2012 Ford Transit MOT pass rate: 60.5% (45,001 tests)

2012-registered Ford Transits passed 60.5% of 45,001 MOT tests in 2023–2025 — 10.8 points worse than same-age cars (71.3%). This is one of the lower-scoring Transit years after correcting for vehicle age — inspect the individual car carefully.

60.5%Pass rate, 2012 cars

89.2Age-adjusted index (100 = average)

45,001Tests analysed

130,704 miMedian mileage at test

78.3% / 60.5%Petrol vs diesel pass rate

Is the 2012 Transit getting worse?

Pass rate of 2012-registered cars across recent test years:

Test year	Pass rate
2023	60.6% -11.7 vs same-age
2024	60.0% -11.0 vs same-age
2025	60.9% -9.4 vs same-age

The raw rate normally falls as cars age. The “vs same-age” figure compares this cohort with all UK cars registered in the same year, so normal ageing is not mistaken for a bad model year.

What fails on a 2012 Transit

#	System	Defects recorded	Share
1	Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment	25,795	33.0%
2	Suspension	16,526	21.1%
3	Brakes	12,972	16.6%
4	Body, chassis, structure	9,563	12.2%
5	Visibility	3,670	4.7%
6	Noise, emissions and leaks	3,528	4.5%

All Transit years compared

Registration year	Tests	Pass rate	Vs same-age	Median mileage
2001	3,912	65.7%	-0.9 pts	120,061
2002	5,841	65.1%	-0.6 pts	120,965
2003	6,922	62.0%	-3.0 pts	124,456
2004	6,537	63.6%	-0.7 pts	108,004
2005	9,121	62.9%	-1.6 pts	112,589
2006	16,807	64.3%	-0.1 pts	131,003
2007	28,793	63.2%	-1.9 pts	139,580
2008	36,032	60.9%	-4.2 pts	138,190
2009	32,380	59.7%	-6.7 pts	141,453
2010	46,121	58.4%	-9.0 pts	143,327
2011	54,957	59.1%	-10.1 pts	138,896
2012 (this page)	45,001	60.5%	-10.8 pts	130,704
2013	58,690	64.3%	-9.1 pts	122,672
2014	84,940	69.8%	-6.1 pts	115,909
2015	105,000	71.4%	-7.3 pts	106,987
2016	121,915	74.4%	-6.9 pts	95,416
2017	128,984	76.5%	-7.5 pts	85,548
2018	55,698	80.1%	-6.2 pts	76,417
2019	7,102	81.6%	-6.8 pts	59,964

Weighing up which year to buy? See the full ranking: Ford Transit years to avoid.

Buying a 2012 Transit? Two checks first

Free MOT history checkThe exact car’s failures, advisories and mileage trail — sellers can’t edit it
Topdon OBD2 scannersTopdon diagnostic scanners with full-system readouts
XTOOL diagnostic toolsXTOOL code readers for petrol and diesel cars
Autel UK testersAutel professional-grade diagnostic testers

FAQs

Is a 2012 Ford Transit reliable?

2012-registered examples passed 60.5% of their MOT tests (45,001 tests, 2023–2025), -10.8 points versus all UK cars registered in the same year. At roughly 14 years old with a median 130,704 miles, condition now varies car by car — always check the individual MOT history.

What mileage is too high for a 2012 Transit?

The median tested example shows 130,704 miles. Anything far beyond that isn't automatically bad — a motorway-mile car with consistent service records often beats a low-mileage school-run car — but price accordingly and scrutinise the mileage trail for gaps or drops.

Source: DVSA Anonymised MOT tests and results, 2023–2025 extracts (96 million Class 4 initial tests; retests excluded). Only vehicles old enough for a routine first MOT are included. Age-adjusted figures compare the model-year cohort with all vehicles of the same registration year tested in the same calendar year. Contains public sector information licensed under OGL v3.0.