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1990 Mercedes-Benz 420 — MOT History by Age

How cars manufactured in 1990 perform at MOT as they age

36 years
Current Age
82.8%
Latest Pass Rate
176
Total Tests (All Years)
130,694 mi
Avg Mileage (Latest)

Data from official DVSA MOT testing records

Insufficient data for same-age comparison.

How This Car Ages

Pass rate progression for the 1990 Mercedes-Benz 420 as it ages.

27 yrs58.3%
30 yrs70.0%
31 yrs80.4%
34 yrs82.8%

Bar chart showing pass rate by car age from 27 to 34 years

Fail Rate %
📊 View as table
AgePass RateTests
27 yrs58.3%36
30 yrs70.0%30
31 yrs80.4%46
34 yrs82.8%64

Pass Rate Trend

How the 1990 Mercedes-Benz 420 pass rate changes as it ages, from first MOT to most recent.

Trend shows improving over 4 years

Pass Rate %
📊 View as table
BuiltPass RateTests
2024 (34 yrs)82.8%64
2021 (31 yrs)80.4%46
2020 (30 yrs)70%30
2017 (27 yrs)58.3%36

Year-by-Year MOT Results

2017High Fail Rate
58.3%
Age (yrs) 27Tests 36Avg Mileage 133,586Top Failure Suspension — 61.1%
2020
70.0%
Age (yrs) 30Tests 30Avg Mileage 127,200Top Failure Brakes — 63.3%
2021
80.4%
Age (yrs) 31Tests 46Avg Mileage 125,881Top Failure Body, chassis, structure — 23.9%
2024
82.8%
Age (yrs) 34Tests 64Avg Mileage 130,694Top Failure Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment — 35.9%

Common MOT Failures

Top failure categories across all test years for 1990 Mercedes-Benz 420, with age trends.

Brakes
45.7%
↓ Decreases with age
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment
38.0%
↓ Decreases with age
Suspension
33.8%
↓ Decreases with age
Exhaust, Fuel and Emissions
25.0%
— Consistent
Body, chassis, structure
20.4%
— Consistent

How Failures Change With Age

Comparing failure rates between the youngest and oldest test years.

CategoryAt YoungestAt OldestChangeTrend
Suspension61.1% (27 yrs)23.4% (34 yrs)
-37.7%
🟢 ↓
Brakes47.2% (27 yrs)26.6% (34 yrs)
-20.6%
🟢 ↓
Tyres11.1% (27 yrs)15.6% (34 yrs)
+4.5%
🔴 ↑

Other Manufacture Years

Looking for the best year to buy? See the full comparison on the Mercedes-Benz 420 page →

About This Data

This page shows how Mercedes-Benz 420 cars manufactured in 1990 perform at MOT as they age. Data spans from 2017 to 2024, covering 176 tests. Pass rates naturally decline with age as components wear.

Based on DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2005–2024). Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0.

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