Volvo
4,028 MOT tests analysed. sits above the UK fleet average — here's where Xc90 R Design B5 Mhev Awd Autos pass, fail, and end up on the retest sheet.
That's 11.3 points above the UK fleet average across our 1,984 tracked models — a confident result.
Pass
88.8%
Pass-after-fix
1.9%
Fail
9.0%
Avg miles
34,961
Pass + Pass-after-fix + Fail = 100%
Electric and hydrogen vehicles are exempt from all UK clean air zone charges.
Performance by cohort
2 year bands · 4,028 tests
Pass rate drops 2.8 points across the cohorts — recent Xc90 R Design B5 Mhev Awd Auto examples are doing worse than the early cars at the same tested age.
Pass
90.9%
Fail
7.3%
PRS
1.6%
Avg mileage at test
38,930 mi
Pass
88.1%
Fail
9.6%
PRS
2.0%
Avg mileage at test
33,570 mi
Cohort = vehicle's first-registration year band. Same model, different generations of build.
The picture
Across 654 MOT tests, the Xc90 R-Design B5 Mhev Awd Auto returns 86.8% first-time pass — comfortably ahead of the UK fleet average. The single most-logged Major fail is a seriously damaged tyre. A tyre with the cords showing and brake pads worn below 1.5 mm round out the top three. Average tested mileage sits at 29,188, which is the lens to read those failure rankings through. If you own one and the next test is close, the ranked list below is a sensible pre-test checklist.
ABI Insurance Group
A high-group car — insurance costs will be significantly above average. Lower groups cost less to insure; UK fleet average is around Group 22.
Source: ABI Group Rating Panel · administered by Thatcham Research · groups cover standard variants; performance trims may sit higher. Browse all insurance groups →
38–48
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A tyre cords visible or damaged
123 occurrences · 3.1% of tests
A tyre seriously damaged
113 occurrences · 2.8% of tests
Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view
65 occurrences · 1.6% of tests
a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm
61 occurrences · 1.5% of tests
Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
57 occurrences · 1.4% of tests
Wiper blade defective
50 occurrences · 1.2% of tests
A tyre seriously damaged
17 occurrences · 0.4% of tests
Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen
15 occurrences · 0.4% of tests
A tyre seriously damaged
9 occurrences · 0.2% of tests
A lens defective which has no effect on emitted light
5 occurrences · 0.1% of tests
Counts cover Major and Dangerous defects logged at test. Advisory items excluded so this shows why a car was rejected, not just what the tester flagged in passing.
Worst-case fix budget · top 3 failures
£200–£350
If every one of this Xc90 R Design B5 Mhev Awd Auto's most-logged Major fails hit at the same MOT, that's the real-world UK garage range. Reality is usually one or two items, not all of them. Open the estimator →
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Build your own retest budget.
Year-band analysis
First-time MOT pass rate split by registration band. A 2.8-point gap between bands is modest — the year you buy Volvo Xc90 R Design B5 Mhev Awd Auto makes a small but real difference to MOT outcomes.
Best band to buy
90.9%
2018–2020 registration
the 2018–2020 band climbs to 90.9% — a 2.8-point improvement. Failures here are mostly wear items: less than 1.5 mm thick, damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view — the structural issues that drag down older examples don't appear in the top-10 for this band.
Band to be cautious about
88.1%
2021+ registration
On the 2021-on band, the data shows a 88.1% pass rate against a fleet average of 90.9% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: has ply or cords exposed, has a cut in excess of the…, and damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view. Average mileage on test for this band is 33,570 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme.
Best band to buy: 2018-2020 (90.9% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: 2021+ (88.1% pass). That's a 2.8-point spread across 2,984 older tests and 1,044 newer ones — year of build makes a material difference on this model.
Picked against this car's top failure patterns. Affiliate links to Amazon UK — we earn a small cut at no cost to you. Disclosed up-front, doesn't shape the data.
Item 01 · Amazon UK
Digital tyre-tread depth gauge
Five quid for a gauge beats £150 for a retest. UK MOT minimum is 1.6mm — most testers fail anything below 2mm to be safe.
Search Amazon UK
Item 02 · Amazon UK
Brake pad measurement gauge
Testers fail pads under 1.5mm. A wear gauge tells you if you've got two months left or two weeks.
Search Amazon UK
My Motor World · affiliate
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Owner reports · Honest John
Verbatim faults logged by owners on honestjohn.co.uk over recent years. We didn't summarise — these are the words people typed in.
Where it falls short
Owner reports (8 entries) flag recurring problems with battery/electrical, electrical faults, brake discs.
