Pass rate
70.3%
Below average — 1.9 pts behind the 72.2% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 290 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £61–£166
2004 Citroen C8 MOT pass rate
- 2004
- typical 111,656 mi
Check your postcode
Most common fault
Suspension
20.0% of faults · 21.0% nationally
mostly worn arm bushes, split ball-joint boots and broken coil springs.
Which year to buy
- Best 2004 70.3% pass · this year
- Avoid 2007 64.5% pass
Across the 8 years on record, a spread of 5.8 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 60.7%
- Typical mileage
- 112k mi
The 2004 Citroen C8 MOT pass rate is 70.3% of its MOT tests — 1.9 points behind what its age and mileage predict. Suspension is the biggest single reason it fails, at 20.0% of what testers record.
Expert verdict
Body & chassis: 2.3× the national share
Body & chassis accounts for 12.6% of everything recorded on the 2004 Citroen C8, against 5.6% nationally — 7.0 points above. Suspension is still the single largest share at 20.0%, but at 21.0% nationally that one is ordinary. Look underneath for corrosion near the jacking points and suspension mounts; surface rust is normal, flaking metal is not.
- When it fails, it costs. Only 16% of this model’s typical repairs come in under £30 in parts — the failures here tend to be the kind that need a garage rather than a bulb.
- Based on a small sample. 290 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 Citroen C8? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2004 Citroen C8 compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 72.2%, so this figure is 1.9 points behind what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 60.7%. The median 2004 Citroen C8 in this dataset had covered 111,656 mi.
65% of the tests on this vehicle ran on Diesel, which passed 70.2% of the time. Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 68.9% of the time, April–September 71.8%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated", noted on 9.31% of tests.
- 290 recorded tests behind this page.
- 70.3% overall pass rate, 60.7% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the Citroen C8, the average is 66.3% — best year 2004 (70.3%), worst 2007 (64.5%).
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
- 290
- Typical mileage (median)
- 111,656 mi
- Make and model
- Citroen C8
- Updated
- 2026-11-07
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Ball Joint
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the C8 MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 57% so small gaps stay visible.
Fuel type and reliability
Pass rate by fuel type. Diesel is the most common here (65% of tests).
Where the Citroen C8 is most common
Across all C8 model years on record (2003–2010): 1,570 Citroen C8 cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 4,069 tests. Birmingham (B) has the most, with 49 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 | Birmingham (B) | 49 | 74.3% |
| 2 | Peterborough (PE) | 42 | 74.3% |
| 3 | Sheffield (S) | 35 | 71.1% |
| 4 | Ashford (TN) | 34 | 60.9% |
| 5 | Bristol (BS) | 30 | 55.6% |
| 6 | Portsmouth (PO) | 28 | 63.2% |
| 7 | Plymouth (PL) | 28 | 61.5% |
| 8 | Coventry (CV) | 28 | 68.9% |
| 9 | Chester (CH) | 28 | 62.3% |
| 10 | Norwich (NR) | 28 | 66.7% |
| 11 | Southampton (SO) | 27 | 65.1% |
| 12 | Exeter (EX) | 26 | 66.2% |
| 13 | Derby (DE) | 26 | 59.7% |
| 14 | Gloucester (GL) | 25 | 66.7% |
| 15 | Manchester (M) | 25 | 68.9% |
| 16 | Blackburn (BB) | 25 | 68.6% |
| 17 | Nottingham (NG) | 24 | 58.8% |
| 18 | Ipswich (IP) | 23 | 66.3% |
| 19 | Reading (RG) | 23 | 63.5% |
| 20 | Swansea (SA) | 23 | 63.5% |
The twenty areas with the most Citroen C8 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 C8
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 61 | 72.1% |
| South West | 51 | 66.7% |
| North West | 39 | 69.2% |
| Yorkshire | 31 | 67.7% |
| East of England | 27 | 74.1% |
| West Midlands | 20 | 75.0% |
| East Midlands | 20 | 55.0% |
| London | 19 | 84.2% |
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 2004 C8
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 2004 C8
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 suspension joints 9.3% of tests
“ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated”
With the car parked on level ground, rock the top of each front wheel in and out while someone watches the suspension arm. Clunks, or rubber boots split and greasy, are what testers record here.
