Model Reports 5 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Nissan NV200 2013: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 51 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2013 Nissan NV200 were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Individual sidelight or tail light (front).

Summary

The 2013 Nissan NV200 follows the pattern of the model years either side.

At a glance

How 3,486 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
51 in every 100
Did not pass first time
49 in every 1001,708 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
12 yearsabout 112,798 miles
First tests counted
3,486

What failed most often

  1. Individual sidelight or tail light (front)22 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Suspension arm ball joint (front)20 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Suspension arm pins and bushes (front)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 2013 Nissan NV200 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 anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear): 17 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 1,707 of 1,708 failed first attempts (99.9%) 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.

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear)

Failed on 104 first tests17 times as often as similar carsStrong 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 171 first tests, 24 times as often as on similar cars.

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front)

Failed on 185 first tests4.1 times as often as similar carsLikely 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 136 first tests, 4.8 times as often as on similar cars.

Anti-roll bar ball joint (front)

Failed on 44 first tests3.4 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

On an anti-roll bar ball joint, DVSA fails a suspension pin, bush or joint that is excessively worn as Major. One 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 20 first tests, 3.0 times as often as on similar cars.

Suspension arm ball joint (front)

Failed on 335 first tests2.8 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.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 89 first tests, 2.2 times as often as on similar cars.

Suspension arm pins and bushes (front)

Failed on 209 first tests2.5 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.

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

Two faults. The strongest is the brake imbalance across an axle (roller test, efficiency check, rear): 5.0 times as often as on similar cars.

Brake imbalance across an axle (roller test, efficiency check, rear)

Failed on 56 first tests5.0 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

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.

Rigid brake pipes (rear)

Failed on 50 first tests2.5 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

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.

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

Seat belts and restraints

One fault: airbag warning light, 3.6 times as often as on similar cars.

Airbag warning light

Failed on 100 first tests3.6 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

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.

Noise, emissions and leaks

One fault: diesel engine warning light, 2.9 times as often as on similar cars.

Diesel engine warning light

Failed on 134 first tests2.9 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

An engine malfunction indicator lamp that is illuminated to show a malfunction is graded Major on a diesel, but only on the diesels the test covers, which depends on the vehicle type and when it was first used. DVSA lists it under exhaust emissions for compression ignition engines, and the detail line for the row also names an inoperative lamp.

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

Lamps and electrical

One fault: rear fog light, 2.7 times as often as on similar cars.

Rear fog light

Failed on 55 first tests2.7 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A missing obligatory rear fog lamp, one that is not working, or one that does not emit a steady red light is graded Major. A rear fog lamp adversely affected by the operation of any other lamp is Major too. The manual allows it to go out when main beam is switched on or when dipped beam headlamps are switched off.

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.

Leaf spring shackle pins and bushes (rear)

Noted on 35 first tests75 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

Anti-roll bar ball joint (rear)

Noted on 23 first tests17 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

Headlight (front)

Noted on 46 first tests5.5 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Anti-roll bar pins and bushes (rear)

Noted on 22 first tests5.0 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

Steering rack play

Noted on 20 first tests4.3 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Brake imbalance across an axle (roller test, rear)

Noted on 20 first tests4.3 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
51in 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
39in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 51.0% of 3,486 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 61.0%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 10 fixed and the 39 not fixed make the 49 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

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

40608010020102013Older carsNewer cars
40608010020102013Older carsNewer 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, 49 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
201051 in every 1001,049
201148 in every 1001,931
201249 in every 1002,557
2013 This car51 in every 1003,486
201451 in every 1002,738
201555 in every 1003,835
201658 in every 1003,070
201764 in every 1002,143
201859 in every 1001,651
201961 in every 100743

If you are buying one

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

Mileage matters most on a 2013 Nissan NV200.

Of 2013 Nissan NV200 vehicles with under 78,000 miles, 61 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 151,000 miles or more, 49 in every 100 did.

Under 78,000692 tests
61
78,000–102,000699 tests
49
102,000–123,000 Typical car702 tests
48
123,000–151,000700 tests
47
151,000 and over690 tests
49

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 78,000102,000–123,000151,000 and over
Individual sidelight or tail light (front)7.411.714.1
Suspension arm ball joint (front)8.210.49.9
Suspension arm pins and bushes (front)3.66.47.4
Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front)2.35.17.1
Coil spring (front)3.36.86.2

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

When a car fails

22in every 100

of failed cars had one item to fix.

57in every 100

of failed cars had three or more items to fix.

9in 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 2013 Nissan NV200 follows the pattern of the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Individual sidelight or tail light (front), about 22 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 51.0% of 3,486 first MOTs on the 2013 Nissan NV200 passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 61.0%. Among 1,708 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear) appears more often than on similar cars (6.1% of those tests; 104 observed failures; about 17× 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 2013 Nissan NV200 at the first attempt were Individual sidelight or tail light (front) (22.2%), Suspension arm ball joint (front) (19.6%) and Suspension arm pins and bushes (front) (12.2%), 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: Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear) (6.1% of those tests; 104 observed failures; about 17× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear) shows up more often than on similar cars (6.1% of those tests; 104 observed failures; about 17× 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 2013 Nissan NV200 include Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear), Brake imbalance across an axle (roller test, efficiency check, rear), Airbag warning light. 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 2013 Nissan NV200 (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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