At a glance
How 3,064 first tests went in 2025.
- Passed first time
- 53 in every 100
- Did not pass first time
- 47 in every 1001,439 failed first-attempt tests
- The typical car
- 14 yearsabout 70,504 miles
- First tests counted
- 3,064
What failed most often
- Individual sidelight or tail light (front)17 in every 100 failed tests
- Brake light11 in every 100 failed tests
- Rigid brake pipes (rear)9 in every 100 failed tests
How we count this. Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Only Class 4 cars on their first MOT of the year are counted. A car that fails and is fixed at the test station still counts as a fail in the first-attempt rate. These are raw results, not adjusted for age, mileage, or peer mix. The MOT does not test engine or gearbox internals.
These are patterns across 2011 Chevrolet Spark vehicles in 2025, not a prediction that any one car will have them. Faults are grouped by part of the car. They come from MOT defect codes, not manufacturer bulletins, recalls or a diagnosis of any one car.
Suspension
Three faults. The strongest is the macpherson strut pins and bushes (front): 11 times as often as on similar cars.
Figures below are measured across the 1,430 of 1,439 failed first attempts (99.4%) that recorded an odometer reading in 2025. Mileage is needed to compare like with like.
We only list faults with at least 20 failures and a rate of about 2.0 times that of similar cars, which keeps one-off results out of the list.
Macpherson strut pins and bushes (front)
What it means
A suspension pin or bush that is excessively worn is graded Major. One likely to become detached is graded Dangerous. DVSA uses its general suspension pin, bush or joint wording here, not anything specific to a strut.
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 114 first tests, 10 times as often as on similar cars.
Macpherson strut (front)
What it means
Many MacPherson strut top bushes are designed to have significant lateral play when the suspension hangs free, so a top bush is rejected only when the play comes from wear or maladjustment. A top bush or bearing with excessive wear or free play is Major. Rubber or synthetic bushes are rejected only for serious deterioration of the bonding or flexible material.
Suspension mounting area (rear)
What it means
The load bearing structure within a set distance of a sub-frame, spring or suspension component mounting is a prescribed area. Major applies when its strength or continuity is significantly reduced or it is inadequately repaired. Dangerous applies when it is so weakened that control of the vehicle is likely to be adversely affected.
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.
Brakes
Six faults. The strongest is the rigid brake pipes (front): 6.7 times as often as on similar cars.
Rigid brake pipes (front)
What it means
Chafing, corrosion or damage to a rigid brake pipe justifies rejection once its wall thickness is reduced by a set amount, although DVSA accepts this is not easy to determine. If a tester is not sure, the benefit of the doubt applies. A leaking pipe or connection is graded Dangerous on a hydraulic system and Major on an air system.
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 208 first tests, 5.8 times as often as on similar cars.
Rigid brake pipes (rear)
What it means
Chafing, corrosion or damage to a rigid brake pipe justifies rejection once its wall thickness is reduced by a set amount, although DVSA accepts this is not easy to determine. If a tester is not sure, the benefit of the doubt applies. A leaking pipe or connection is graded Dangerous on a hydraulic system and Major on an air system.
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 316 first tests, 5.6 times as often as on similar cars.
Brake imbalance across an axle (roller test, efficiency check, rear)
What it means
A wheel giving less than a set share of the maximum effort from the other wheel on the same axle is Major. On a steered axle, less than half is graded Dangerous. Testers disregard an imbalance if the lower effort is the result of a locked wheel, or if the higher effort from a wheel is at or below a low set figure.
Brake imbalance across an axle (roller test, front)
What it means
An imbalance across an axle is measured against the maximum effort recorded from the other wheel on the same axle. It is disregarded if the lower effort is from a locked wheel, or if the higher effort from a wheel is no more than a small set figure. Less than a set share is Major, and less than half on a steered axle is Dangerous, but the rear axle check does not apply to tricycles or quadricycles.
Brake performance (roller test, front)
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 64 first tests, 2.5 times as often as on similar cars.
