At a glance
How 3,113 first tests went in 2025.
- Passed first time
- 54 in every 100
- Did not pass first time
- 46 in every 1001,440 failed first-attempt tests
- The typical car
- 14 yearsabout 116,154 miles
- First tests counted
- 3,113
What failed most often
- Coil spring (front)18 in every 100 failed tests
- Individual sidelight or tail light (front)12 in every 100 failed tests
- Shock absorbers (rear)11 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 Peugeot Bipper 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.
Brakes
One fault: brake pedal, 7.5 times as often as on similar cars.
Figures below are measured across the 1,420 of 1,440 failed first attempts (98.6%) 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.
Brake pedal
What it means
A brake pedal rubber worn smooth is not a defect, and nor is a worn design pattern on an aftermarket rubber. A pedal with no rubber is rejected if its grooves or raised grip sections are worn smooth, unless the vehicle was made without them. Insufficient reserve travel is Major, but a vehicle is failed for it only if the pedal or lever is touching the floor or handlebar.
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.
Suspension
Four faults. The strongest is the macpherson strut (front): 6.4 times as often as on similar cars.
Macpherson strut (front)
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.
Shock absorbers (rear)
What it means
Slight seepage that leaves a film of fluid on a shock absorber does not fail it. Severe leakage, or damage so that it does not function, is Major. A shock absorber missing or likely to become detached is graded Dangerous, though a missing one is only rejected if shock absorbers were fitted as standard.
Coil spring (front)
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.
Shock absorbers (front)
What it means
Slight seepage that leaves a film of fluid on a shock absorber does not fail it. Severe leakage, or damage so that it does not function, is Major. A shock absorber missing or likely to become detached is graded Dangerous, though a missing one is only rejected if shock absorbers were fitted as standard.
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 sidelight or tail light (rear): 3.2 times as often as on similar cars.
Individual sidelight or tail light (rear)
What it means
A position lamp showing red light to the front or white light to the rear is Major. Rear lamps must show a steady red light, and front ones can show white, predominantly white with a blue tinge, or yellow if combined in a yellow headlamp. With a multiple light source, up to half not working is Minor and more than half is Major.
Also noted as an advisory
Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 33 first tests, 22 times as often as on similar cars.
Individual direction indicators (rear)
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.
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
One fault: diesel engine warning light, 2.3 times as often as on similar cars.
Diesel engine warning light
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.
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.
Power steering pipes and hoses
Other power steering components
Headlight
Macpherson strut pins and bushes (front)
Flexible brake hoses (rear)
Wheel condition (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
- 54in every 100
- Passed on the first test.
- Fixed at the station
- 7in 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 53.7% of 3,113 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 7 fixed and the 39 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.
Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb. A year earlier (2024), when these cars were a year younger, 57 in every 100 passed first time.
| Year | Passed first time | First tests |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 44 in every 100 | 384 |
| 2009 | 50 in every 100 | 1,042 |
| 2010 | 53 in every 100 | 2,468 |
| 2011 This car | 54 in every 100 | 3,113 |
| 2012 | 54 in every 100 | 1,314 |
| 2013 | 57 in every 100 | 1,853 |
| 2014 | 57 in every 100 | 1,807 |
| 2015 | 58 in every 100 | 2,200 |
| 2016 | 58 in every 100 | 1,184 |
| 2017 | 62 in every 100 | 1,247 |
If you are buying one
What this year's MOT record means for the decision in front of you.
Mileage matters most on a 2011 Bipper.
Of 2011 Bipper vehicles with under 80,000 miles, 62 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 157,000 miles or more, 51 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 80,000 | 105,000–129,000 | 157,000 and over | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coil spring (front) | 8.9 | 9.7 | 8.6 |
| Individual sidelight or tail light (front) | 2.0 | 6.2 | 7.8 |
| Shock absorbers (rear) | 4.6 | 5.4 | 2.6 |
| Windscreen washers | 2.3 | 3.3 | 6.0 |
| Tyre tread depth (front) | 3.0 | 3.6 | 4.5 |
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.
Check any vehicle’s MOT history
Full MOT history, mileage records, and reliability insights for any UK vehicle.
Run a free check