Pass rate, every year
53,684 tests across 23 model years, 2000–2022.
−5.0 pts vs the national average
Pass rate, every year
53,684 tests across 23 model years, 2000–2022.
−5.0 pts vs the national average
Best year to buy
2022 91.2%
The strongest of the 23 years on record. See the 2022 page →
Worst year to buy
2004 66.0%
25.2 points below the 2022 peak. See the 2004 page →
The Citroen Relay MOT pass rate is 76.0%, −5.0 percentage points below the UK average. That is 53,684 DVSA MOT tests recorded between 2000 and 2022. This page lists the most common Citroen Relay MOT failures by category, names the best and worst model years, and finishes with a pre-MOT checklist you can run at home.
The Citroen Relay passed on its first attempt in 70.4%, and its overall record sits −5.0 percentage points below the national average for all cars. These figures come from every recorded DVSA MOT test for the Citroen Relay in the 2023–2025 data: 53,684 tests across 23 model years (2000–2022). A test still carries exactly one pass or fail verdict.
| Measure | This model |
|---|---|
| Tests analysed | 53,684 |
| Overall pass rate | 76.0% |
| Passed on first attempt | 70.4% |
| Average mileage at test | 93,199 mi |
| Model years covered | 2000–2022 (23 years) |
| Versus UK national average | −5.0 pts below |
Figures are computed from every recorded DVSA test for this model in the 2023–2025 data.
Every MOT failure a tester records belongs to one inspection section of the DVSA manual. For the Citroen Relay, the Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment section leads the record — the breakdown below shows where the recorded failures cluster, then the exact strings behind the three biggest sections.
| Inspection section | Share of failures |
|---|---|
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 28% |
| Visibility | 25% |
| Brakes | 16% |
| Suspension | 15% |
| Body, chassis, structure | 14% |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 3% |
| Steering | 1% |
| Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | 0% |
Shares are over the Citroen Relay's recorded defect strings, merged across its year pages.
Around 28% of the recorded Citroen Relay failures fall in the Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment section of the MOT inspection manual. Testers recorded "Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources" (4.8%), "Headlamp lens slightly defective" (1.5%), "Side repeaters lens defective which has no effect on emitted light" (0.9%) among the Citroen Relay's lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment faults.
Around 25% of the recorded Citroen Relay failures fall in the Visibility section of the MOT inspection manual. Testers recorded "Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view" (6.2%), "Mirrors slightly damaged" (1.6%), "Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively" (1.0%) among the Citroen Relay's visibility faults.
Around 16% of the recorded Citroen Relay failures fall in the Brakes section of the MOT inspection manual. Testers recorded "Rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements" (4.1%), "Service brake performance excessively binding" (1.1%), "Rbt (sp) efficiency less than 50% of the required value" (0.2%) among the Citroen Relay's brakes faults.
The descriptions below are the exact DVSA failure strings testers recorded most often for the Citroen Relay, each with how many of the model's 53,684 tests it was noted on.
6 failure items are recorded at least 1.5 times the UK rate on this model.
| Failure item | This model | UK | × UK | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mirrors slightly damaged | 2.3% | 0.4% | 5.7× | £3–£15 |
| Integral structure corroded | 3.3% | 0.6% | 5.5× | £180–£450 |
| Brake efficiency below requirements | 4.1% | 0.9% | 4.6× | £45–£110 |
| Side repeaters not working | 1.1% | 0.3% | 3.7× | £5–£25 |
| Windscreen damaged | 6.2% | 2.7% | 2.3× | £80–£200 |
| Headlamp aim too high | 1.5% | 0.7% | 2.1× | £30–£80 |
Rates are a share of this model's own tests (53,684 for the top row), so a big seller cannot outrank a rare one. The UK figure is the same item's share of every test in our data. Items Relay records at or below the UK rate are not listed — this is where it is unusual, not a full inventory. All failure items · parts and costs
The strongest Citroen Relay model year on record is 2022 (91.2% across 445 tests), and the weakest is 2004 (66.0%). The gap between them is 25.2 points. Years with fewer than 50 recorded tests are excluded, so these are the years with enough MOT history to mean something.
