Used car rankings from MOT data
Most reliable electric cars against electric cars the same age
We ranked 11 electric cars by how often they failed their MOT at 3 to 15 years old, each against all electric cars at the same ages. From 743,835 DVSA MOT tests in Great Britain, 2022 to 2025.
MOT data updated
First in this list (n=52,914)8.0%
All electric cars, same ages13.5%
Difference40% lower
MOT tests used743,835
First in this list: Jaguar I-Pace.
How this ranking works
- Data: DVSA anonymised MOT test data, class 4 normal tests in Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales), 2022 to 2025. Northern Ireland tests its cars separately and is not included. A fail is a test marked fail or passed after a repair at the test station.
- Measure: share of MOTs failed at each age from 3 to 15 years, pooled, against all electric cars at the same ages.
- Order: by the fail rate divided by the rate for all electric cars at the same ages, shown as the difference in per cent. Fail rates rise with age, so a ratio keeps a model seen only at older ages from looking better than it is.
- Comparison: all electric cars means every class 4 MOT test on electric except vans, pickups, taxis, campers, van-based people carriers, motorhome and minibus bases and used imports, weighted to each row's own mix of ages.
- Thresholds: every age behind a row here has at least 5,000 tests. A model generation is ranked only with at least 3 ages of 1,000 tests or more, and a row needs at least 3 ages in this list. A list is published only with at least 10 ranked rows.
- Typical mileage: the median odometer reading at each age, averaged over the row's ages by number of tests.
- Fuel: as DVSA records it on each test. Each row is one model generation on electric; where a model is also sold with other fuels, the row is named with the fuel and its figures differ from the model's all-fuel MOT page.
- Vans, pickups, taxis, campers, van-based people carriers, motorhome and minibus bases, and models sold here mainly as used imports are left out of car lists.
- Years in brackets are the first-use years of a model generation.
The ranking
| # | Model | MOT fail rate | All electric cars, same ages | Difference | Ages | Tests (n) | Typical mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jaguar I-PaceCommon problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 8.0% | 13.5% | 40% lower | 3 to 5 | 52,914 | 31,500 miles |
| 2 | Audi e-tronCommon problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 9.9% | 13.3% | 26% lower | 3 to 5 | 37,705 | 32,700 miles |
| 3 | BMW i3 (electric)Common problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 11.1% | 14.1% | 21% lower | 3 to 6 | 43,795 | 24,100 miles |
| 4 | Tesla Model SCommon problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 17.5% | 20.0% | 13% lower | 5 to 8 | 29,578 | 67,200 miles |
| 5 | Kia Niro (electric)Common problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 12.3% | 13.1% | 6% lower | 3 to 5 | 67,923 | 38,900 miles |
| 6 | Volkswagen e-GolfCommon problems · ULEZ | 13.2% | 13.7% | 4% lower | 3 to 5 | 19,410 | 27,700 miles |
| 7 | Hyundai Kona (electric)Common problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 12.8% | 13.2% | 3% lower | 3 to 5 | 36,469 | 31,400 miles |
| 8 | Nissan LeafCommon problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 18.7% | 19.2% | 3% lower | 3 to 11 | 161,238 | 39,200 miles |
| 9 | MG ZS (electric) (from 2017)Common problems · ULEZ | 13.8% | 13.3% | 4% higher | 3 to 5 | 36,297 | 27,800 miles |
| 10 | Tesla Model 3Common problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 16.0% | 13.5% | 18% higher | 3 to 6 | 192,544 | 40,100 miles |
| 11 | Renault ZoeCommon problems · Recalls · ULEZ | 20.6% | 15.6% | 32% higher | 3 to 8 | 65,962 | 26,300 miles |
What stands out
- Jaguar I-Pace comes first: 8.0% against 13.5% for all electric cars at the same ages, 40% lower (n=52,914).
- 8 of the 11 ranked electric cars fail less often than all electric cars at the same ages.
- In the 11 shown, the difference from all electric cars runs from 40% lower to 32% higher.
Read this with care. A fail rate is not a measure of build quality. How far cars are driven, how they are used and how well owners maintain them all change it, and wear items such as tyres and brake pads are common fails. Compare a model only with cars of the same age. Methodology and limits.
More rankings
All used car rankings · MOT fail rates by make and model · Common problems by model · Recalls by model · ULEZ by model
Looking at one car?
A ranking describes model generations, not the car in front of you. The VetTheCar Buying Report reads one car's MOT history, mileage and recalls and sets them against cars like it.
Source
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data, class 4 normal MOT tests, 2022 to 2025. MOT data updated 28 September 2026.
Not affiliated with or endorsed by DVSA. How we calculate these figures · Data sources