Pass rate
82.3%
Around average — 5.1 pts ahead of the 77.2% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 389 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £16–£49
2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee MOT pass rate
- 2012
- 3 trims combined
- typical 100,053 mi
Most common fault
Brakes
25.0% of faults · 20.9% nationally
mostly worn pads and discs, corroded pipes and a handbrake that will not hold.
Which year to buy
- Best 2019 90.7% pass
- Avoid 2004 67.6% pass
Across the 19 years on record, a spread of 23.1 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 79.6%
- Typical mileage
- 100k mi
The 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee MOT pass rate is 82.3% of its MOT tests — 5.1 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Brakes is the biggest single reason it fails, at 25.0% of what testers record.
Check your postcode
MOT pass rates are national — type your postcode to see how Jeep Grand Cherokee does in your corner of the country.
Expert verdict
Fewer problems with suspension
Suspension is 14.9% of this car’s recorded faults, against 21.0% nationally — the mirror image of the usual story on a car of this age.
- 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 77.2% and this one manages 82.3% — 5.1 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict.
- Failures here tend to be cheap ones. 63% of the repairs this model fails on cost under £30 in parts. The pass rate matters less than what a bad afternoon at the test centre actually costs you.
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 Jeep Grand Cherokee? Get an email when these numbers change .
Every Jeep Grand Cherokee first registered in 2012 is combined here — 3 trim and body variants in total — so the sample is as large as the DVSA data allows.
How does the 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 77.2%, so this figure is 5.1 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 79.6%. The median 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee in this dataset had covered 100,053 mi.
The most common fuel recorded here is Diesel — 93% of tests, with a 81.8% pass rate. Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 83.4% of the time, April–September 80.9%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources", noted on 4.11% of tests.
- 389 recorded tests behind this page.
- 82.3% overall pass rate, 79.6% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the Jeep Grand Cherokee, the average is 84.2% — best year 2019 (90.7%), worst 2004 (67.6%).
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
- 389
- Typical mileage (median)
- 100,053 mi
- Make and model
- Jeep Grand Cherokee
- Updated
- 2026-11-05
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Number Plate Lamp
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the Grand Cherokee MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 68% so small gaps stay visible.
Fuel type and reliability
Pass rate by fuel type. Diesel is the most common here (93% of tests).
Regional pass rates for the Grand Cherokee
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 70 | 77.1% |
| South West | 46 | 71.7% |
| Yorkshire | 46 | 89.1% |
| North West | 40 | 87.5% |
| East Midlands | 40 | 82.5% |
| West Midlands | 40 | 82.5% |
| East of England | 35 | 85.7% |
| North East | 26 | 76.9% |
| Scotland | 26 | 84.6% |
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 2012 Grand Cherokee
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 2012 Grand Cherokee
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 4.1% 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.
-
Check the suspension joints 2.8% 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 the shock absorbers 2.1% of tests
“shock absorbers has a serious fluid leak”
Press down hard on each corner of the car and let go. It should settle in one bounce; if it keeps rocking, or you can see oil weeping down a shock absorber, that is the fault a tester will find.
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 2012 Grand Cherokee through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £16–£49 — and 63% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £16–£49
- Cheapest common item: stop lamp not working
- £3–£12
- Dearest common item: joints constant velocity boot severely…
- £80–£250
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 90%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 63%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 389 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 Grand Cherokee, side by side
19 model years on record, from 2000 to 2020. Across them the pass rate runs from 67.6% to 90.7% — a spread of 23.1 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2000 74.4% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2001 74.1% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2002 69.5% headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2003 72.2% headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2004 67.6% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2005 78.5% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2006 77.1% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2007 81.3% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2008 73.6% battery(ies) insecure but not…
- 2011 79.0% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2012 82.3%registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2013 83.1% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2014 83.4% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2015 85.5% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2016 85.7% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2017 88.2% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2018 90.2% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2019 90.7% malfunction indicator lamp…
- 2020 89.8% wipers blade defective
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 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee 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 2012 cars with a similar record
- Toyota YARIS 82.0%
- Land Rover Range Rover Evoque 81.9%
- Smart Mcc Fortwo 81.9%
- Honda Civic 82.7%
- BMW X5 82.7%
- BMW X6 82.7%
Closest pass rates among 2012 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 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee 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 514 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brakes | 129 | 25.00% | 20.89% | +4.11 |
| Tyres | 93 | 18.00% | 19.76% | −1.76 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 88 | 17.00% | 12.21% | +4.79 |
| Suspension | 77 | 14.90% | 20.98% | −6.08 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 32 | 6.20% | 5.52% | +0.68 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 27 | 5.20% | 5.57% | −0.37 |
| Visibility | 25 | 4.80% | 4.97% | −0.17 |
| Steering | 24 | 4.60% | 2.57% | +2.03 |
| Non-component advisories | 14 | 2.70% | 4.18% | −1.48 |
| Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | 5 | 1.00% | 0.82% | +0.18 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 4.1% | £5–20 |
| Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated Suspension | Minor | 2.8% | £18–45 |
| Headlamp not working on dipped beam Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 2.3% | £5–25 |
| Shock absorbers has a serious fluid leak Suspension | Major | 2.1% | £30–75 |
| Stop lamp not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 2.1% | £3–12 |
| Joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated Body, chassis, structure | Minor | 1.8% | £80–250 |
| Malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or indicates a malfunction Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 1.8% | £3–12 |
| Headlamp lens slightly defective Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 1.5% | £5–25 |
| Wipers blade defective Visibility | Minor | 1.5% | £8–22 |
| Ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt Suspension | Major | 1.3% | £18–45 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 15.7% | £45–95 |
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 10.5% | £45–110 |
| Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | Advisory | 10.5% | £18–45 |
| Engine oil leaks leaking excessively from engine Noise, emissions and leaks | Advisory | 4.6% | £200–700 |
| Shock absorbers has a serious fluid leak Suspension | Advisory | 4.4% | £30–75 |
| Exhaust system has a major leak of exhaust gases Body, chassis, structure | Advisory | 2.3% | £45–120 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30-60k | 44 | 81.8% | 48,208 mi |
| 60-90k | 87 | 88.5% | 77,579 mi |
| 90-120k | 164 | 82.3% | 104,441 mi |
| 120k+ | 94 | 76.6% | 145,620 mi |
Source: 389 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.
2012 Grand Cherokee MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee?
82.3% of the 389 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 77.2% for cars first used in 2012. First-attempt pass rate: 79.6%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee?
The three most recorded items are registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources (4.11%), ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated (2.83%), headlamp not working on dipped beam (2.31%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 81.8% of the time, falling to 76.6% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee in this dataset had covered 100,053 mi.
Which fuel type is most reliable for a 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee?
Diesel: 81.8% pass rate across 362 tests. Petrol: 88.9% pass rate across 27 tests. Shares are of the tests on this vehicle that recorded each fuel type.
Does the season affect the 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 83.4% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 80.9%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.