator lamp…
- 2014 98.5% tyre pressure monitoring system…
- 2015 96.1% ball joint dust cover no longer…
- 2016 96.6% malfunction indicator lamp…
- 2017 95.9%has a cut in excess of the…
- 2018 97.7% brake pads worn down to wear…
- 2019 96.2% has ply or cords exposed
- 2020 98.6% has a cut in excess of the…
Colour is the pass rate on a fixed scale, so a block means the same thing on any model. Each year links to its own page with the full fault breakdown.
Compare the 2017 Bentley Mulsanne with another year
The raw pass rate mostly measures age. The year comparison adds the like-for-like figure, the mileage bands and the repair bill.
Other 2017 cars with a similar record
- Aston Martin DB11 95.5%
- Porsche 911 95.2%
- Lexus Rx 94.9%
- Porsche Cayman 94.6%
- Porsche Boxster 94.3%
- Audi A8 93.8%
Closest pass rates among 2017 cars with at least 2,000 tests, so a small sample cannot flatter itself into the list. See the full rankings: best and worst MOT pass rates.
The full DVSA record for the 2017 Bentley Mulsanne 8 failure items · 6 advisories · 7 inspection categories · mileage brackets · all of it in the page, none of it above the fold
Every inspection category
Shares of the 56 individual items recorded on this vehicle, and the same share across all cars nationally. A single test can record several items, so a row is not a percentage of tests.
| Category | Items | This car | Nationally | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyres | 35 | 62.50% | 19.76% | +42.74 |
| Brakes | 6 | 10.70% | 20.89% | −10.19 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 5 | 8.90% | 5.52% | +3.38 |
| Non-component advisories | 4 | 7.10% | 4.18% | +2.92 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 3 | 5.40% | 1.76% | +3.64 |
| Steering | 2 | 3.60% | 2.57% | +1.03 |
| Suspension | 1 | 1.80% | 20.98% | −19.18 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Tyres | Major | 1.2% | £45–95 |
| Malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or indicates a malfunction Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 0.83% | £3–12 |
| Registration plates does not conform to the specified requirements Identification of the vehicle | Major | 0.83% | £20–80 |
| Anti-lock braking system warning lamp indicates an ABS fault Brakes | Major | 0.41% | £3–15 |
| Electronic stability control warning lamp indicates a fault Brakes | Major | 0.41% | £3–15 |
| Hydraulic fluid leaks fluid leaking excessively Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 0.41% | £60–250 |
| Malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or indicates a malfunction Noise, emissions and leaks | Rectified | 0.41% | £3–12 |
| Registration plates does not conform to the specified requirements Identification of the vehicle | Rectified | 0.41% | £20–80 |
Severity is as recorded: Major and Dangerous fail the test outright; Minor and Advisory do not. Costs are estimates from typical UK parts prices — see how they are built.
What testers noted without failing the car
Advisories are the early warnings — the same parts a year or two before they fail. Reading them is how you tell a car that has been maintained from one that has been patched.
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 5.8% | £45–95 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 4.5% | £45–95 |
| Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Tyres | Advisory | 1.6% | £45–95 |
| Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | Advisory | 1.2% | £18–45 |
| Has a bulge, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 1.2% | £45–95 |
| Non-component advisories Nail in tyre Non-component advisories | Advisory | 0.83% | £45–95 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 170 | 94.7% | 16,576 mi |
| 30-60k | 70 | 98.6% | 40,694 mi |
| 60-90k | 2 | 100.0% | 83,976 mi |
Source: 242 recorded tests on this vehicle-year. Every row above is recomputed from the same DVSA extract as the rest of the page — see the methodology.
2017 Mulsanne MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2017 Bentley Mulsanne?
95.9% of the 242 2017 Bentley Mulsanne tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 86.0% for cars first used in 2017. First-attempt pass rate: 95.7%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2017 Bentley Mulsanne?
The three most recorded items are has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords (1.24%), malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or indicates a malfunction (0.83%), registration plates does not conform to the specified requirements (0.83%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2017 Bentley Mulsanne MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 94.7% of the time, falling to 100.0% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2017 Bentley Mulsanne in this dataset had covered 21,000 mi.
Does the season affect the 2017 Bentley Mulsanne MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 95.0% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 97.6%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.