Report of Key Tag (Sport Key) of 22k mile 2018 Volvo XC90 T8 failing, owner thinks because of a flat battery. But it is a sealed unit so the battery cannot be changed and not covered by warranty so owner must pay £220 for a coded replacement. IRS Cuts Millions in Tax Debt Before April 30th Deadline As the tax relief deadline nears, thousands of Americans are rushing to resolve their tax debts before the IRS imposes hefty penalties.Fresh Start Information Learn More Ask a Pro: "I'm 65 With $1.1M In An IRA. What's My Retirement Budget?"This quiz matches nearly 50,000 people each month with vetted financial advisors.SmartAsset Learn More Top 5 Mouse Repellents for 2026 Expert Product Review Learn More Why AI Brings Speech Clarity That Old Hearing Aids Just Can’t Match Understand speech in noise effortlessly AudioNova What Plumbers Won’t Tell You: The Cheap Hack for Clear Drains Trending Deal Journal Stop Wasting Groceries: The Fridge Mistake Most Households Make Consumer Check Sponsored IRS Forgives Millions in Tax Debt Before May 15 Apply Now As the tax relief deadline nears, thousands of Americans are rushing to resolve their tax debts before the IRS imposes hefty penalties.Fresh Start Information [![Image 37: Find Senior Women Who Bring The Spark [See Who's Online]](https://images.outbrainimg.com/transform/v3/eyJpdSI6IjIwN2QxY2ZhOGRlODY3YzNmZjc0N2Y0NDgxODc0MzJiMGE4MDEzODg0ZTZiMDIwY2MzZWQyYWNmMjViMDRjZTEiLCJ3Ijo0MDAsImgiOjMwMCwiZCI6MS4wLCJjaCI6MjAzNzE1NzAwNSwiY3MiOjAsImYiOjR9.webp)Sponsored Find Senior Women Who Bring The Spark [See Who's Online] Read more It all starts with a message.amorelation.com](https://amorelation.com/land/sp/17f2ebbb?utm_source=Outbrain&utm_medium=ua&utm_campaign=OBN_Amorelation_USA_All_Native_EU2_NewU_aOBX25_WL-exclude2_Creo-t_Text-t_mua_20Apr&campaign_id=004aea76c4e6e4694169bd0cc89a5ab731&utm_content=Find+Senior+Women+Who+Bring+The+Spark+%5BSee+Who%27s+Online%5D&partner=outbrain_datingsmatch&OutbrainClickId={{ob_click_id}}&subid={{ob_click_id}}&ad_id=00cb476e93938ef6545123d4a0ca2f0577&publisher_name={{publisher_name}}§ion_name={{section_name}}&publisher_id={{publisher_id}}&ad_name={{ad_name}}&obOrigUrl=true) Sponsored Trouble Sleeping? Why You Shouldn’t Take Melatonin!Health Report Sponsored Black Mold Spots On Bathroom Caulk? Try This $25 Fix Before Scrubbing Consumer World Sponsored Top 5 Binoculars for 2026 Expert Product Review Learn More * Terms and Conditions * Privacy * Cookies * Advertise on this site * Contact * Mobile) Website of the Year 2016, 2017 & 2018
Report of initial 20 miles fully charged EV range of Volvo T8 PHEV 'TwinPower' disappearing when first starting the car. Engine simply starts. Car has done 127k miles.
Report of brakes of Volvo XC90 failing on the motorway 200 miles after purchase. "No braking power between 60mph and 40mph no matter how hard I pressed the pedal." Volvo examined the car and found a part was not put in place during assembly.
Report of numerous problems with 2015 Volvo XC90 T8. In three years it has had two complete software failures leading to no power.
Complaint from owner that even when fully charged his Volvo XC90 T8 will not run for more than a few miles in EV mode without the petrol engine cutting in. A new 12v battery was tried in case there was a fault with the engine start/stop, but that made no difference.
Significant electrical/electronic problems reported with November 2016 Volvo XC90. Recurrent issues with low charge 12V battery which resulted in complete electrical failure within the first 4 months from purchase. Volvo UK had the car uplifted back to the Volvo dealer in April 2017 with the subsequent battery change and software upgrade seeming to have sorted the original problem.
Report of numerous annoying problems with leased Volvo XC90 T8. Within 24 hours of pick up it needed its main ECU replacing (gone for a week and half) and since then the heated seat on the drivers side doesn't work (2 visits, still no fix) and the nav / radio unit liked to reboot itself (2 visits, now fixed, fingers crossed). Since the last visit the driver's window started running slowly and the collision warning sensor likes to go off a lot more frequently than before.
Complaint of multiple software problems on Volvo XC90 "Like most other owners, I'm having lots of ongoing software problems with my car. Many of the functions for which I bought this car don't work at all, or work for a while after a software update and then fail again. Ongoing software issues are "resolved" by a latest software update which in most cases fixes the glitch temporarily but often has knock on effects to other software functions.
Source: honestjohn.co.uk · 8 reports indexed
Use the failure ranking as a pre-test checklist or a haggling lever. Treat the headline pass rate as a fleet-wide trend, not a guarantee on any individual car.
If you own a Xc90 R Design B5 Mhev Awd Auto and your last MOT looked nothing like the ranked failures above, that's normal — individual cars vary widely. The ranking shows the patterns testers flag most often across the country.
