Honda Jazz 2006: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 54 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2006 Honda Jazz were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Individual sidelight or tail light (front).

Summary

The 2006 Honda Jazz follows the pattern of the model years either side.

At a glance

How 16,652 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
54 in every 100
Did not pass first time
46 in every 1007,622 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
19 yearsabout 87,748 miles
First tests counted
16,652

What failed most often

  1. Individual sidelight or tail light (front)19 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test)18 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Petrol emissions (with catalyst)10 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 2006 Honda Jazz vehicles in 2025, not a prediction that any one car will have them. Faults are grouped by part of the car. A wear pattern follows age and use more than the way the car was built. They come from MOT defect codes, not manufacturer bulletins, recalls or a diagnosis of any one car.

Suspension

Two faults. The strongest is the macpherson strut (front): 6.9 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 7,619 of 7,622 failed first attempts 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 (front)

Failed on 213 first tests6.9 times as often as similar carsStrong 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.

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front)

Failed on 462 first tests2.3 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.

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

Brakes

One fault and two wear patterns. The strongest is the brake pads (rear): 3.1 times as often as on similar cars.

Brake pads (rear)

Failed on 452 first tests3.1 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

What it means

A pad worn down to its wear indicator, or contaminated with oil or grease, is Major. A pad worn below the set thickness limit, missing or incorrectly mounted is Dangerous. The manual treats an illuminated brake wear indicator as no reason for failure, although DVSA also lists an illuminated indicator as a Major row.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 473 first tests, 2.3 times as often as on similar cars.

Brake discs (rear)

Failed on 211 first tests3.1 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

What it means

A brake disc or drum must be significantly worn before it is rejected, and being worn below the manufacturer's recommended limits is not a reason in itself. Significantly and obviously worn is Major, as is contamination with oil or grease. A disc or drum that is fractured, insecure, seriously weakened or missing is graded Dangerous.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 985 first tests, 2.2 times as often as on similar cars.

Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test)

Failed on 1,343 first tests2.5 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A parking brake with efficiency below the minimum requirement is Major, and graded Dangerous where efficiency is less than half of the required value. On a roller brake tester, the requirement counts as met if more than half of the wheels of a brake system lock. The check applies only to vehicles whose parking brake was not already tested as the secondary brake.

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: vehicle structure condition (rear), 2.2 times as often as on similar cars.

Vehicle structure condition (rear)

Failed on 153 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Structure that is fractured, deformed, corroded, modified or inadequately repaired is failed on rigidity only if the overall structural rigidity of the vehicle is significantly reduced. Structure that is likely to affect steering or braking adversely is graded Dangerous. Prescribed areas are not covered here, as they are checked under other sections, including brakes and steering.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 156 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.

Noise, emissions and leaks

Two faults. The strongest is the petrol emissions (with catalyst): 2.0 times as often as on similar cars.

Petrol emissions (with catalyst)

Failed on 785 first tests2.0 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Emissions levels over the manufacturer's specified limits are Major, as are levels over default limits, which apply when no exact match is found for the vehicle. Dense blue or clearly visible black smoke at idle, held for a set period, is Major, except for certain older vehicles and two stroke engines where smoke is unavoidable. An induction or exhaust leak that could affect emissions levels is Major too.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 26 first tests, 2.5 times as often as on similar cars.

Petrol emissions not tested

Failed on 295 first tests2.0 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

On a petrol car, an emissions test recorded as not tested or unable to be completed is failed as Major. DVSA's wording gives no reason why.

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 ball joint (front)

Noted on 60 first tests19 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Macpherson strut pins and bushes (front)

Noted on 692 first tests14 times as often as similar carsStrong evidence

Macpherson strut bracket and mounting (front)

Noted on 55 first tests4.3 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

Handbrake efficiency on trikes, quads and pre-1968 vehicles (roller test, rear)

Noted on 48 first tests2.8 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Brake performance (plate test, front)

Noted on 81 first tests2.6 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

Anti-roll bar ball joint (front)

Noted on 86 first tests2.6 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

Rigid brake pipes (rear)

Noted on 1,582 first tests2.5 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 16,652 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 63.9%: 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.

4060801002006201020152020Older carsNewer cars
406080100200620102020Newer 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, 55 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
200254 in every 1002,017
200354 in every 1004,846
200453 in every 1008,877
200553 in every 10013,028
2006 This car54 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

If you are buying one

What this year's MOT record means for the decision in front of you.

Mileage matters most on a 2006 Jazz.

Of 2006 Jazz vehicles with under 60,000 miles, 67 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 118,000 miles or more, 47 in every 100 did.

Under 60,0003,347 tests
67
60,000–79,0003,315 tests
56
79,000–97,000 Typical car3,346 tests
52
97,000–118,0003,251 tests
50
118,000 and over3,389 tests
47

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 60,00079,000–97,000118,000 and over
Individual sidelight or tail light (front)1.910.612.0
Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test)5.38.99.9
Petrol emissions (with catalyst)2.14.57.6
Suspension mounting area (rear)1.84.14.2
Headlight aim2.13.44.2

Faults per 100 first tests, by the car's mileage at the test.


When a car fails

20in every 100

of failed cars had one item to fix.

59in every 100

of failed cars had three or more items to fix.

12in every 100

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.

The 2006 Honda Jazz follows the pattern of the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Individual sidelight or tail light (front), about 19 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 54.2% of 16,652 first MOTs on the 2006 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 63.9%. Among 7,622 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Macpherson strut (front) appears more often than on similar cars (2.8% of those tests; 213 observed failures; about 6.9× 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 2006 Honda Jazz at the first attempt were Individual sidelight or tail light (front) (18.6%), Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test) (17.6%) and Petrol emissions (with catalyst) (10.3%), 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: Macpherson strut (front) (2.8% of those tests; 213 observed failures; about 6.9× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Macpherson strut (front) shows up more often than on similar cars (2.8% of those tests; 213 observed failures; about 6.9× 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 2006 Honda Jazz include Macpherson strut (front), Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test), Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (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 2006 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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