Brake performance (roller test, rear)
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 75 first tests, 2.2 times as often as on similar cars.
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.
Body and structure
One fault: exhaust system (front), 2.8 times as often as on similar cars.
Exhaust system (front)
What it means
Exhaust fumes causing a danger to health of persons on board are graded Dangerous, and so is a silencer likely to become detached. Fumes entering the cabin are Major. One or more missing or defective mountings does not necessarily make the exhaust insecure, since testers assess the overall security of the system.
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 79 first tests, 3.1 times as often as on similar cars.
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.
Advisories
Other things testers noted as worn or close to failing, more often than on similar cars.
An advisory is a note from the tester about something that has not failed yet. It is an early warning, not a fail. Advisories for the faults above are shown with those faults.
Seat belt condition (front)
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Counts cover advisories recorded on failed first tests only, compared with cars of the same age and mileage.
MOT pass rates
How first tests ended, and how the pass rates are counted.
- Passed first time
- 53in every 100
- Passed on the first test.
- Fixed at the station
- 11in every 100
- Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
- Failed
- 36in every 100
- Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.
First-attempt pass 53.0% of 3,064 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 64.0%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 11 fixed and the 36 not fixed make the 47 in every 100 that did not pass first time.
Same model, other years
Passed first time in every 100, all tested in 2025.
Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb. A year earlier (2024), when these cars were a year younger, 54 in every 100 passed first time.
| Year | Passed first time | First tests |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 53 in every 100 | 2,576 |
| 2011 This car | 53 in every 100 | 3,064 |
| 2012 | 52 in every 100 | 3,080 |
| 2013 | 56 in every 100 | 3,395 |
| 2014 | 61 in every 100 | 688 |
If you are buying one
What this year's MOT record means for the decision in front of you.
Mileage matters most on a 2011 Spark.
Of 2011 Spark vehicles with under 48,000 miles, 62 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 94,000 miles or more, 48 in every 100 did.
What to check at your mileage
How often each fault turned up on a failed first test, by the car's mileage. Read it as: what is likely to need looking at on a car like the one in front of you.
| Under 48,000 | 64,000–77,000 | 94,000 and over | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Individual sidelight or tail light (front) | 2.8 | 6.7 | 9.3 |
| Brake light | 3.3 | 5.2 | 6.3 |
| Rigid brake pipes (rear) | 2.8 | 3.8 | 5.3 |
| Brake performance (roller test, rear) | 2.5 | 4.8 | 2.8 |
| Coil spring (front) | 2.5 | 4.3 | 3.7 |
Faults per 100 first tests, by the car's mileage at the test.
When a car fails
of failed cars had one item to fix.
of failed cars had three or more items to fix.
of all first tests had a defect the tester marked dangerous (unsafe to drive away).
Every figure here is a first-attempt MOT rate from DVSA open data for this model line, for cars of this model year tested in 2025. Each mileage band holds a fifth of the tests. MOTs do not test engine or gearbox internals, so this is a pre-purchase checklist, not a full reliability score.
FAQs
Short answers about how to read this model-year guide.
About this data
How this page is built and what it can (and can't) say.
These figures come from UK MOT open data for this model year. We surface common failure patterns against similar cars, not a full reliability score, and not a pass/fail verdict on any individual vehicle.
What we include
UK Class 4 cars only. Normal MOT tests (not retests); first test per vehicle per calendar year; results pass, PRS, or fail.
Same-day repairs
PRS means the car failed items that were fixed at the test station and then passed the same day. We count PRS as a first-attempt fail in headline rates so same-day repairs do not hide problems.
How we compare
We compare this model year with other Class 4 cars of similar age and mileage in the same test year. This model family is left out of the peer group so the car is not measured against itself.
What this does not cover
- MOTs do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronics; this is not a full reliability score.
- Common faults come from MOT defect stats, not manufacturer TSBs or recalls.
- Age and mileage matching reduces, but does not remove, differences in how cars were used and maintained.
- If the data for a car is too thin to say anything useful, we say so rather than guess.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
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