-
Check corrosion 5.5% of tests
“component mounting prescribed areas prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength”
Look under the sills, around the jacking points and where the suspension mounts meet the body. Flaking, holed or crumbly metal fails; a brown stain on sound metal does not.
-
Check the lights 5.2% of tests
“registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources”
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.
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 2004 C8 through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £61–£166 — and 16% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £61–£166
- Cheapest common item: registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the…
- £5–£20
- Dearest common item: component mounting prescribed areas…
- £180–£450
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 40%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 16%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 290 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 C8, side by side
8 model years on record, from 2003 to 2010. Across them the pass rate runs from 64.5% to 70.3% — a spread of 5.8 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2003 69.2% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2004 70.3%ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2005 66.9% rbt (sp) efficiency below…
- 2006 67.2% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2007 64.5% rbt (sp) efficiency below…
- 2008 64.5% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2009 67.0% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2010 66.9% joints constant velocity boot…
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 2004 Citroen C8 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 2004 cars with a similar record
- Skoda Fabia 70.3%
- SEAT Ibiza 70.2%
- Hyundai Santa Fe 70.2%
- Vauxhall Zafira 70.5%
- Ford Mondeo 70.1%
- Rover 75 70.1%
Closest pass rates among 2004 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 2004 Citroen C8 10 failure items · 6 advisories · 10 inspection categories · mileage brackets · all of it in the page, none of it above the fold
Every inspection category
Shares of the 970 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suspension | 196 | 20.00% | 20.98% | −0.98 |
| Brakes | 190 | 19.40% | 20.89% | −1.49 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 123 | 12.60% | 5.57% | +7.03 |
| Tyres | 121 | 12.30% | 19.76% | −7.46 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 93 | 9.50% | 5.52% | +3.98 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 87 | 8.90% | 12.21% | −3.31 |
| Non-component advisories | 52 | 5.30% | 4.18% | +1.12 |
| Visibility | 51 | 5.20% | 4.97% | +0.23 |
| Steering | 29 | 3.00% | 2.57% | +0.43 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 28 | 2.90% | 1.76% | +1.14 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated Suspension | Minor | 9.3% | £18–45 |
| Joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated Body, chassis, structure | Minor | 9.3% | £80–250 |
| Component mounting prescribed areas prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength Suspension | Major | 5.5% | £180–450 |
| Rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements Brakes | Major | 5.5% | £45–110 |
| Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 5.2% | £5–20 |
| Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view Visibility | Minor | 4.8% | £80–200 |
| Joints constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt Body, chassis, structure | Major | 3.5% | £80–250 |
| Exhaust system has a major leak of exhaust gases Body, chassis, structure | Major | 3.1% | £45–120 |
| Parking brake performance inoperative on one side Brakes | Major | 3.1% | £60–150 |
| Position lamp not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 3.1% | £5–25 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Engine oil leaks leaking excessively from engine Noise, emissions and leaks | Advisory | 23.4% | £200–700 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 21.4% | £45–95 |
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 16.6% | £45–110 |
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 13.1% | £45–95 |
| Coil spring corroded so that its cross sectional area is reduced and seriously weakened Suspension | Advisory | 12.8% | £25–65 |
| Rigid brake pipes excessively corroded Brakes | Advisory | 11.4% | £80–180 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 4 | 75.0% | 26,100 mi |
| 30-60k | 14 | 78.6% | 47,059 mi |
| 60-90k | 49 | 79.6% | 75,384 mi |
| 90-120k | 106 | 65.1% | 102,595 mi |
| 120k+ | 116 | 69.8% | 148,644 mi |
Source: 290 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.
2004 C8 MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2004 Citroen C8?
70.3% of the 290 2004 Citroen C8 tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 72.2% for cars first used in 2004. First-attempt pass rate: 60.7%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2004 Citroen C8?
The three most recorded items are ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated (9.31%), joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated (9.31%), component mounting prescribed areas prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength (5.52%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2004 Citroen C8 MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 75.0% of the time, falling to 69.8% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2004 Citroen C8 in this dataset had covered 111,656 mi.
Which fuel type is most reliable for a 2004 Citroen C8?
Diesel: 70.2% pass rate across 188 tests. Petrol: 70.6% pass rate across 102 tests. Shares are of the tests on this vehicle that recorded each fuel type.
Does the season affect the 2004 Citroen C8 MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 68.9% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 71.8%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.