Volkswagen Bora
Registered from 1999 to 2006.
About this model
The Volkswagen Bora is a small family car, the fourth generation of the Volkswagen Jetta, and the successor to the Volkswagen Vento. Volkswagen began production of the car in July 1999. Carrying on the wind nomenclature from previous generations, the car was known as the Bora in much of the world. Bora is a winter wind that blows intermittently over the coast of the Adriatic Sea, as well as in parts of Greece, Russia, Turkey, and the Sliven region of Bulgaria. In North America and South Africa, the Jetta moniker was kept once more due to the continued popularity of the car in those markets.
From the Wikipedia article Volkswagen Bora, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
What fails its inspection
Great Britain's MOT record for the 2005 1.9 diesel. 467 of 1,791 tests failed, 26%.
Better than 58% of 2005 cars. The typical one fails 27%, across 837 models with enough tests behind them to say.
| Where | Share of failures | Failed tests |
|---|---|---|
| Lights and electrics | 51% | 238 |
| Brakes | 46% | 217 |
| Suspension | 43% | 203 |
| Body and structure | 39% | 180 |
| Steering | 24% | 110 |
| Tyres and wheels | 16% | 77 |
The defects inspectors cite
- A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn
- The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements
- A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning
- A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc
- Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement
- A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened
Where it stands out against its peers
- Steering: failed more often than 95% of 2005 cars — 24% of its 467 failed tests, where an ordinary 2005 car has 5%.
Same model year only, at least 30 peer cars, zeros included. Every car has a worst part; this shows which, and how far from ordinary it is. A high share means more to check, not a verdict.
NHTSA's investigations are American; no European regulator publishes an equivalent record, so this section has nothing to draw on for a European car. There is no European equivalent of the service-bulletin register either.
Before you buy one
Built from what this car fails on, not from general knowledge of the model.
- Brakes — 46% of its failures
- Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement
- Suspension — 43% of its failures
- A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn
- A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened
- Steering — 24% of its failures
- Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc
- A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play
- Tyres and wheels — 16% of its failures
- Lights and electrics — 51% of its failures
- A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning
- Body and structure — 39% of its failures
When it starts failing
At 200k+ miles this one fails 23% of its inspections, against the 30% an ordinary car of the same age fails.
| Odometer | Failure rate | Rate | Its age | Tests |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 40–60k miles | 16% | 21% | 58 | |
| 60–80k miles | 25% | 26% | 114 | |
| 80–100k miles | 24% | 28% | 190 | |
| 100–120k miles | 27% | 29% | 266 | |
| 120–140k miles | 27% | 30% | 286 | |
| 140–160k miles | 27% | 30% | 279 | |
| 160–180k miles | 28% | 30% | 261 | |
| 180–200k miles | 29% | 30% | 160 | |
| 200k+ miles | 23% | 30% | 154 |
1,768 British inspections, grouped by the odometer reading recorded at the test.
Half of these have more than 120k miles on them. That is how far people drive this car, not how long it lasts.