Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Honda CR-V 2001: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 55 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2001 Honda CR-V were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Petrol emissions (with catalyst).

Summary

With 891 first tests, there are too few to say whether the 2001 Honda CR-V differs from the model years either side.

At a glance

How 891 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
55 in every 100
Did not pass first time
45 in every 100399 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
24 yearsabout 118,363 miles
First tests counted
891

What failed most often

  1. Petrol emissions (with catalyst)16 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Suspension mounting area (rear)14 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Suspension arm ball joint (front)13 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.

Note:

These are patterns across 2001 Honda CR-V 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 suspension arm pins and bushes (rear): 9.2 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 399 failed first attempts in 2025 that had a mileage recorded, which allows a like-for-like comparison.

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.

Suspension arm pins and bushes (rear)

Failed on 25 first tests9.2 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Pins and bushes on suspension arms fail as Major when they are excessively worn. They are graded Dangerous when likely to become detached. DVSA uses the same wording for a suspension joint.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 67 first tests, 8.0 times as often as on similar cars.

Coil spring (front)

Failed on 29 first tests3.0 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A missing bump stop rubber is not a reason to fail a coil spring. When the vehicle is jacked and lowered, a spring that does not correctly locate as the suspension returns to its normal running position is rejected as insecurely attached. A missing spring is Major, and graded Dangerous where directional control is affected.

Suspension arm ball joint (front)

Failed on 52 first tests2.6 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A suspension arm ball joint is failed under the general suspension pin, bush or joint wording. Excessively worn is Major, and likely to become detached is graded Dangerous.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.

Seat belts and restraints

One fault: seat belt mounting area (rear), 3.7 times as often as on similar cars.

Seat belt mounting area (rear)

Failed on 21 first tests3.7 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A seat belt anchorage likely to become detached in the event of a collision is graded Dangerous. The load bearing structure near an anchorage, called a prescribed area, is Major when its strength or continuity is significantly reduced or it is inadequately repaired. Anchorage points are inspected for all seat belts fitted, except a belt with no corresponding seat.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

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.

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear)

Noted on 22 first tests7.7 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Suspension arm (front)

Noted on 33 first tests3.7 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Suspension sub-frame (front)

Noted on 24 first tests2.4 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

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
55in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
8in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
37in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 55.2% of 891 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 63.2%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 8 fixed and the 37 not fixed make the 45 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

Passed first time in every 100, all tested in 2025.

40608010020012005201020152020
406080100200120102020

Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb. A year earlier (2024), when these cars were a year younger, 56 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
199952 in every 100343
200052 in every 100531
2001 This car55 in every 100891
200249 in every 1002,508
200350 in every 1003,782
200449 in every 1004,876
200553 in every 1006,998
200654 in every 1007,920
200757 in every 10011,743
200860 in every 1008,890
200964 in every 1008,492
201069 in every 1009,230
201171 in every 1009,222
201274 in every 10011,907
201380 in every 10013,543
201482 in every 10014,223
201583 in every 10013,859
201685 in every 10013,724
201786 in every 10011,531
201888 in every 1008,968
201991 in every 1008,055
202092 in every 1005,389
202192 in every 1005,635
202293 in every 1005,014

FAQs

Short answers about how to read this model-year guide.

With 891 first tests, there are too few to say whether the 2001 Honda CR-V differs from the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Petrol emissions (with catalyst), about 16 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 55.2% of 891 first MOTs on the 2001 Honda CR-V passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 63.2%. Among 399 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Suspension arm pins and bushes (rear) appears more often than on similar cars (6.3% of those tests; 25 observed failures; about 9.2× more often than similar cars). There is no single reliability score here; this is a pre-purchase checklist built from DVSA open data, not a guarantee for any individual car.
Ranked by how often they were actually recorded, the items that most often failed a 2001 Honda CR-V at the first attempt were Petrol emissions (with catalyst) (15.8%), Suspension mounting area (rear) (14.3%) and Suspension arm ball joint (front) (13.0%), each as a share of the year's failed first attempts. That is what goes wrong most often on the car. The common faults table shows a different measure: faults that are unusual compared with similar cars.
Among failed first-attempt tests we highlight patterns that appear more often than on similar cars. Top example: Suspension arm pins and bushes (rear) (6.3% of those tests; 25 observed failures; about 9.2× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Suspension arm pins and bushes (rear) shows up more often than on similar cars (6.3% of those tests; 25 observed failures; about 9.2× more often than similar cars). That does not prove a design fault. Age, mileage, and how the car was used still matter. Treat it as a pre-purchase checkpoint, not a manufacturer service bulletin.
Common MOT problem areas for the 2001 Honda CR-V include Suspension arm pins and bushes (rear), Seat belt mounting area (rear), Coil spring (front). These are the faults that stand out compared with similar cars, not a complete list of what can go wrong on any individual car.
Advisories flag issues noted at the test and are not a fail rate. We show advisory patterns that appear more often than on similar cars among failed first-attempt tests, separate from common failure rows. Use them as early-warning checks, not as a pass/fail score.
This page highlights MOT failure patterns for the 2001 Honda CR-V (registration year) using UK DVSA open data for the selected test year. Patterns are compared with cars of a similar age and mileage. It is a buyer checklist from MOT defect statistics, not a full service history or manufacturer service-bulletin list.
No. MOT tests do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronic modules. Patterns here come from MOT defect statistics only and should not be read as engine or gearbox reliability scores.

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.

2024 2025

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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