The picture

CV Boot Failures Drive Golf MOT Worries

With over 1 million MOT tests on record, the Golf passes at 76.91% — solid, but not the worry-free ownership some expect. At an average of 90,846 miles, constant velocity joint boot deterioration tops the failure list, and snapped springs catch owners off guard too. Damper problems surface regularly in owner reports, with one 2014 Golf 2.0 TDI seeing a failed front damper alongside a second misting unit at the same inspection. If you're buying used, budget for suspension checks from around 80,000 miles and verify both CV boots are intact before signing anything.

Top ten reasons for rejection.

01

A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot severely deteriorated

37,659 occurrences · 3.5% of tests
02

Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view

36,473 occurrences · 3.4% of tests
03

A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened

31,221 occurrences · 2.9% of tests
04

Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements

28,262 occurrences · 2.7% of tests
05

A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources

23,849 occurrences · 2.2% of tests
06

A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc

19,487 occurrences · 1.8% of tests
07

Headlamp reflector or lens slightly defective

19,473 occurrences · 1.8% of tests
08

A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc

19,170 occurrences · 1.8% of tests
09

A tyre cords visible or damaged

18,375 occurrences · 1.7% of tests
10

a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm

18,296 occurrences · 1.7% 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 3 failures

£148–£370

If every one of this Golf'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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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

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

Item 02 · 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

Owner reports · Honest John

What owners actually report.

Verbatim faults logged by owners on honestjohn.co.uk over recent years. We didn't summarise — these are the words people typed in.

What's good

The Volkswagen Golf is the benchmark in the family hatchback class. Some rivals might be nicer to drive, cheaper, more practical or more exciting, but few, if any, match the Golf in terms of overall appeal.

Where it falls short

A tad dull, more expensive than mainstream rivals, too much choice?

Recent owner-reported faults

21 Apr 2017
Report that while a 2014 Golf 2.0 TDI 150 GT was in for warranty work on a door seal, one front damper was found to have failed and the other to be'misting'. Failed damper replaced under warranty.
14 Apr 2017
Another report of problems with the ACC on a Golf. In August 2016 just after setting off the car applied the brakes for no reason.
17 Mar 2017
Report of leaking rear damper in September 2013 Golf.
17 Mar 2017
Report of engine of new Volkswagen Golf Match 1.6TDI bought in January 2017 cutting out at 5-15mph. Rejected for this reason.
23 Jan 2017
Another report of ACC jamming on the brakes violently and independently for no reason, this time in a 2015 Golf 1.6 TDI Bluemotion. Owner booked it in to dealer who promptly told him they have no experience of this problem. He was driving on a single carriageway but with 2 lanes of traffic coming towards him the other way and the road bent to his left so that my ACC sensor will have been pointing towards the oncoming traffic. He surmised that my sensors detected traffic in the other carrieageways with a combined closing speed of around 100mph. The ACC performed an emergency stop.
23 Jan 2017
Report of 2016 Golf 1.6 TDI BlueMotion with 7-speed dry clutch DSG gearbox suffering loss of power when picking up from low revs such as on entering/leaving roundabouts. The car almost dies and the revs drop right away and then it picks up. This can be quite alarming as of course the car slows when other drivers expect it to pick up. The car has been into the supplying dealer on a half dozen occasions but they are unable to trace/find a fault. The reason is usually a sticking brake pedal switch failing to send a message to the ECU that the brakes are off, so the ECU assumes the brakes are on and cuts power until the switch unsticks.
15 Jan 2017
Report of electromechanical parking brakes of 2015 Volkswagen Golf 1.4 TSI manual initially refusing to release when parked facing upwards on a hill with a wall one foot behind its rear bumper. On 2nd and 3rd attempts car refused to budge. Owner checked doors were securely locked and safety device not employed. Tried a 4th time to drive forward but without success. On taking his foot off the accelerator the car rolled back and hit the wall behind it. On the next attempt the car was pulling against the brake and wouldn't move forward. On the last try the car pulled away completely normally but left with a damaged bumper and boot. Volkswagen dealer denied all knowledge of any fault.
30 Dec 2016
Another report of a 2013 Golf, this time a 1.4 TSI SE 7-speed dry clutch DSG, autonomously braking to a standstill for no apparent reason. The dealer applied a software update. However again, in October 2016, the car autonomoiusly braked and the car behind nearly hit it. Dealer now said it had a faulty electromechanical parking brake and replaced that. It's possible that this fault is confined to early production Golf models fitted with ACC.
5 Dec 2016
Report of steering rack failure on 2013 (three and a half year old) Golf. Discount given on replacement part, but a technical exppanation of why it failed was refused by the dealer.
21 Nov 2016
Problems with independently purchased 2014 Golf 1.6 105 BlueMotion diesel still under manufacturer warranty: 1) knocking noise from rear suspension 2) fault/intermittent lock on the fuel flap 3) recent struggle to start in cold conditions.
11 Nov 2016
Report of 40k mile 2013 Golf 1.6 TDI DSG failing to go into reverse. Volkswagen dealer initially wanted £4000 to replace DSG transmission, reduced to £3000 after £1000 contribution from Volkswagen.
5 Oct 2016
Report that electromechanical parking brake of 2016 Golf 1.6 TDI estate intermittently releases when clutch is depressed to start the engine allowing the car to roll forward or backward if parked on a hill. Dealer initially found no fault, but later fitted a new brake switch and a new CPU, but problem persists.

Source: honestjohn.co.uk · 30 reports indexed, top 12 shown

Buying or keeping a Golf?

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 Golf 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.