Reliability is key to being successful in your business, so having the most reliable van is also important.
In this guide we'll look at the most reliable vans in the UK and look at which models you should be targeting if you're in need of replacing an unreliable van.
We'll analyse the data from more than 30 million MOT records to give you a comprehensive list of the best (and worst) vans to buy in the UK for their reliability.
If your van starts every day, and gets you to your job on time, then it's probably a reliable van, but reliability also means downtime and cost.
If you're van is having to go through the garage every few weeks to keep it in top health then it's probably not all that reliable after all. Likewise if you're having to spend £000s on it just to keep it on the road then maybe it's not the most reliable van.
But how can we measure reliability? Well, fortunatly, after three years every car and van in the UK are required to have an annual MOT certificate. Looking at more than 33 million MOT results gives us a pretty good view of how reliable a van is.
It's not fool proof, but chances are that if a van has reached three years old and the majority of them are flying through their MOTs then they're going to be pretty reliable.
For many van drivers, the annual MOT test can be a source of significant anxiety, with the potential for expensive repairs and valuable time off the road posing a real challenge. Relying on your vehicle for work adds an additional dimension and level of stress to the often dreaded MOT.
So, let's look at the most reliable vans and van manufacturers.
Looking at the data, Ford vans are the most reliable vans on UK roads.
That's something of a surprise, considering that they're also the most common vans. The Ford Transit Custom is the best-selling van in the country, so to see it as the most reliable van is also something of a surprise. A pleasant surprise.
Data from the extensive MOT database may offer some peace of mind if your van is one of the better models for reliability.
The full MOT test results taken since 2005 for the UK's most popular vans, shows that two Ford vans in particular are the best for MOT pass rates.
The Ford Transit Custom leads the pack with an impressive 83.98% pass rate but it is closely followed by the Ford Transit Courier at 80.10%.
The Fiat Ducato comes in third position with a 77.61% pass rate, closely followed by the Toyota Proace with a 77.52% pass rate.
Fifth place for the most reliable van in the UK goes to the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter with a 74.83% pass rate, with the Volkswagen Caddy fractionally behind with a 74.38% MOT pass rate.
However after that it begins to get a little more confusing because although the Mercedes-Benz Vito in ninth position is and has always been a Mercedes product, the Volkswagen Crafter in eighth was once a Sprinter but is now a solely Volkswagen-made van.
It's not possible to differentiate between which models the majority of these pass rates have come from, but needless to say both the Mercedes-made Crafter and the newer Volkswagen Crafter are both good reliable vans.
Unsurprisingly a pick-up truck, the indestructible Toyota Hilux also sneaks onto the list, joining the Volkswagen Crafter, Mercedes Vito, and Peugeot Partner in securing pass rates above 70%.
The van market has seen a lot of collaborations over the years. But there's also been a lot of chopping and changing of late, not least because of the Stellantis vans and their never-ending proliferation.
The Fiat Scudo is one such van that has chopped and changed over the years, also disappearing altogether to be briefly replaced by the Fiat Talento.
The Fiat Scudo registered the lowest pass rate among new vans, at 58.69%.
Surprisingly, it is followed closely behind by the Renault Kangoo, with a pass rate of 61.52%.
The Kangoo, however, has been one of those names that has been around forever. With the data spanning 20 years, there's a lot of models covered by the pass rate statistics, so saying all Kangoos are bad might be a touch unfair. It was also a popular passenger car model for many years, and although they were the same vans, passenger cars aren't always treated with the same reverence as a vehicle that has to earn someone money.
The Vauxhall Vivaro rounds out the top three worst vans, with the Made In Britain model notching up a 61.59% pass rate. Again, the Vivaro is another victim of the changing joint ventures in the van world, having been a Renault-made van for many years and then a Peugeot-Citroen/Stellantis product thereafter.
Other vans in the bottom ten for pass rates included the Renault Trafic, Vauxhall Combo, Citroën Dispatch, Ford Transit, Citroën Berlingo, Iveco Daily, and Peugeot Expert (which still manages to score more than 70%).
These figures, which include passes with rectification, underscore the varying levels of durability and maintenance demands across different van models.
