The picture
500 L: middle-of-the-pack on first-time pass
Across 5,514 MOT tests, the 500 L returns 70.5% first-time pass — below the UK fleet average. The single most-logged Major fail is a broken or weak spring. Worn suspension bushes and a weak handbrake round out the top three. Average tested mileage sits at 70,584, which is the lens to read those failure rankings through. If you own one and the next test is close, the ranked list below is a sensible pre-test checklist.
Top ten reasons for rejection.
- 01
A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened
327 occurrences · 5.9% of tests
- 02
A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn
271 occurrences · 4.9% of tests
- 03
Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement
129 occurrences · 2.3% of tests
- 04
Stop lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning
119 occurrences · 2.2% of tests
- 05
Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
118 occurrences · 2.1% of tests
- 06
a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm
114 occurrences · 2.1% of tests
- 07
Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view
96 occurrences · 1.7% of tests
- 08
A tyre cords visible or damaged
95 occurrences · 1.7% of tests
- 09
Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover damaged or deteriorated
84 occurrences · 1.5% of tests
- 10
Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn
78 occurrences · 1.4% of tests
Counts cover Major and Dangerous defects logged at test. Advisory items excluded so this shows why a car was rejected, not just what the tester flagged in passing.
Worst-case fix budget · top 4 failures
£228–£610
If every one of this 500 L's most-logged Major fails hit at the same MOT, that's the real-world UK garage range. Reality is usually one or two items, not all of them. Open the estimator →
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Build your own retest budget.
Tools that pre-empt a retest.
Picked against this car's top failure patterns. Affiliate links to Amazon UK — we earn a small cut at no cost to you. Disclosed up-front, doesn't shape the data.
Item 01 · Amazon UK
H7 / W21W bulb pack
A spare-bulb kit lives in the boot. Test morning is not the time to find your stop-lamp's gone.
Search Amazon UK
Item 02 · Amazon UK
Digital tyre-tread depth gauge
Five quid for a gauge beats £150 for a retest. UK MOT minimum is 1.6mm — most testers fail anything below 2mm to be safe.
Search Amazon UK
Buying or keeping a 500 L?
Use the failure ranking as a pre-test checklist or a haggling lever. Treat the headline pass rate as a fleet-wide trend, not a guarantee on any individual car.
If you own a 500 L and your last MOT looked nothing like the ranked failures above, that's normal — individual cars vary widely. The ranking shows the patterns testers flag most often across the country.