Used car buying guides, ranked by MOT pass rate

8 buying guides rank 240 entries — 210 distinct models — on one measure: how often the car passes its MOT. Only models with at least 5,000 tests behind them are eligible, so no ranking turns on a handful of cars. Pass rates across the set run from 96.0% for the Bentley Bentayga down to 73.8%.

Guides

210

Models ranked

5,000

Minimum tests per model

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Every guide lists each model's pass rate, fail rate, test count and most common failure area, drawn from the 2021–2025 MOT dataset (195,394,211 tests). The figure on each card is the leader's pass rate.

Best small cars by MOT pass rate

30 models ranked · minimum 5,000 tests each

91.8%

Suzuki Celerio leads

Best superminis by MOT pass rate

30 models ranked · minimum 5,000 tests each

89.5%

MINI Cooper leads

Best small family cars by MOT pass rate

30 models ranked · minimum 5,000 tests each

92.0%

Volkswagen ID.3 leads

Best mid-size SUVs by MOT pass rate

30 models ranked · minimum 5,000 tests each

94.3%

Lexus Nx leads

Best city cars by MOT pass rate

30 models ranked · minimum 5,000 tests each

91.8%

Suzuki Celerio leads

Best executive cars by MOT pass rate

30 models ranked · minimum 5,000 tests each

92.1%

Lexus Gs leads

Best large SUVs by MOT pass rate

30 models ranked · minimum 5,000 tests each

96.0%

Bentley Bentayga leads

Best MPVs & 7-seaters by MOT pass rate

30 models ranked · minimum 5,000 tests each

87.7%

Ford Tourneo Custom leads

Methodology & source. Dataset: DVSA MOT testing data (2021,2022,2023,2024,2025). Data last updated 2026-07-27. Figures reflect MOT-testable defects only — read the methodology for how these are calculated and what they don't measure.

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Related data

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