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Volkswagen Karmen vs Volkswagen Passat: reliability comparison

MOT pass rates, common faults and mileage compared from real UK MOT data.

Volkswagen Karmen
77%
MOT pass rate · 6 vehicles
Volkswagen Passat
74%
MOT pass rate · 601,376 vehicles
Verdict: On MOT pass rate the Volkswagen Karmen (77%) and Volkswagen Passat (74%) are very close — weigh the individual measures below, and remember condition depends on age, mileage and upkeep.

Head to head

Measure Volkswagen Karmen Volkswagen Passat
MOT pass rate 77% ✓ 74%
MOT failure rate 23% ✓ 26%
Faults & advisories per test 1.6 ✓ 2.0
Dangerous-fault share 0% ✓ 2%
Average mileage 41,560 mi 147,486 mi
Sample size (vehicles) 6 601,376

Most common faults

Volkswagen Karmen

  1. Nearside rear parking brake recording little or no effort (3.7.B.6a)
  2. Windscreen washer provides insufficient washer liquid (8.2.3)
  3. Brake pedal spongy (3.3.B.1b)
  4. Nearside Rear Stop lamp not working (1.2.1b)
  5. Offside Front Headlamp excessively damaged so that the light output is severely reduced (1.7.5a)
  6. Nearside Rear wheel bearing has slight play (2.6.2)

Volkswagen Passat

  1. Nearside Front Tyre worn close to the legal limit (4.1.E.1)
  2. Offside Front Tyre worn close to the legal limit (4.1.E.1)
  3. Nearside Rear Tyre worn close to the legal limit (4.1.E.1)
  4. Offside Rear Tyre worn close to the legal limit (4.1.E.1)
  5. Under-trays fitted obscuring some underside components
  6. Offside Front Tyre worn close to legal limit/worn on edge (5.2.3 (e))

Reliability FAQ

On MOT pass rate the Volkswagen Karmen (77%) and Volkswagen Passat (74%) are very close — weigh the individual measures below, and remember condition depends on age, mileage and upkeep.

Full Volkswagen Karmen report Full Volkswagen Passat report Most reliable cars

Pass rates are computed over completed (pass/fail) MOT tests. Reliability also depends on age, mileage and upkeep — see each model's page for the full picture.