MOT pass rates / Nissan

Nissan MOT pass rates and common failures

Nissan cars passed 68% of their MOTs first time in 2024, across 1,450,007 class-4 initial tests and 44 model groups. That is below the 71.2% UK average, and ranks Nissan 40th of 59 makes in the dataset.

Pass rates track age more strongly than badge: an older Nissan is compared here against older cars of every other make, so read the age table below before drawing conclusions about the brand.

Checking a Nissan?

Make-level pass rates cannot reveal the condition or provenance of one car.

Check its registration free for the actual MOT, tax and mileage record. Before buying, the optional £9.99 full history check adds outstanding-finance, stolen and insurance write-off checks.

What Nissan cars fail on

The items most often behind a first-test failure across Nissan model groups, as a share of Nissan tests. DVSA publishes each model group's six most common categories, so this ranks the biggest published causes rather than every possible one.

  • Suspension Arms — 7.6% of Nissan tests. Worn arms or bushes. A common age-related repair that affects handling and tyre wear.
  • Steering Linkage Components — 3.6% of Nissan tests. Worn track rod ends or joints. Affects steering and tyre wear, and is a normal age-related repair.
  • Position Lamps — 3.4% of Nissan tests. A side or tail light out. Usually a bulb.
  • Mechanical Brake Components — 2.8% of Nissan tests. Worn discs, pads or callipers. Routine wear, but it should be priced into the deal.
  • Headlamp Aim — 1.9% of Nissan tests. Headlights pointing too high or low. Cheap to adjust, and common on every make.
  • Anti-roll Bars — 1.7% of Nissan tests. Worn anti-roll bar links or bushes. Inexpensive but often recurring.
  • Wipers — 1.5% of Nissan tests. Worn wiper blades. Minutes to fix, and a fair hint that servicing was skipped.
  • Brake Performance — 1.3% of Nissan tests. The brakes underperformed on the rolling road. Expect brake work rather than an adjustment.

Nissan MOT pass rate by age

Age at testTestsInitial pass rate
3–5 years235,94786.4%
6–9 years507,53775.6%
10–14 years452,63858%
15–30 years253,50553.4%

Nissan models by MOT pass rate

ModelTestsInitial pass rate
Qashqai514,50568.8%
Micra222,76863.9%
Juke220,03967.5%
Note129,23163.3%
X-trail82,36370.6%
Navara69,66868.1%
Leaf39,79480.2%
Nv20023,84155.6%
Pulsar19,34373.4%
Almera12,88055.4%
Elgrand12,20568%
Pixo11,03763.7%
Juke N-connecta Dig-t9,58788.1%
Primastar8,26646.6%
Juke N-connecta Dig-t S-A6,67788.4%
Juke Tekna Dig-t5,65688.3%
E-nv2005,40974.4%
Juke Tekna Dig-t S-A4,74588.4%
Pathfinder4,62053.1%
350 Z4,26573.1%
Juke Tekna + Dig-t S-A3,33089.6%
Primera2,90955.2%
Juke Acenta Dig-t2,61786.4%
Cube2,58166.4%
Juke Tekna + Dig-t2,43090.3%
Gt-r2,34093.8%
Nv3002,30672.8%
Serena2,13975.6%
Figaro1,82961.8%
Qashqai N-connecta Dig-t MHEV1,78789%
Skyline1,76587.1%
Qashqai Acenta Prem Dig-t MHEV1,74389.7%
Qashqai Acenta Prem T MHEV CVT1,58391.4%
Qashqai Nconncta Digt MHEV CVT1,57089.8%
Nv250 Acenta DCI1,44369.6%
370 Z1,39483.8%
Qashqai Prem ED Dig-t MHEV CVT1,39190.8%
Qashqai Premiere ED Dig-t MHEV1,23791.3%
Terrano1,23257.1%
Leaf E + N-connecta1,16087.8%
Pickup1,13253.6%
Qashqai Tekna + Dig-t MHEV CVT1,13191%
Qashqai Tekna Dig-t MHEV1,03893.4%
Qashqai Tekna Dig-t MHEV CVT1,02192.2%

Methodology and limitations

MOT outcomes describe testable items at the time of inspection. They are not a measure of overall mechanical reliability.

Scope: Class 4 normal initial MOT tests completed in 2024. Models require at least 1,000 qualifying tests. Duplicate source rows are removed using official DVSA test IDs.

Source: Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency anonymised MOT tests and results, 2024, published 2025-05-23 under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Check the actual car

Enter the registration for that Nissan's own free MOT, tax and mileage record. Before money changes hands, the £9.99 full history check adds outstanding finance, insurance write-off and stolen checks.