Ball joint excessively worn on the Mercedes-Benz S-Class
Ball joint excessively worn on the Mercedes-Benz S-Class is recorded on 7,215 tests — 8.8% of all its MOT tests, against 3.1% across every car in the data. That is 2.8× the national share.
Is this unusual for this model?
| Compared with | What it says |
|---|---|
| Every car in the data | 3.1% of tests record it — this model is 2.8× that share |
| The 358 models compared | 28 of 358, highest first |
| The model's own record | 81,982 tests · every year of the S-Class → |
A share of tests is not a probability for your car: it counts every Mercedes-Benz S-Class tested, whatever its mileage, service history and use. The like-for-like comparison on the model page is the fairer number.
Year by year
In 2000, 4.2% of this model's tests recorded it; in 2019, 1.2%. The share has fallen 3.0 points over that time. Worst year 2003 at 6.6%; best 2019 at 1.2%.
| Year | Failures recorded | Tests | Share of tests |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 110 | 2,649 | 4.2% |
| 2001 | 146 | 2,282 | 6.4% |
| 2002 | 152 | 2,600 | 5.8% |
| 2003 | 292 | 4,424 | 6.6% |
| 2004 | 283 | 6,363 | 4.5% |
| 2005 | 238 | 3,640 | 6.5% |
| 2006 | 328 | 10,428 | 3.1% |
| 2007 | 470 | 8,828 | 5.3% |
| 2008 | 357 | 6,658 | 5.4% |
| 2009 | 303 | 8,946 | 3.4% |
| 2010 | 279 | 8,742 | 3.2% |
| 2011 | 302 | 6,376 | 4.7% |
| 2012 | 438 | 12,561 | 3.5% |
| 2013 | 297 | 9,999 | 3.0% |
| 2014 | 391 | 10,536 | 3.7% |
| 2015 | 616 | 14,258 | 4.3% |
| 2016 | 868 | 26,502 | 3.3% |
| 2017 | 686 | 23,217 | 3.0% |
| 2018 | 389 | 22,167 | 1.8% |
| 2019 | 260 | 22,023 | 1.2% |
Years with fewer than 0.2% of tests recording the item are left out: a year with two failures in 400 tests is noise, and this table is not here to make noise look like a trend.
What it costs
A typical UK repair for this item is £18–£45 fitted. It is a job a careful owner can do at home. What the part is, and what to buy →
Prices are typical UK supply-and-fitting estimates, not quotes. What happens if it fails covers the retest rules.
Where this sits
- Ball joint excessively worn: every model, every year → — the item's own page, with the part guide.
- Mercedes-Benz S-Class MOT pass rate by year → — the model's whole record, and what else it fails on.
- Every Mercedes-Benz model →