UK vehicle statistics / LDV

How many LDV cars are left?

At the end of 2026 Q1, DfT recorded 7,210 licensed and 17,246 SORN LDV vehicles in the UK, across 5 published model groups.

Is the LDV fleet shrinking?

Adding up every published LDV model group: Licensed numbers peaked at 43,498 in 2014 Q3 and stand at 7,210 in 2026 Q1, down 83%. That is down 51% in the five years since 2021 Q1.

LDV MOT pass rate

In 2024, 54% of 1,736 LDV MOTs passed first time — below the 71.2% UK average.

The items most often behind a first-test failure across published LDV model groups:

• Brake Performance — 15.6% of tests. The brakes underperformed on the rolling road. Expect brake work rather than an adjustment.
• Rigid Brake Pipes — 8.1% of tests. Corroded brake pipes. Safety-critical and a sign of underbody corrosion.
• Position Lamps — 7.3% of tests. A side or tail light out. Usually a bulb.
• Front and Rear Fog Lamps — 7.3% of tests. A fog light fault, usually a bulb or switch.

See every model on the LDV MOT pass rate page.

Before you buy

• Brake Performance — 15.6% of tests in 2024. The brakes underperformed on the rolling road. Expect brake work rather than an adjustment.
• Rigid Brake Pipes — 8.1% of tests in 2024. Corroded brake pipes. Safety-critical and a sign of underbody corrosion.
• Position Lamps — 7.3% of tests in 2024. A side or tail light out. Usually a bulb.
• Front and Rear Fog Lamps — 7.3% of tests in 2024. A fog light fault, usually a bulb or switch.
• Budget for a shrinking fleet — Licensed numbers are down 83% from the 2014 Q3 peak of 43,498. Fewer cars on the road usually means fewer donor parts and fewer specialists.
• Check the actual LDV — These figures describe the model group. Enter the registration for that vehicle's free MOT, tax and mileage record before you pay a deposit.

Rarest LDV models

The published LDV model groups with the smallest surviving populations.

• CUB — 39 licensed, 328 SORN
• 200 Series — 236 licensed, 1,576 SORN
• V80 — 2,145 licensed, 376 SORN
• Maxus — 3,478 licensed, 4,208 SORN
• 400 Series — 1,312 licensed, 10,758 SORN

Every LDV model

How to read these numbers

Licensed means taxed and legal to use on the road at the end of the quarter. SORN means the keeper has declared it off the road — it still exists, but it is not in use. A model group's total is the best available proxy for how many survive, and a shrinking one means fewer donor cars, fewer specialists and slower parts supply.

Common questions

How many LDV cars are left in the UK?

7,210 LDV vehicles were licensed and 17,246 were SORN at the end of 2026 Q1, across 5 published model groups, according to DfT and DVLA statistics.

Which LDV is rarest?

Of the published LDV model groups, the CUB has the smallest surviving population at 39 licensed and 328 SORN.

Is the LDV fleet shrinking?

Licensed numbers peaked at 43,498 in 2014 Q3 and stand at 7,210 in 2026 Q1, down 83%. That is down 51% in the five years since 2021 Q1.

What is the LDV MOT pass rate?

54% of 1,736 class-4 initial MOT tests on LDV cars passed first time in 2024 — below the 71.2% UK average.

What do LDV cars fail the MOT on?

Across published LDV model groups, the most common initial failure categories in 2024 are brake performance (15.6% of tests), rigid brake pipes (8.1% of tests), position lamps (7.3% of tests). DVSA publishes each model group's six most common categories, so this ranks the biggest published causes.

Does a LDV population figure describe the car I am looking at?

No. It describes the model group. Enter the registration for that car's own free MOT, tax and mileage record.

Source and limitations

Source: Department for Transport and DVLA, df_VEH0120_UK. Released 2026-07-15 under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

DVLA make and model fields are administrative data and can contain omissions or inconsistencies. These statistics describe model groups, not an individual registration.

Confidential cells marked [c] represent between 1 and 4 vehicles and are treated as zero in aggregates, so totals can be slightly understated.