Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Honda Jazz 2002: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 54 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2002 Honda Jazz were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Individual sidelight or tail light (front).

Summary

The 2002 Honda Jazz follows the pattern of the model years either side.

At a glance

How 2,017 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
54 in every 100
Did not pass first time
46 in every 100924 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
23 yearsabout 98,436 miles
First tests counted
2,017

What failed most often

  1. Individual sidelight or tail light (front)16 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Suspension arm pins and bushes (front)13 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Suspension mounting area (rear)12 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 2002 Honda Jazz 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

Five faults. The strongest is the wheel bearings (rear): 6.0 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 924 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.

Wheel bearings (rear)

Failed on 68 first tests6.0 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

Excessive play in a wheel bearing, or a bearing that is excessively rough, is Major. Play so excessive that the bearing is likely to break up or directional control is impaired is Dangerous, and so is a bearing so rough that it is likely to overheat or break up.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 32 first tests, 2.4 times as often as on similar cars.

Macpherson strut (front)

Failed on 23 first tests4.6 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

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 arm pins and bushes (front)

Failed on 120 first tests3.6 times as often as similar carsLikely 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 285 first tests, 4.7 times as often as on similar cars.

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover (front)

Failed on 67 first tests2.7 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A suspension joint dust cover that is severely deteriorated is Minor. It becomes Major once it is missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt, so what matters is whether it still keeps dirt out. DVSA words this for any suspension joint dust cover, and files it here under anti-roll bars.

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front)

Failed on 38 first tests2.0 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Excessive wear on an anti-roll bar linkage ball joint is Major. A joint likely to become detached is graded Dangerous.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 42 first tests, 2.6 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.

Macpherson strut pins and bushes (front)

Noted on 87 first tests9.1 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Brake light

Noted on 25 first tests3.5 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Headlight (front)

Noted on 68 first tests3.1 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Other suspension component (rear)

Noted on 23 first tests3.1 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Suspension mounting area (rear)

Noted on 95 first tests2.7 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
54in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
10in 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 54.2% of 2,017 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 64.3%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 10 fixed and the 36 not fixed make the 46 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

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

40608010020022005201020152020Newer cars
406080100200220102020Newer cars

Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb. A year earlier (2024), when these cars were a year younger, 53 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
2002 This car54 in every 1002,017
200354 in every 1004,846
200453 in every 1008,877
200553 in every 10013,028
200654 in every 10016,652
200755 in every 10017,686
200855 in every 10018,460
200964 in every 10022,436
201067 in every 10020,956
201173 in every 10019,446
201275 in every 10021,045
201378 in every 10020,706
201481 in every 10019,643
201584 in every 10017,388
201686 in every 10018,007
201788 in every 10017,579
201889 in every 10019,669
201990 in every 10016,298
202091 in every 10010,396
202193 in every 10014,213
202294 in every 10010,311

FAQs

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

The 2002 Honda Jazz follows the pattern of the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Individual sidelight or tail light (front), about 16 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 54.2% of 2,017 first MOTs on the 2002 Honda Jazz passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 64.3%. Among 924 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Wheel bearings (rear) appears more often than on similar cars (7.4% of those tests; 68 observed failures; about 6.0× 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 2002 Honda Jazz at the first attempt were Individual sidelight or tail light (front) (15.8%), Suspension arm pins and bushes (front) (13.0%) and Suspension mounting area (rear) (12.1%), 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: Wheel bearings (rear) (7.4% of those tests; 68 observed failures; about 6.0× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Wheel bearings (rear) shows up more often than on similar cars (7.4% of those tests; 68 observed failures; about 6.0× 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 2002 Honda Jazz include Wheel bearings (rear), Macpherson strut (front), Suspension arm pins and bushes (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 2002 Honda Jazz (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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