Car statistics
Mercedes-Benz car statistics
How many Mercedes-Benz cars are on the road in Great Britain, every Mercedes-Benz model, its share of new cars over time and which fuels they use, how they do at the MOT and their safety recalls. Built from DVLA licensing records and DVSA MOT results.
- Licensed in Great Britain 1,732,633 +1.0% on a year earlier
- Rank among makes No. 7 5.2% of licensed cars
- MOT first-time pass rate, 2025 77.8% Cars of the same ages 74.3%
- New registrations in 2025 90,233 4.5% of all new cars
- Most common fuel Diesel 49.5% of those licensed
- Safety recalls since 1992 577 naming 35 Mercedes-Benz models
How many Mercedes-Benz cars are on the road?
There were 1,732,633 Mercedes-Benz cars licensed in Great Britain at the end of March 2026, and a further 211,713 declared off the road (SORN). That is 5.2% of all licensed cars, or about 1 in 19, making Mercedes-Benz the No. 7 make on the road. That is the most on the road at any year end since 1994. Petrol makes up 31.1% of licensed Mercedes-Benz cars, against 54.6% of all cars.
Mercedes-Benz cars licensed in Great Britain
Numbers are still rising: the latest count is the highest in this series.
| Year | Licensed |
|---|---|
| 1994 | 248,384 |
| 1995 | 265,322 |
| 1996 | 292,365 |
| 1997 | 324,381 |
| 1998 | 369,038 |
| 1999 | 427,372 |
| 2000 | 481,761 |
| 2001 | 546,916 |
| 2002 | 612,873 |
| 2003 | 685,499 |
| 2004 | 744,842 |
| 2005 | 796,292 |
| 2006 | 838,502 |
| 2007 | 878,461 |
| 2008 | 907,450 |
| 2009 | 938,966 |
| 2010 | 960,555 |
| 2011 | 983,732 |
| 2012 | 1,012,997 |
| 2013 | 1,062,858 |
| 2014 | 1,118,996 |
| 2015 | 1,200,386 |
| 2016 | 1,307,620 |
| 2017 | 1,396,909 |
| 2018 | 1,485,077 |
| 2019 | 1,568,736 |
| 2020 | 1,602,182 |
| 2021 | 1,640,017 |
| 2022 | 1,662,771 |
| 2023 | 1,674,418 |
| 2024 | 1,705,609 |
| 2025 | 1,727,145 |
| 2026 | 1,732,633 |
Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 2026 Updated
Fuel type
Mercedes-Benz cars
All cars in Great Britain
Source:DfT / DVLA End of March 2026 Updated
Mercedes-Benz models
44 Mercedes-Benz models have a page of their own. The most common is the Mercedes-Benz A-Class, with 378,826 licensed: 21.9% of all Mercedes-Benz cars on the road. Over the last year the CLA-Class added the most cars on the road (+13,902, +14.1%) and the C-Class lost the most (−15,371, −4.5%). The totals above also count models too small for a page of their own.