While an MOT can be a stressful hurdle, having a vehicle that is statistically more likely to pass can certainly alleviate some of the worries, but more importantly it can keep you working and earning.
The most reliable small van is the Ford Transit Courier with an MOT pass rate of 80.1%.
The Transit Courier was introduced in 2014 as a new name in the range and has proven to be a reliable small van ever since. The first generation van was built on the Ford Fiesta platform, becoming a fleet favourite, while the newer second generation van shares its underpinning with the Ford Puma.
Both models are well thought after and have continued the trend as being the most reliable small van in the UK.
Second to the Transit Courier is the Volkswagen Caddy with a pass rate of 74.38%. The Caddy has always been a much-loved van, and has proven itself time after time as a reliable small van.
The most reliable medium van is the Ford Transit Custom with a pass rate of 83.98%, but not only is it the most reliable mid-sized van it's also the most reliable van on sale in the UK.
Medium vans are the lifeblood of the LCV sector, and the Transit Custom has been market leader since its launch, which makes its position as the most reliable medium van all the more impressive.
It's followed (not all that closely) by the Toyota Proace as the next most reliable medium van with an MOT pass rate of 77.52%. The Toyota Proace is made by Stellantis and shares the platform with the Peugeot Expert, Vauxhall Vivaro and Citroen Dispatch (amongst others), but Toyota's extended warranty and legendary servicing, aftercare and reliability have no doubt help ensure that their version of these identical vans rank higher.
The Fiat Ducato ranks as the most reliable large van with an MOT pass rate of 77.61%.
The Ducato is a favourite of the motorhome fraternity which is perhaps why it is more well-looked after than your average van.
Second place for the most reliable van goes to the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter with a pass rate of 74.83%, while its former sibling, and more bitter German rival, the Volkswagen Crafter has a 73.04% MOT pass rate. Both vans enjoy a mixed fleet and owner-driver following, but German quality perhaps beats the UK's most popular large van, the Ford Transit, which appears on the naughty list for least reliable vans models.
MOT pass rates are a great way of looking at the overall success of failings of individual models, but comparing vans to passenger cars is a little harder.
Although both have to have their first MOT after three years on the road, passenger cars tend to cover a lot fewer miles.
They're also not worked quite as hard, usually, and many are on finance agreements where servicing and maintenance are thrown in. That all works in favour of the cars for reliability.
However, a van is a working tool, and as such, van drivers tend to look after their kit. The last thing you want to do is to secure a tonne of work only to have your van break down and to be out of pocket. Van drivers may cover more miles and work their vehicles harder, but they also tend to look after them more (minus the odd dent or scratch).
Whether or not vans are more reliable than cars will depend upon the individual.
But... looking at the MOT averages the Honda Jazz, with a pass rate of 97% wipes the floor with the most reliable van the Ford Transit Custom.
Statistics can be misleading though, as the cars on the naughty list like the Peugeot 807 and Citroen C8 barely scrape a 50% pass rate.
For overall consistency, vans are more reliable than cars, though.
| Rank | Make | Model | MOT Pass Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ford | Transit Custom | 83.98% |
| 2 | Ford | Transit Courier | 80.10% |
| 3 | Fiat | Ducato | 77.61% |
| 4 | Toyota | Proace | 77.52% |
| 5 | Mercedes-Benz | Sprinter | 74.83% |
| 6 | Volkswagen | Caddy | 74.38% |
| 7 | Toyota | Hilux | 73.87% |
| 8 | Volkswagen | Crafter | 73.04% |
| 9 | Mercedes | Vito | 72.49% |
| 10 | Peugeot | Partner | 71.95% |
| Rank | Van Make | Van Model | Pass Rate |
| 1 | Fiat | Scudo | 58.69% |
| 2 | Renault | Kangoo | 61.52% |
| 3 | Vauxhall | Vivaro | 61.59% |
| 4 | Renault | Trafic | 62.70% |
| 5 | Vauxhall | Combo | 66.01% |
| 6 | Citroën | Dispatch | 66.87% |
| 7 | Ford | Transit | 68.48% |
| 8 | Citroën | Berlingo | 68.84% |
| 9 | Iveco | Daily | 69.36% |
| 10 | Peugeot | Expert | 70.08% |
