At a glance
How 3,290 first tests went in 2025.
- Passed first time
- 55 in every 100
- Did not pass first time
- 45 in every 1001,482 failed first-attempt tests
- The typical car
- 14 yearsabout 133,136 miles
- First tests counted
- 3,290
What failed most often
- Individual sidelight or tail light (front)14 in every 100 failed tests
- Track rod end (front)13 in every 100 failed tests
- Drive shaft joints and boots (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.
These are patterns across 2011 Nissan Navara 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 spring mounting area (rear): 28 times as often as on similar cars.
Figures below are measured across the 1,476 of 1,482 failed first attempts (99.6%) 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.
Suspension spring mounting area (rear)
What it means
Testers check the strength and continuity of the load bearing structure within a set distance of a spring, sub-frame or suspension mounting, an area DVSA calls a prescribed area. Strength that is significantly reduced, or an area inadequately repaired, is Major. Structure so weakened that control of the vehicle is likely to be adversely affected is graded Dangerous.
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 23 first tests, 9.3 times as often as on similar cars.
Leaf spring (rear)
What it means
Modified spring anchor or shackle brackets with more mounting holes than the chassis are not a reason to reject leaf spring suspension, and neither is a missing bump stop rubber. A fractured main leaf is graded Dangerous. A spring that is fractured or seriously weakened is graded Major.
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.
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 41 first tests, 2.4 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
Three faults. The strongest is the chassis condition (rear): 23 times as often as on similar cars.
Chassis condition (rear)
What it means
A main load-bearing structural member that is fractured, deformed, modified or inadequately repaired is Major when structural rigidity is significantly reduced, and Dangerous where steering or braking is likely to be adversely affected. Corrosion of the body, cab or chassis at a mounting point is Dangerous where overall security or stability is impaired.
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 98 first tests, 11 times as often as on similar cars.
Fuel tank
What it means
A fuel tank, pipe or hose that is insecure is Major, and graded Dangerous when so insecure there is a risk of fire. The check covers all permanently attached fuel tanks, including gas tanks and cylinders, and hydrogen tanks on fuel cell vehicles count as fuel tanks. A missing heat shield fails a vehicle only where there is a risk of fire with other fuel system components.
Propeller shaft joints (front)
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 49 first tests, 415 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.
Seat belts and restraints
One fault: airbag warning light, 4.4 times as often as on similar cars.
Airbag warning light
What it means
The airbag warning lamp (SRS MIL in DVSA's wording) is failed only if it indicates a system malfunction, which is Major. A lamp lit to show the passenger airbag is disabled is not to be regarded as a defect. Dashboard messages are not a defect in their own right, though they can help the tester confirm a malfunction.
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.
Lamps and electrical
Two faults. The strongest is the individual direction indicators (front): 4.2 times as often as on similar cars.
Individual direction indicators (front)
What it means
Direction indicators must be amber, though vehicles first used before a set date may have white at the front and red at the rear when the indicators are combined with stop or position lamps, and sequential or dynamic ones are not a reason to fail. A lamp that is missing, inoperative or has more than half of a multiple light source not functioning is graded Major. A flashing rate outside the permitted range is graded Minor.
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 60 first tests, 5.0 times as often as on similar cars.
Side repeater indicators
What it means
Sequential or dynamic direction indicators are not a reason to fail. Where a side repeater is required, it is allowed to be part of the front direction indicator if it has a marked wraparound lens, or an amber light coming through the front lens when viewed from a set distance to the side of the rear bumper. A lens defect with no effect on the emitted light is Minor, and one that adversely affects the light is Major.
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
One fault: brake imbalance across an axle (roller test, efficiency check, rear), 3.8 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.
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.
Wheel bearings (rear)
Suspension arm ball joint (front)
Rigid brake pipes (front)
Exhaust system (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
- 55in every 100
- Passed on the first test.
- Fixed at the station
- 6in every 100
- Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
- Failed
- 39in every 100
- Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.
First-attempt pass 55.0% of 3,290 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 61.3%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 6 fixed and the 39 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.
Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb.
| Year | Passed first time | First tests |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 57 in every 100 | 577 |
| 2005 | 53 in every 100 | 899 |
| 2006 | 54 in every 100 | 1,374 |
| 2007 | 55 in every 100 | 1,638 |
| 2008 | 55 in every 100 | 1,317 |
| 2009 | 53 in every 100 | 1,387 |
| 2010 | 55 in every 100 | 1,546 |
| 2011 This car | 55 in every 100 | 3,290 |
| 2012 | 52 in every 100 | 2,874 |
| 2013 | 57 in every 100 | 3,072 |
| 2014 | 58 in every 100 | 3,171 |
| 2015 | 60 in every 100 | 3,600 |
| 2016 | 70 in every 100 | 7,275 |
| 2017 | 68 in every 100 | 8,322 |
| 2018 | 70 in every 100 | 7,400 |
| 2019 | 74 in every 100 | 6,878 |
| 2020 | 78 in every 100 | 3,960 |
| 2021 | 82 in every 100 | 6,561 |
If you are buying one
What this year's MOT record means for the decision in front of you.
Mileage makes a modest difference on a 2011 Navara.
Of 2011 Navara vehicles with under 99,000 miles, 58 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 168,000 miles or more, 54 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 99,000 | 123,000–143,000 | 168,000 and over | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Individual sidelight or tail light (front) | 3.6 | 7.0 | 5.7 |
| Track rod end (front) | 5.6 | 6.2 | 6.2 |
| Drive shaft joints and boots (front) | 1.6 | 5.5 | 8.9 |
| Windscreen washers | 5.1 | 4.7 | 6.9 |
| Suspension arm ball joint (front) | 3.3 | 5.0 | 5.3 |
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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