| Model | Licensed | Change on a year | SORN | Main fuel | MOT pass rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A-Class | 378,826 | +0.7% | 13,892 | Diesel | 78.3% |
| C-Class | 326,200 | −4.5% | 46,533 | Diesel | 74.6% |
| E-Class | 203,182 | −4.2% | 40,576 | Diesel | 77.4% |
| CLA-Class | 112,497 | +14.1% | 2,288 | Petrol | 80.6% |
| GLA-Class | 111,741 | +7.3% | 1,748 | Diesel | 83.2% |
| GLC-Class | 98,120 | +8.3% | 2,238 | Diesel | 86.3% |
| B-Class | 66,773 | −3.7% | 3,133 | Diesel | 72.6% |
| AMG-Class | 53,614 | +6.6% | 2,918 | Petrol | – |
| SLK-Class | 45,346 | −5.2% | 12,744 | Petrol | 71.9% |
| GLE-Class | 38,324 | +3.6% | 1,428 | Diesel | 87.1% |
| EQA-Class | 35,449 | +20.0% | 167 | Electric | 89.6% |
| ML-Class | 24,829 | −10.8% | 11,471 | Diesel | 72.2% |
| GLB-Class | 23,447 | +12.6% | 632 | Petrol | 89.9% |
| EQB-Class | 22,096 | +31.6% | 93 | Electric | 85.1% |
| S-Class | 21,787 | −4.3% | 8,621 | Diesel | 83.6% |
| CLS-Class | 19,639 | −6.5% | 4,449 | Diesel | 74.6% |
| CLK-Class | 18,679 | −13.6% | 11,385 | Petrol | 63.1% |
| EQC-Class | 17,787 | −5.1% | 295 | Electric | 83.6% |
| V-Class | 14,267 | +8.1% | 1,237 | Diesel | 81.1% |
| SL-Class | 13,868 | −3.6% | 7,494 | Petrol | 82.9% |
| Vito | 13,195 | +6.6% | 1,092 | Diesel | – |
| CLC-Class | 8,412 | −10.3% | 1,041 | Petrol | 55.8% |
| SLC-Class | 7,843 | −0.4% | 232 | Petrol | 85.1% |
| EQE-Class | 7,641 | +37.4% | 81 | Electric | – |
| 200 | 5,737 | +2.0% | 6,906 | Petrol | – |
| 300 | 3,943 | −2.3% | 7,124 | Petrol | – |
| Viano | 3,911 | −8.1% | 1,136 | Diesel | 65.6% |
| CLE-Class | 3,491 | +80.4% | 35 | Hybrid | – |
| GLS-Class | 3,412 | +5.0% | 238 | Diesel | 86.4% |
| G-Class | 2,878 | +31.7% | 451 | Diesel | 87.2% |
| GL-Class | 2,758 | −7.5% | 781 | Diesel | 81.9% |
| 190 | 2,079 | −1.4% | 5,050 | Petrol | 72.2% |
| EQS-Class | 2,044 | +17.3% | 69 | Electric | – |
| CL-Class | 2,003 | −6.8% | 1,786 | Petrol | 78.9% |
| Sprinter | 1,871 | +7.8% | 121 | Diesel | – |
| R-Class | 1,366 | −14.8% | 667 | Diesel | 72.3% |
| 500 | 1,204 | +2.7% | 2,807 | Petrol | – |
| EQV-Class | 925 | +10.1% | 40 | Electric | 87.4% |
| Citan | 886 | −3.6% | 150 | Diesel | – |
| 400 | 830 | +1.2% | 1,306 | Petrol | – |
| Vaneo | 231 | −22.0% | 304 | Petrol | – |
| SLS-Class | 198 | −9.6% | 200 | Petrol | – |
| AMG GT | 180 | +176.9% | 3 | Petrol | – |
| Coleman Milne | 154 | +54.0% | 0 | Hybrid | – |
MOT pass rates are first-time passes of cars aged three and over in 2025. A dash means too few tests, or a model DVSA’s records do not separate from vans.
New Mercedes-Benz cars registered each year
Registrations of new Mercedes-Benz cars in Great Britain peaked at 179,728 in 2017. In 2025, 90,233 were registered for the first time: 4.5% of all new cars, against 7.4% in 2019, Mercedes-Benz’s best year for share of new cars.
Registered for the first time, by year
| Year | First registrations |
|---|---|
| ’01 | 84,863 |
| ’02 | 88,588 |
| ’03 | 97,543 |
| ’04 | 82,719 |
| ’05 | 82,164 |
| ’06 | 80,836 |
| ’07 | 81,409 |
| ’08 | 74,275 |
| ’09 | 72,720 |
| ’10 | 74,989 |
| ’11 | 80,752 |
| ’12 | 90,760 |
| ’13 | 108,339 |
| ’14 | 123,461 |
| ’15 | 144,447 |
| ’16 | 169,010 |
| ’17 | 179,728 |
| ’18 | 171,502 |
| ’19 | 170,897 |
| ’20 | 110,333 |
| ’21 | 97,780 |
| ’22 | 80,606 |
| ’23 | 88,149 |
| ’24 | 103,299 |
| ’25 | 90,233 |
Source:DfT / DVLA 2001 to 2025 Updated
Share of all new cars
Mercedes-Benz’s first registrations as a share of every car registered for the first time in Great Britain that year.
