Mercedes 230
Reliability, running costs, and MOT data across 3 years from 883 real MOT tests.
Avg Pass Rate
80%
Total Tests
883
Best Year
1990 (86%)
Years Covered
3
How reliable is the Mercedes 230?
Mercedes 230 by Year
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About the Mercedes 230
The Mercedes 230 has been tested 883 times in 2024 MOT data across 3 model years (1990 to 1992), with an average pass rate of 80%. That's close to the national average of 82%. Available as petrol.
Best and Worst Years
The 1990 model is the most reliable with a 86% pass rate from 274 tests. The 1992 model has the lowest at 75%. The 11 point spread between years means reliability varies somewhat, but no year is dramatically different.
Reliability Trend
Older MERCEDES 230s tend to have better MOT pass rates than newer ones, with an average decline of 10 percentage points across model years.
Mileage Across Years
The oldest model in our data (1990) averages 116,513 miles, while the newest (1992) averages 147,011 miles. Older models have covered serious mileage, so suspension and drivetrain wear are worth checking.
Compared to the Mercedes brand average of 87%, the 230 is 7 points lower, placing it among the less reliable Mercedes models.
Click any year in the table above to see detailed running costs, individual reliability data, and comparisons with similar cars.