Citroen Relay reliability is improving in the DVSA data — the pass rate moves about 1.6 points a year across the most recent model years shown above.
| Year | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 Relay | 445 | 91.2% |
| 2021 Relay | 1,297 | 86.3% |
| 2020 Relay | 1,354 | 87.2% |
| 2019 Relay | 2,138 | 86.5% |
| 2018 Relay | 2,399 | 84.0% |
| 2017 Relay | 4,249 | 81.2% |
| 2016 Relay | 4,931 | 80.1% |
| 2015 Relay | 5,011 | 78.6% |
| 2014 Relay | 3,988 | 76.2% |
| 2013 Relay | 2,910 | 76.6% |
| 2012 Relay | 2,583 | 76.2% |
| 2011 Relay | 2,534 | 74.4% |
| 2010 Relay | 2,855 | 74.0% |
| 2009 Relay | 2,261 | 71.4% |
| 2008 Relay | 3,270 | 71.5% |
| 2007 Relay | 3,568 | 68.2% |
| 2006 Relay | 2,861 | 68.1% |
| 2005 Relay | 1,652 | 66.2% |
| 2004 Relay | 1,100 | 66.0% |
| 2003 Relay | 993 | 67.1% |
| 2002 Relay | 626 | 66.5% |
| 2001 Relay | 373 | 67.3% |
| 2000 Relay | 286 | 67.5% |
Newest model year first. Only years with at least 50 recorded tests are listed.
These checks follow this Citroen Relay's own most-recorded failure strings, starting with what a tester is most likely to flag on a Citroen Relay.
the windscreen — “windscreen damaged”
Check the driver’s side of the screen within the swept area for chips and cracks; anything larger than 10mm in the driver’s central view is a fail. Most chips can be resin-repaired for far less than a new screen.
the lights — “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.
corrosion — “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.
Derived from the DVSA failure strings testers recorded for the Citroen Relay. A check that finds nothing means the item is likely fine, not that the test is guaranteed.
Across every Relay model year on record (2000–2022): 22,037 Citroen Relay cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 53,682 tests. Sheffield (S) has the most, with 479 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 | Sheffield (S) | 479 | 80.7% |
| 2 | Exeter (EX) | 454 | 71.7% |
| 3 | Birmingham (B) | 453 | 80.5% |
| 4 | Newcastle upon Tyne (NE) | 441 | 78.4% |
| 5 | Bristol (BS) | 430 | 72.0% |
| 6 | Portsmouth (PO) | 418 | 73.5% |
| 7 | Cardiff (CF) | 394 | 72.7% |
| 8 | Doncaster (DN) | 366 | 79.4% |
| 9 | Swansea (SA) | 359 | 74.6% |
| 10 | Nottingham (NG) | 345 | 73.8% |
| 11 | Peterborough (PE) | 331 | 78.4% |
| 12 | Glasgow (G) | 329 | 76.7% |
| 13 | Plymouth (PL) | 326 | 72.1% |
| 14 | Edinburgh (EH) | 326 | 73.2% |
| 15 | Wrexham (LL) | 314 | 72.4% |
| 16 | Carlisle (CA) | 313 | 77.6% |
| 17 | Kendal (LA) | 299 | 77.4% |
| 18 | Southampton (SO) | 289 | 75.6% |
| 19 | Gloucester (GL) | 288 | 71.8% |
| 20 | Guildford (GU) | 283 | 77.1% |
The twenty areas with the most Citroen Relay 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 →
76.0% of the 53,684 recorded Citroen Relay MOT tests ended in a pass, −5.0 percentage points below the national average. 70.4% of those passed on the first attempt.
2022 is the strongest Citroen Relay year on record at 91.2%, while 2004 is the weakest at 66.0%. The year-by-year table below lists every model year with at least 50 recorded tests.
The most recorded Citroen Relay failures are "Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view" and "Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources" — together around 11% of tests, mostly in the Visibility section.