| Year | Share of new cars |
|---|---|
| 2001 | 3.3% |
| 2002 | 3.3% |
| 2003 | 3.7% |
| 2004 | 3.2% |
| 2005 | 3.4% |
| 2006 | 3.5% |
| 2007 | 3.4% |
| 2008 | 3.5% |
| 2009 | 3.7% |
| 2010 | 3.8% |
| 2011 | 4.2% |
| 2012 | 4.5% |
| 2013 | 4.9% |
| 2014 | 5.1% |
| 2015 | 5.6% |
| 2016 | 6.3% |
| 2017 | 7.2% |
| 2018 | 7.3% |
| 2019 | 7.4% |
| 2020 | 6.8% |
| 2021 | 6.0% |
| 2022 | 5.0% |
| 2023 | 4.6% |
| 2024 | 5.3% |
| 2025 | 4.5% |
Source:DfT / DVLA 2001 to 2025 Updated
Mercedes-Benz MOT reliability
In 2025, 77.8% of MOT tests of Mercedes-Benz cars were passed first time, from 1,576,897 tests. Cars of the same ages pass 74.3% of the time, so Mercedes-Benz does better than average for the age of its cars, by 3.5 points. That ranks Mercedes-Benz No. 18 of the 50 makes with enough tests to compare. 7.3% of Mercedes-Benz tests found at least one dangerous defect, against 7.3% for all cars.
Among Mercedes-Benz models with enough tests, the SL-Class does best for its age (+19.0 points against cars of the same ages) and the EQC-Class does worst (−4.8 points). Average age at test for Mercedes-Benz cars: 10.1 years.
| Model | Tests | Pass rate | Same ages | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SL-Class | 20,771 | 82.9% | 63.9% | +19.0 pts |
| CL-Class | 2,865 | 78.9% | 60.8% | +18.1 pts |
| GL-Class | 3,455 | 81.9% | 66.8% | +15.1 pts |
| S-Class | 25,742 | 83.6% | 71.4% | +12.2 pts |
| 190 | 2,521 | 72.2% | 61.0% | +11.2 pts |
| R-Class | 1,766 | 72.3% | 61.2% | +11.1 pts |
| SLK-Class | 54,180 | 71.9% | 63.3% | +8.6 pts |
| ML-Class | 29,251 | 72.2% | 63.7% | +8.5 pts |
| G-Class | 3,527 | 87.2% | 80.3% | +6.9 pts |
| SLC-Class | 8,983 | 85.1% | 78.9% | +6.2 pts |
| CLS-Class | 22,322 | 74.6% | 68.5% | +6.1 pts |
| E-Class | 230,117 | 77.4% | 72.3% | +5.1 pts |
| GLE-Class | 33,118 | 87.1% | 82.6% | +4.5 pts |
| GLS-Class | 3,025 | 86.4% | 82.6% | +3.8 pts |
| GLC-Class | 83,770 | 86.3% | 82.6% | +3.7 pts |
| C-Class | 358,848 | 74.6% | 71.0% | +3.6 pts |
| CLK-Class | 25,047 | 63.1% | 59.6% | +3.5 pts |
| Viano | 5,004 | 65.6% | 62.3% | +3.3 pts |
| B-Class | 71,047 | 72.6% | 70.3% | +2.3 pts |
| GLA-Class | 91,110 | 83.2% | 81.1% | +2.1 pts |
| GLB-Class | 11,929 | 89.9% | 88.4% | +1.5 pts |
| V-Class | 12,964 | 81.1% | 80.1% | +1.0 pts |
| EQA-Class | 9,595 | 89.6% | 88.6% | +1.0 pts |
| A-Class | 363,355 | 78.3% | 77.5% | +0.8 pts |
| CLA-Class | 74,291 | 80.6% | 81.4% | −0.8 pts |
| EQV-Class | 1,121 | 87.4% | 88.3% | −0.9 pts |
| CLC-Class | 7,985 | 55.8% | 58.7% | −2.9 pts |
| EQB-Class | 2,725 | 85.1% | 89.4% | −4.3 pts |
| EQC-Class | 12,500 | 83.6% | 88.4% | −4.8 pts |
Every make and model ranked by MOT pass rate
Source:DVSA,UK Motoring analysis 2025 Updated
Mercedes-Benz safety recalls
DVSA lists 577 safety recalls naming a Mercedes-Benz car model since 1992, across 35 models. 459 were launched from 2016 to 2025, ranking Mercedes-Benz No. 1 of the makes with recalls in those years. A recall naming several Mercedes-Benz models counts once.
