In 2025, 139,657 Volkswagen Caddy cars had a regular MOT in Great Britain. 68% passed first time, compared with 70% for all cars of the same ages, which makes the Caddy about average. Most are commercial vans or pick-ups, which usually cover far higher mileages and harder work than private cars, so we leave them out of the car rankings.
That comparison matters: older cars fail more often, so a raw pass rate flatters models that are mostly young. We compare each model against every car on the road at the same age.
Pass rate by age
At 4 years old, 81% of Caddys passed first time (all cars that age: 87%). By 20 years, that figure is 58% (all cars: 58%). It is weaker than average when young but holds up better than most from around 17 years.
Volkswagen Caddy All cars of that age
| Age | Tests | Caddy passed first time | All cars | Typical mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 years | 963 | 81% | 87% | 36,826 |
| 5 years | 6,540 | 81% | 86% | 62,701 |
| 6 years | 10,487 | 79% | 84% | 72,669 |
| 7 years | 10,691 | 79% | 81% | 83,813 |
| 8 years | 11,564 | 72% | 78% | 90,566 |
| 9 years | 12,935 | 69% | 75% | 100,484 |
| 10 years | 11,768 | 67% | 72% | 106,286 |
| 11 years | 11,538 | 66% | 69% | 120,347 |
| 12 years | 11,962 | 64% | 66% | 127,677 |
| 13 years | 9,374 | 63% | 63% | 140,804 |
| 14 years | 11,444 | 62% | 61% | 139,731 |
| 15 years | 8,558 | 59% | 59% | 151,450 |
| 16 years | 6,298 | 60% | 58% | 153,820 |
| 17 years | 4,973 | 60% | 57% | 162,748 |
| 18 years | 3,999 | 59% | 57% | 160,472 |
| 19 years | 2,594 | 59% | 57% | 165,954 |
| 20 years | 1,738 | 58% | 58% | 170,504 |
What fails most on a Volkswagen Caddy
The area that lets the Caddy down most, relative to other cars, is suspension: 23.7% of tests failed on it, 1.8 times the rate for the average car. It does comparatively well on steering.
Share of Caddy tests failing on this area Average car
The six most common failure items
| Failure item | Area | Share of tests |
|---|---|---|
| A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn | Suspension | 12.6% |
| Windscreen washers not working or not providing sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen | Visibility | 4.3% |
| The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements | Lights and electrics | 4.2% |
| Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements | Tyres | 3.6% |
| A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc | Suspension | 3.6% |
| A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened | Suspension | 3.3% |
What to check when buying a used Caddy
Based on where the Caddy fails more often than other cars, these are the checks worth making before you buy:
- Suspension: Listen for knocks over speed bumps, look for leaking shock absorbers, and check the car sits level. Ask whether springs, bushes or drop links have been replaced. Repair guide
- Visibility: Check the windscreen for chips in the driver’s view, the wipers for smearing and the washers for working jets. Repair guide
- Body and structure: Get underneath with a torch: sills, jacking points, subframe mounts and floor pans. Structural rust is the failure that can make a car uneconomic to fix. Repair guide
Then check the individual car: its own MOT history will show whether it follows the pattern. A car with repeated advisories in the same weak area is more likely to fail its next test.
Check a specific Caddy
Enter the registration to see its full MOT history, mileage record and reliability score, compared with these figures.
Check a CaddyFrequently asked questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a Volkswagen Caddy?
In 2025, 68% of Volkswagen Caddy cars passed their MOT first time, across 139,657 tests. Cars of the same ages averaged 70%.
What do Volkswagen Caddy cars most often fail their MOT on?
The most common failure items were: a suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn (12.6% of tests); windscreen washers not working or not providing sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen (4.3% of tests); the aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements (4.2% of tests).
Other Volkswagen models
Volkswagen Golf (73%), Volkswagen Polo (66%), Volkswagen Transporter (66%), Volkswagen Tiguan (78%), Volkswagen Passat (71%), Volkswagen Up (79%). All Volkswagen models
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT tests and results, 2025 (class 4 normal tests; first-time pass means passed with no faults fixed at the test). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.