AutoCensus
🚧 AutoCensus is in beta — data and features may be incomplete. Feedback welcome at [email protected]

Makes / Volkswagen / 1600

1600

Volkswagen · on record 1994 to 2025

VULNERABLE

Red List classification, from population, five year trajectory and survival against peak. Reviewed each census.

273 licensed vehicles
2025 census

31.4% of the peak fleet remains licensed

239
declared SORN
 
total surviving

peak 870 in 2002  ·  −13 vehicles a year, five year trend

Population history

Licensed and SORN vehicles at each census. Filters apply to the population, MOT and registration figures together.

Licensed SORN Latest census observation SOURCE DVLA VEH0120 / VEH0220

At the average decline recorded over the latest five years, the licensed fleet would reach zero around 2045.

Illustrative projection only; vehicle populations rarely decline linearly. Late fleets typically flatten as surviving examples enter preservation.

Inside the surviving fleet

AutoCensus parses every DVLA variant description, so the fleet can be read by fuel and specification rather than as one number.

First registrations by year

When surviving examples first joined the British fleet.

Recent UK first registrations

This family is no longer sold new. These figures are imports and historic vehicles joining the British register for the first time.

MOT reliability

DVSA test results for this family, 2005 to 2025.

 
Pass rate by year
Failure reason Failures Share of all tests
Deliberate modification which significantly reduces the original strength, excessive corrosion, severe distortion, a fracture or an inadequate repair of a load bearing member or its supporting structure or supporting panelling within 30cm of any sub- 75 6.0%
The windscreen washers do not provide enough liquid to clear the windscreen in conjunction with the wiper(s) 66 5.3%
Deliberate modification which significantly reduces the original strength, excessive corrosion, severe distortion, a fracture or an inadequate repair of a load bearing member or its supporting structure or panelling within 30 cms of a seat belt ancho 56 4.5%
Deliberate modification which significantly reduces the original strength, excessive corrosion, severe distortion, a fracture or an inadequate repair of a load bearing member or its supporting structure or supporting panelling within 30cm of any sub- 41 3.3%
Amalgamation of failures for all headlamp testers 34 2.7%
The horn inoperative 32 2.6%
A stop lamp inoperative or less than 50% of the light sources illuminating 29 2.3%
An obligatory lamp inoperative or less than 50% of the light sources illuminating 29 2.3%

Counted across every recorded test, 2005 to 2025. Advisories are excluded.

Where the 1600 remains

Based on MOT test locations, 2025. Test location is a proxy: a vehicle is counted where it was last tested, not where it is kept.

Postcode area Vehicles tested Pass rate
B 4 75%
IP 2 100%
EX 2 50%
HU 2 100%
SS 1 100%
WS 1 100%
SO 1 100%
WN 1 100%
LL 1 100%
WF 1 100%
PE 1 100%
SK 1 100%
TN 1 100%
NG 1 100%
DD 1 100%
Show all 24 areas

How this record was calculated

LATEST CENSUS2025
POPULATION SOURCEDVLA VEH0220 quarterly
HISTORY SOURCEDVLA VEH0120 GB · to 2013
MOT SOURCEDVSA results · to 2025
FAMILY DEFINITIONVOLKSWAGEN 1600
PROCESSED20 Jul 2026
Full methodology

Population figures count vehicles recorded as licensed or SORN in the DVLA quarterly extract. Figures before 2014 cover Great Britain only. Vehicles are grouped into this family by the DVLA GenModel key shown above, with routing rules for known inconsistencies.

Variant figures are parsed from raw DVLA model descriptions and the original string is always retained. Blank transmission fields are shown as manual because DVLA records the field for automatic vehicles.

MOT figures count tests, not vehicles, and geographic figures count each vehicle at its most recent test location. The decline projection is a straight line fitted to the latest five years and is illustrative only.