Pass rate
88.8%
Above average — 2.8 pts ahead of the 86.0% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 89 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £26–£65
2017 Mercedes-Benz A MOT pass rate
- 2017
- 6 trims combined
- typical 50,287 mi
Only 89 tests of this exact model and year are in the DVSA data, below the 100 we ask for before a page goes in the index. The figures are still shown, because they are the only ones there are.
Most common fault
Tyres
46.2% of faults · 19.8% nationally
mostly tread below the limit, cuts and sidewall bulges.
Part only £55–£85 for Tyre has a tear. What fitting it takes →
Which year to buy
- Best 2023 95.5% pass
- Avoid 2008 72.0% pass
Across the 16 years on record, a spread of 23.5 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 87.5%
- Typical mileage
- 50k mi
The 2017 Mercedes-Benz A MOT pass rate is 88.8% of its MOT tests — 2.8 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Tyres is the biggest single reason it fails, at 46.2% of what testers record.
Check your postcode
MOT pass rates are national — type your postcode to see how Mercedes-Benz A does in your corner of the country.
Expert verdict
Tyres: 2.3× the national share
Tyres make up 46.2% of everything recorded on the 2017 Mercedes-Benz A, against 19.8% nationally — 26.4 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.
- When it fails, it costs. Only 17% 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. 89 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 Mercedes-Benz A? Get an email when these numbers change .
Every Mercedes-Benz A first registered in 2017 is combined here — 6 trim and body variants in total — so the sample is as large as the DVSA data allows.
How does the 2017 Mercedes-Benz A compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 86.0%, so this figure is 2.8 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 87.5%. The median 2017 Mercedes-Benz A in this dataset had covered 50,287 mi.
52% of the tests on this vehicle ran on Diesel, which passed 89.1% of the time. Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 89.2% of the time, April–September 88.5%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Linkage ball joint dust cover ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated", noted on 2.25% of tests.
- 89 recorded tests behind this page.
- 88.8% overall pass rate, 87.5% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the Mercedes-Benz A, the average is 90.3% — best year 2023 (95.5%), worst 2008 (72.0%).
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
- 89
- Typical mileage (median)
- 50,287 mi
- Make and model
- Mercedes-Benz A
- Updated
- 2026-11-05
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 A MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 67% so small gaps stay visible.
Fuel type and reliability
Pass rate by fuel type. Diesel is the most common here (52% of tests).
Regional pass rates for the A
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 25 | 96.0% |
| East of England | 18 | 88.9% |
| North West | 16 | 81.3% |
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 A
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 A
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 2.3% of tests
“linkage ball joint dust cover 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 coil springs 1.1% of tests
“coil spring fractured or broken”
Look up inside each wheel arch with a torch, all the way round the spring. A snapped spring usually breaks at the very bottom coil, where a quick glance will not reach.
-
Check the lights 1.1% of tests
“headlamp aim projected beam image is obviously incorrect”
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 2017 A through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £26–£65 — and 17% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £26–£65
- Cheapest common item: side repeaters not working
- £5–£25
- Dearest common item: has a bulge, caused by separation or partial…
- £45–£95
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 70%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 17%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 89 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 A, side by side
16 model years on record, from 2005 to 2023. Across them the pass rate runs from 72.0% to 95.5% — a spread of 23.5 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2005 77.0% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2006 74.6% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2007 75.7% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2008 72.0% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2012 79.9% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2013 78.9% linkage ball joint dust cover…
- 2014 79.0% linkage ball joint dust cover…
- 2015 83.5% malfunction indicator lamp…
- 2016 86.9% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2017 88.8%linkage ball joint dust cover…
- 2018 87.3% has a cut in excess of the…
- 2019 89.9% malfunction indicator lamp…
- 2020 91.1% has a cut in excess of the…
- 2021 91.8% has a cut in excess of the…
- 2022 92.7% has a cut in excess of the…
- 2023 95.5% 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 Mercedes-Benz A 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
- Toyota YARIS 88.8%
- Hyundai I20 88.8%
- Suzuki SX4 88.8%
- BMW 225 88.8%
- Ford Kuga 88.7%
- Land Rover Range Rover Evoque 88.7%
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 Mercedes-Benz A 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 78 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 | 36 | 46.20% | 19.76% | +26.44 |
| Brakes | 18 | 23.10% | 20.89% | +2.21 |
| Suspension | 7 | 9.00% | 20.98% | −11.98 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 5 | 6.40% | 12.21% | −5.81 |
| Non-component advisories | 4 | 5.10% | 4.18% | +0.92 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 3 | 3.80% | 1.76% | +2.04 |
| Visibility | 2 | 2.60% | 4.97% | −2.37 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 1 | 1.30% | 5.57% | −4.27 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 1 | 1.30% | 5.52% | −4.22 |
| Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | 1 | 1.30% | 0.82% | +0.48 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Linkage ball joint dust cover ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated Suspension | Minor | 2.3% | £18–45 |
| Side repeaters not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 2.3% | £5–25 |
| Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated Suspension | Minor | 1.1% | £18–45 |
| Coil spring fractured or broken Suspension | Major | 1.1% | £25–65 |
| Has a bulge, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Major | 1.1% | £45–95 |
| Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Tyres | Major | 1.1% | £45–95 |
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Major | 1.1% | £45–95 |
| Headlamp aim projected beam image is obviously incorrect Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 1.1% | £30–80 |
| Headlamp aim too high Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Rectified | 1.1% | £30–80 |
| Headlamp aim too low Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Rectified | 1.1% | £30–80 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 20.2% | £45–95 |
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 12.4% | £45–95 |
| Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | Advisory | 6.7% | £18–45 |
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 5.6% | £45–110 |
| Non-component advisories Child Seat fitted not allowing full inspection of adult belt Non-component advisories | Advisory | 4.5% | £20–80 |
| Brake discs significantly and obviously worn Brakes | Advisory | 3.4% | £45–110 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 7 | 100.0% | 24,113 mi |
| 30-60k | 55 | 90.9% | 45,806 mi |
| 60-90k | 22 | 81.8% | 71,171 mi |
| 90-120k | 1 | 100.0% | 97,785 mi |
| 120k+ | 4 | 75.0% | 149,431 mi |
Source: 89 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 A MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2017 Mercedes-Benz A?
88.8% of the 89 2017 Mercedes-Benz A tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 86.0% for cars first used in 2017. First-attempt pass rate: 87.5%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2017 Mercedes-Benz A?
The three most recorded items are linkage ball joint dust cover ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated (2.25%), side repeaters not working (2.25%), ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated (1.12%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2017 Mercedes-Benz A MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 100.0% of the time, falling to 75.0% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2017 Mercedes-Benz A in this dataset had covered 50,287 mi.
Which fuel type is most reliable for a 2017 Mercedes-Benz A?
Diesel: 89.1% pass rate across 46 tests. Petrol: 88.4% pass rate across 43 tests. Shares are of the tests on this vehicle that recorded each fuel type.
Does the season affect the 2017 Mercedes-Benz A MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 89.2% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 88.5%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.