Germans neglecting their cars: vehicle testers

Cash-strapped Germans are spending less money on maintaining their cars, say officials from the country's Tuev vehicle inspection agency.

One in five cars in Germany failed the statutory car test last year as a result of defects which had to be repaired at a workshop. Under German laws new cars are tested for the first time after three years while older vehicles have to pass a test every 24 months.

According to the 2013 Tuev Report, the number of faulty cars spotted at testing stations has now gone up from 15.7% to 20%. A similar percentage was last seen in the 1980s.

Experts point to the increasing average age of cars on German roads. In 2003 cars were on average 7.4 years old, a figure which now stands at 8.5 years.

This indicates that cars are generally giving longer service but it also leads to more potentially defective vehicles in everyday use.

Of vehicles aged three years and younger, 6.1% fail the test the first time around compared to a failure rate of 25% for older cars (11 years old). Statistics show than older cars are generally more likely to be involved in accidents.

For their report the Tuev engineers examined the certificates of more than eight million cars. German makes displayed fewer than average faults, with the Volkswagen Polo emerging as one of the least troublesome cars at the testing station.

Faulty lighting was a common cause of test failure, occurring in just over eight per cent of tests carried out on cars aged up to three years old. Nearly a third of older cars suffered from the defect.