Skoda Fabia 2013: reliability & common MOT faults
Elevated MOT failure patterns for the 2013 Skoda Fabia include Service brake imbalance (rear) (~4.8× peers) and Parking brake control — Lever (~4.3× peers). Based on UK DVSA open data for test year 2025 (5,276 failed first-attempt tests), compared with similar age and mileage peers. Available test years: 2024, 2025.
Common faults
These are MOT failure patterns that show up more often on this registration year than on similar cars of the same class, age band, and mileage in the same test year (leave-one-out peer comparison; whole model family excluded).
Statistical patterns from MOT defect codes — not manufacturer TSBs, recalls, or a diagnosis of any individual car. Fail and advisory patterns are kept separate.
Based on 5,276 failed first-attempt tests in test year 2025.
Service brake imbalance (rear)
This failure pattern appears about 4.8× more often than on similar peer cars — recorded on 164 failed first-attempt tests; 3.1% of failed tests for this model year.
Rear · 164 failures · ×4.8 vs similar cars · 3.1% of failed first tests · Likely common fault pattern
Parking brake control — Lever
This failure pattern appears about 4.3× more often than on similar peer cars — recorded on 162 failed first-attempt tests; 3.1% of failed tests for this model year.
Any · 162 failures · ×4.3 vs similar cars · 3.1% of failed first tests · Likely common fault pattern
No patterns met the strongest callout thresholds on this page; showing the highest-lift rows that still cleared the display floors.
| # | Fault pattern | Location | Failures | vs similar cars | Share of fails | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Service brake imbalance (rear)
Brakes > Brake performance > Service Brake Efficiency (sp) > Rbt (sp) > Service brake imbalance
|
Rear | 164 | ×4.8 | 3.1% | Likely common fault pattern |
| 2 |
Parking brake control — Lever
Brakes > Parking brake control > Lever
|
Any | 162 | ×4.3 | 3.1% | Likely common fault pattern |
| 3 |
Pins and bushes (front)
Suspension > Suspension arms > Pins and bushes
|
Front | 681 | ×2.8 | 12.9% | Possible elevated fault |
| 4 |
Service brake performance (rear)
Brakes > Brake performance > Service brake performance > Rbt > Service brake performance
|
Rear | 320 | ×2.7 | 6.1% | Possible elevated fault |
| 5 |
Exhaust system
Body, chassis, structure > Exhaust system
|
Any | 231 | ×2.5 | 4.4% | Possible elevated fault |
Only patterns that clear minimum sample and elevation thresholds are shown (at least 20 failures and 2.0× peer lift).
Wear patterns
These patterns look like wear or usage effects rather than model-specific design faults. Tyres, brake friction material, and alignment-related defects often track mileage and road use. They are not treated as a model design fault in our common-faults ranking.
| # | Pattern | Location | Failures | vs similar cars | Share of fails | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Tyres — Size/type (rear)
Tyres > Size/type
|
Rear | 20 | ×2.2 | 0.4% | Wear / usage pattern — not treated as a model design fault |
Advisories
Advisory items recorded on failed first-attempt tests that appear elevated versus peers. Advisories are not a fail rate — they flag issues noted at the test, often before they become failures.
| # | Advisory pattern | Location | Notes | vs similar cars | Share | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Pipes and hoses (front)
Steering > Power steering > Pipes and hoses
|
Front | 32 | ×10.0 | 0.6% | Elevated vs peers |
| 2 |
Pipes and hoses
Steering > Power steering > Pipes and hoses
|
Any | 41 | ×6.4 | 0.8% | Elevated vs peers |
| 3 |
Ball joint (front)
Steering > Steering linkage components > Ball joint
|
Front | 22 | ×4.4 | 0.4% | Possible elevated fault |
| 4 |
Service brake imbalance (rear)
Brakes > Brake performance > Service brake performance > Rbt > Service brake imbalance
|
Rear | 42 | ×3.0 | 0.8% | Likely common fault pattern |
| 5 |
Side repeaters
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment > Direction indicators > Flashing type > Side repeaters
|
Any | 21 | ×2.6 | 0.4% | Elevated vs peers |
| 6 |
Non-component advisories (front)
Non-component advisories
|
Front | 307 | ×2.4 | 5.8% | Elevated vs peers |
| 7 |
Steering rack
Steering > Steering play > Steering rack
|
Any | 24 | ×2.4 | 0.5% | Elevated vs peers |
| 8 |
Service brake performance (rear)
Brakes > Brake performance > Service brake performance > Rbt > Service brake performance
|
Rear | 257 | ×2.2 | 4.9% | Possible elevated fault |
FAQs
About this data
Universe. UK class 4 cars only; normal MOT tests (not retests); results pass, PRS, or fail; one first test per vehicle per calendar year.
PRS policy. PRS means the vehicle failed items that were fixed at the test station and then passed the same day. We count PRS as a first-attempt fail in headline rates so same-day repairs do not hide problems.
Peer baseline. We compare this model year with other class 4 cars of similar age and mileage in the same test year, excluding the whole model family so the car is not compared with itself (leave-one-out peer baseline).
Data years. Test years covered: 2024, 2025.
Limitations.
- MOT tests do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronic modules — so this is not a full reliability score.
- Common faults are inferred from MOT defect statistics, not manufacturer TSBs or recalls.
- Matching on age and mileage reduces but does not remove every usage or maintenance difference between cars.
- Pass rates and star scores appear only when those data marts are available; this page never invents them.
Display rules config: 1
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.