Pass rate
89.4%
Above average — 1.3 pts behind the 90.7% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 2,697 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £40–£101
2020 SEAT Alhambra MOT pass rate
- 2020
- typical 34,113 mi
Most common fault
Tyres
37.5% of faults · 19.8% nationally
mostly tread below the limit, cuts and sidewall bulges.
Part only £55–£85 for Tread depth below 1.6 mm. What fitting it takes →
1.7 pts up across model years — 7.6% in 2004, 9.3% in 2020.
Which year to buy
- Best 2020 89.4% pass · this year
- Avoid 2003 65.8% pass
Across the 21 years on record, a spread of 23.6 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 88.3%
- Typical mileage
- 34k mi
The 2020 SEAT Alhambra MOT pass rate is 89.4% of its MOT tests — 1.3 points behind what its age and mileage predict. Tyres is the biggest single reason it fails, at 37.5% of what testers record.
Check your postcode
MOT pass rates are national — type your postcode to see how SEAT Alhambra does in your corner of the country.
Expert verdict
Tyres: 1.9× the national share
Tyres make up 37.5% of everything recorded on the 2020 SEAT Alhambra, against 19.8% nationally — 17.7 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 13% 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.
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 SEAT Alhambra? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2020 SEAT Alhambra compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 90.7%, so this figure is 1.3 points behind what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 88.3%. The median 2020 SEAT Alhambra in this dataset had covered 34,113 mi.
89% of the tests on this vehicle ran on Diesel, which passed 89.2% of the time. Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 89.0% of the time, April–September 89.9%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords", noted on 2.15% of tests.
- 2,697 recorded tests behind this page.
- 89.4% overall pass rate, 88.3% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the SEAT Alhambra, the average is 82.0% — best year 2020 (89.4%), worst 2003 (65.8%).
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
- 2,697
- Typical mileage (median)
- 34,113 mi
- Make and model
- SEAT Alhambra
- Updated
- 2026-11-05
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Tyres
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the Alhambra MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 73% so small gaps stay visible.
Fuel type and reliability
Pass rate by fuel type. Diesel is the most common here (89% of tests).
Regional pass rates for the Alhambra
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 633 | 88.9% |
| East of England | 347 | 90.8% |
| North West | 322 | 91.3% |
| South West | 305 | 86.2% |
| West Midlands | 225 | 90.7% |
| Scotland | 207 | 85.5% |
| Yorkshire | 178 | 91.0% |
| East Midlands | 169 | 88.8% |
| North East | 118 | 89.0% |
| Wales | 114 | 92.1% |
| London | 79 | 93.7% |
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 2020 Alhambra
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 2020 Alhambra
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 1.3% of tests
“pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn”
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 windscreen 1.3% of tests
“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.
-
Check the wipers and washers 0.8% of tests
“wipers blade defective”
Run the wipers with the screen wet: they should clear it in one sweep without smearing or juddering. Top the washer bottle up and check both jets hit the screen.
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 2020 Alhambra through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £40–£101 — and 13% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £40–£101
- Cheapest common item: wipers blade defective
- £8–£22
- Dearest common item: windscreen damaged
- £80–£200
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 60%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 13%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 2,697 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 Alhambra, side by side
21 model years on record, from 2000 to 2020. Across them the pass rate runs from 65.8% to 89.4% — a spread of 23.6 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2000 73.8% component mounting prescribed…
- 2001 69.5% component mounting prescribed…
- 2002 66.5% component mounting prescribed…
- 2003 65.8% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2004 66.6% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2005 68.2% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2006 67.7% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2007 66.3% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2008 67.7% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2009 66.9% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2010 72.5% pins and bushes pin or bush…
- 2011 76.6% pins and bushes pin or bush…
- 2012 76.9% pins and bushes pin or bush…
- 2013 78.2% pins and bushes pin or bush…
- 2014 80.3% pins and bushes pin or bush…
- 2015 82.2% pins and bushes pin or bush…
- 2016 84.7% pins and bushes pin or bush…
- 2017 86.3% pins and bushes pin or bush…
- 2018 87.8% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2019 88.4% has a cut in excess of the…
- 2020 89.4%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 2020 SEAT Alhambra 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 2020 cars with a similar record
- Volkswagen Amarok 89.4%
- Renault Zoe I Iconc 89.4%
- Renault Kadjar 89.5%
- Dacia Sandero 89.5%
- Dacia Duster 89.5%
- BMW 3 Series 89.3%
Closest pass rates among 2020 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 2020 SEAT Alhambra 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 2,379 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 | 898 | 37.50% | 19.76% | +17.74 |
| Brakes | 592 | 24.70% | 20.89% | +3.81 |
| Non-component advisories | 281 | 11.70% | 4.18% | +7.52 |
| Suspension | 269 | 11.20% | 20.98% | −9.78 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 126 | 5.30% | 12.21% | −6.91 |
| Visibility | 98 | 4.10% | 4.97% | −0.87 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 42 | 1.80% | 1.76% | +0.04 |
| Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | 37 | 1.50% | 0.82% | +0.68 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 21 | 0.90% | 5.52% | −4.62 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 15 | 0.60% | 5.57% | −4.97 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Tyres | Major | 2.1% | £45–95 |
| Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn Suspension | Major | 1.3% | £40–150 |
| Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view Visibility | Minor | 1.3% | £80–200 |
| Has ply or cords exposed Tyres | Major | 1.1% | £45–95 |
| Wipers blade defective Visibility | Minor | 0.85% | £8–22 |
| Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | Major | 0.82% | £18–45 |
| Headlamp aim too low Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Rectified | 0.70% | £30–80 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Major | 0.67% | £45–95 |
| Headlamp aim too high Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Rectified | 0.48% | £30–80 |
| Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively Visibility | Rectified | 0.41% | £8–22 |
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 | 18.0% | £45–95 |
| Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | Advisory | 9.2% | £18–45 |
| Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn Suspension | Advisory | 7.8% | £40–150 |
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 6.6% | £45–110 |
| Non-component advisories Nail in tyre Non-component advisories | Advisory | 4.4% | £45–95 |
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 3.8% | £45–95 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 1,142 | 92.8% | 18,999 mi |
| 30-60k | 1,092 | 86.4% | 42,198 mi |
| 60-90k | 339 | 88.2% | 71,298 mi |
| 90-120k | 82 | 91.5% | 102,725 mi |
| 120k+ | 42 | 81.0% | 147,542 mi |
Source: 2,697 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.
2020 Alhambra MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2020 SEAT Alhambra?
89.4% of the 2,697 2020 SEAT Alhambra tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 90.7% for cars first used in 2020. First-attempt pass rate: 88.3%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2020 SEAT Alhambra?
The three most recorded items are has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords (2.15%), pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn (1.30%), windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view (1.30%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2020 SEAT Alhambra MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 92.8% of the time, falling to 81.0% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2020 SEAT Alhambra in this dataset had covered 34,113 mi.
Which fuel type is most reliable for a 2020 SEAT Alhambra?
Diesel: 89.2% pass rate across 2,392 tests. Petrol: 91.5% pass rate across 305 tests. Shares are of the tests on this vehicle that recorded each fuel type.
Does the season affect the 2020 SEAT Alhambra MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 89.0% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 89.9%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.