Recalls launched each year, 2006 to 2025
| Year | Recalls |
|---|---|
| ’06 | 9 |
| ’07 | 4 |
| ’08 | 9 |
| ’09 | 5 |
| ’10 | 7 |
| ’11 | 7 |
| ’12 | 10 |
| ’13 | 9 |
| ’14 | 4 |
| ’15 | 21 |
| ’16 | 28 |
| ’17 | 34 |
| ’18 | 44 |
| ’19 | 60 |
| ’20 | 60 |
| ’21 | 67 |
| ’22 | 73 |
| ’23 | 46 |
| ’24 | 29 |
| ’25 | 18 |
Source:DVSA,UK Motoring analysis January 1992 to September 2026 Updated
Models with the most recalls
| Model | Recalls |
|---|---|
| Mercedes-Benz C-Class | 153 |
| Mercedes-Benz E-Class | 139 |
| Mercedes-Benz A-Class | 92 |
| Mercedes-Benz S-Class | 89 |
| Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class | 73 |
| Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class | 70 |
| Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class | 66 |
| Mercedes-Benz B-Class | 47 |
| Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class | 45 |
| Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class | 45 |
Source:DVSA,UK Motoring analysis January 1992 to September 2026 Updated
Latest Mercedes-Benz recalls
- 14 Sept 2026 Installation of the Heat Shield Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class
- 25 Aug 2026 Electric drive unit power electronics Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class, Mercedes-Benz GLB-Class
- 23 Jun 2026 Coolant pump control software Mercedes-Benz E-Class
- 19 Jun 2026 SRPC2607 – Rear Seat Belt Bolting Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class
- 11 Jun 2026 SRPC2604 – Windshield bonding Mercedes-Benz S-Class
Models mostly registered as vans are left out, as on our recalls hub. A recall applies to vehicles built on particular dates or with particular VINs, not to every Mercedes-Benz. To check a specific car, use GOV.UK’s vehicle recall check. How we match recalls to models.
Source:DVSA,UK Motoring analysis January 1992 to September 2026 Updated
Makes of a similar size
| Rank | Make | Licensed | Change on a year | Main fuel | MOT vs same ages |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | BMW | 2,049,837 | +1.3% | Diesel | +5.6 pts |
| 5 | Audi | 1,982,111 | +1.7% | Petrol | +4.7 pts |
| 6 | Toyota | 1,777,976 | +2.0% | Petrol | +2.8 pts |
| 7 | Mercedes-Benz | 1,732,633 | +1.0% | Diesel | +3.5 pts |
| 8 | Nissan | 1,707,327 | +1.0% | Petrol | −4.3 pts |
| 9 | Kia | 1,278,733 | +6.3% | Petrol | −1.4 pts |
| 10 | Peugeot | 1,230,416 | −0.7% | Petrol | −5.2 pts |
Data sources and methodology
| Figures | Source | Period | Records | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Licensed and SORN counts | Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport | End of March 2026 | 37,339,879 car records (licensed and SORN) | 15 September 2026 |
| Registered for the first time | Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport | 2001 to 2025 | – | 15 September 2026 |
| MOT results | Anonymised MOT tests and results Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency Derived statistics UK Motoring | 2025 | 29,122,953 car MOT tests | 15 September 2026 |
| Safety recalls | Vehicle safety recalls Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency Derived statistics UK Motoring | January 1992 to September 2026 | 7,495 road vehicle recalls (R/) | 15 September 2026 |
- Figures cover Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales). Northern Ireland is not included.
- Make totals count every car DVLA records under the make, including models too small for a page of their own. The rank is among all 525 makes on the record.
- Licensed counts are vehicles with a current tax or exemption at the end of each year (or the latest quarter). SORN counts are shown separately.
- First registrations count cars registered in Great Britain for the first time, including used imports.
- MOT figures cover normal tests of cars aged three and over; retests are excluded. The same-ages figure is what all cars would score with this make’s mix of ages.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.