MOT results by fuel

Electric car MOT pass rates: by age, by model and the failures typical of electric cars

Electric cars passed 84.6% of 573,932 MOT tests in 2023–2024 (DVSA data, 390,321 cars, average age 3.6 years). Against all cars of the same age and mileage they failed 1.03× as often. At 3 years old, their first MOT, 86.7% passed.

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Data to 2024-12-30 · Page updated 2026-09-28 · Publisher: 73 Auto

Initial pass rate: 84.6%; 573,932 tests, 2023–2024
Tests with a dangerous defect: 6.0%; 1.23× cars of the same age and mileage
Models ranked: 28; at least 5,000 tests each

Electric cars’ pass rate by age, against other fuels

Electric cars had the higher pass rate at 5 of 12 ages from 3 to 14. By 14 years old 64.7% passed. Other fuels combine the remaining petrol, diesel, hybrid and electric cars, and differ in mileage and use.

MOT initial pass rate by age: electric cars and all other fuels
Age	Tests	Electric	Other fuels
3 years	170,172	86.7%	87.0%
4 years	72,438	84.5%	85.3%
5 years	28,166	81.9%	83.0%
6 years	17,526	79.4%	80.3%
7 years	14,013	74.9%	77.4%
8 years	13,381	70.5%	74.1%
10 years	4,864	68.8%	67.4%
12 years	5,215	69.9%	62.2%

Failures typical of electric cars

Items electric cars fail on at least 1.5 times as often as all cars of the same age and mileage band (a clear difference, at least 300 failures).

MOT failure items much more common on electric cars than on cars of the same age and mileage
Defect item	Tests failing	Share	vs all cars
Ball joint: ball joint excessively worn	5,225	0.910%	3.58×
Condition: has ply or cords exposed	13,560	2.363%	2.28×
Headlamp: not working on main beam	816	0.142%	2.12×
Service brake performance: efficiency below requirements	512	0.089%	2.07×
Condition: has ply or cords damaged	591	0.103%	1.98×
Linkage ball joints: ball joint excessively worn	1,154	0.201%	1.95×
Linkage ball joint dust cover: ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt	939	0.164%	1.86×
Ball joint dust cover: ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt	389	0.068%	1.80×
Tread depth: tread pattern not visible over the whole tread area when minimum depth required is 1.0mm	593	0.103%	1.75×
Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm	13,531	2.358%	1.53×

Failures electric cars rarely have

MOT failure items much less common on electric cars
Defect item	Tests failing	Share	vs all cars
Malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction	14	0.002%	0.01×
Catalyst emissions: Lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits	9	0.002%	0.02×
Brake pads: worn down to wear indicator	117	0.020%	0.14×
Malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction	263	0.046%	0.15×
Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick	1,663	0.290%	0.22×
Exhaust system: has a major leak of exhaust gases	122	0.021%	0.26×

Most common MOT failures on electric cars

Most common MOT failure items on electric cars
Defect item	Share of tests	vs all cars
Condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords	2.43%	1.45×
Condition: has ply or cords exposed	2.36%	2.28×
Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm	2.36%	1.53×
Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively	1.56%	0.75×
Ball joint: ball joint excessively worn	0.91%	3.58×
Headlamp aim: too high	0.80%	1.02×
Washers: provides insufficient washer liquid	0.62%	0.88×
Headlamp aim: too low	0.58%	0.80×
Condition: has a bulge, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure	0.54%	1.09×
Tyre pressure monitoring system: malfunctioning or obviously inoperative	0.50%	1.50×

By area of the test

Compared with all cars of the same age and mileage, electric cars fail most often on tyres (1.52×) and least often on noise, emissions and leaks (0.07×). 4.0% of tests recorded a minor defect and 33.7% an advisory.

Electric models with the fewest MOT failures for their age

1.00 = the failure rate of electric cars of the same age and mileage band. Raw pass rates are shown too, but younger models naturally pass more often.

Electric models ranked by MOT failures against electric cars of the same age and mileage, lowest first
Model	Tests	Average age	Pass rate	Failures vs similar
Jaguar I-Pace	30,623	3.0 yrs	91.8%	0.58×
Audi e-tron	19,881	2.7 yrs	90.0%	0.72×
Volkswagen ID.3	19,705	2.4 yrs	90.4%	0.77×
Porsche Taycan	8,691	2.6 yrs	90.5%	0.77×
BMW i3	26,737	3.9 yrs	88.3%	0.78×
Hyundai Ioniq	11,612	3.0 yrs	88.6%	0.79×
Kia Niro	30,846	2.5 yrs	88.1%	0.82×
Mitsubishi Outlander	6,754	8.8 yrs	72.3%	0.83×
Tesla Model S	11,991	5.2 yrs	82.0%	0.85×
Hyundai Kona	17,934	2.6 yrs	88.1%	0.87×
Polestar 2	5,874	2.4 yrs	87.8%	0.87×
MG MG5	6,429	2.3 yrs	86.4%	0.94×
MG ZS	17,861	2.7 yrs	87.9%	0.95×
Nissan Leaf	39,159	5.0 yrs	81.8%	0.96×
Volkswagen E-Golf	13,084	3.5 yrs	86.4%	0.97×
Mercedes-Benz EQA	5,007	2.2 yrs	87.8%	0.98×
Tesla Model X	11,918	4.7 yrs	81.5%	0.98×
Toyota Auris	5,052	11.8 yrs	64.9%	1.11×
MINI Hatch	12,981	2.5 yrs	87.8%	1.12×
Tesla Model 3	95,630	2.8 yrs	83.3%	1.12×

Electric models with the most MOT failures for their age

Electric models ranked by MOT failures against electric cars of the same age and mileage, highest first
Model	Tests	Average age	Pass rate	Failures vs similar
Nissan E-NV200	10,281	3.2 yrs	74.0%	1.92×
Renault Kangoo	7,202	4.4 yrs	75.8%	1.66×
Vauxhall Corsa	11,334	2.5 yrs	82.0%	1.56×
Renault Zoe	37,670	4.3 yrs	77.3%	1.39×
Peugeot 208	10,006	2.5 yrs	84.5%	1.33×
Peugeot 2008	8,160	2.4 yrs	85.1%	1.19×
Nissan NV200	5,593	6.4 yrs	74.9%	1.17×
Mercedes-Benz EQC	9,973	2.5 yrs	84.0%	1.17×

Other fuels

Petrol cars · 71.9% pass rate
Diesel cars · 69.6% pass rate
Hybrid cars · 85.6% pass rate

Limitations

Official data: DVSA anonymised MOT results (2023–2024), class 4 initial tests, cars at least 2.5 years old; fuel is DVSA's recorded fuel type (plug-in and self-charging hybrids are grouped). 73 Auto analysis: comparisons apply national rates for each test's age and mileage band. Most electric cars on the road are young, so older ages rest on fewer tests and early models. MOT results reflect maintenance, mileage and use as well as design, so a model's rank is not a reliability rating.

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Where these figures come from

Anonymised MOT tests and results (2023 and 2024) — Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA). Open Government Licence v3.0.

Figures labelled as 73 Auto estimates are our own analysis of these sources, set out in the methodology and data sources. To report a factual error, see corrections.