MOT pass rates

MOT pass rate in Southampton (SO)

Name: MOT pass rate in Southampton (SO), 2025
Creator: VetTheCar
License: https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

In 2025, 71.2% of MOT tests in the Southampton (SO) postcode area were passed first time, 1.1 points below the Great Britain rate of 72.3%. From 398,392 DVSA MOT tests of cars and light vans aged 3 to 25 years.

MOT data updated 17 September 2026

Pass rate, SO (n=398,392)71.2%

Great Britain (n=32,619,595)72.3%

Difference−1.1 pts

Position, highest pass rate first71stof 118 areas

Adjusted for vehicle age, the pass rate is 72.1% (59th of 118 areas), against 72.3% for Great Britain. Cars tested here are on average 0.4 years older than the GB average (10.9 against 10.4 years).

Pass rate by age

Southampton (SO) against Great Britain, 2025. Age bands with fewer than 1,000 tests are not shown.
Age	SO pass rate	Tests (n)	Great Britain	Difference
3 to 5 years	87.2%	61,234	87.2%	0.0 pts
6 to 8 years	81.2%	83,517	80.9%	+0.3 pts
9 to 11 years	72.3%	90,895	71.9%	+0.4 pts
12 to 14 years	63.7%	66,951	63.7%	0.0 pts
15 to 25 years	56.3%	95,795	58.2%	−1.9 pts

What cars fail on

Tests with at least one dangerous or major defect in each part of the car, per 100 MOT tests. One test can count under several parts.

Fail reasons per 100 tests, SO (n=398,392) against Great Britain, 2025.
Part of the car	SO	Tests with it	Great Britain
Lights and electrics	11.9	47,565	10.6
Suspension	8.2	32,704	9.0
Tyres	7.1	28,369	6.3
Brakes	5.6	22,361	6.2
Visibility	4.5	17,931	4.3
Emissions and leaks	3.2	12,739	3.1
Body and structure	3.0	11,834	3.2
Steering	1.8	7,331	1.9
Seat belts and airbags	1.0	3,985	0.9
Road wheels	0.4	1,583	0.4
Number plates and VIN	0.3	1,322	0.3

Most tested models

Models with at least 1,000 MOT tests in SO in 2025. Pass rates are not adjusted for age or mileage.
Model	Tests (n)	Share	Pass rate	More
Ford Fiesta	17,122	4.3%	65.5%	Problems Recalls ULEZ
Volkswagen Golf	11,149	2.8%	73.5%	Problems Recalls ULEZ
Ford Focus	10,807	2.7%	64.9%	Problems Recalls ULEZ
Vauxhall Corsa	10,347	2.6%	63.4%	Problems Recalls ULEZ
MINI Cooper and One	8,186	2.1%	73.5%	Problems Recalls ULEZ
Volkswagen Polo	7,464	1.9%	65.5%	Problems Recalls ULEZ
Vauxhall Astra	6,701	1.7%	62.3%	Problems Recalls ULEZ
Nissan Qashqai	6,449	1.6%	64.6%	Problems Recalls ULEZ
BMW 3 Series	5,731	1.4%	71.8%	Problems Recalls ULEZ
Honda Jazz	5,509	1.4%	71.8%	Problems Recalls ULEZ

Read this with care. An area pass rate reflects the cars tested there: their age, mileage and upkeep, the share of vans and work vehicles, and local roads and weather. It is not a measure of the test centres. Methodology.

Other areas

Near Southampton in the ranking:

Every postcode area · Methodology · Number plate area codes

Found one you might buy? Vet the specific car.

An area figure says nothing about one car. Its MOT history does: every test, defect, advisory and mileage reading. The VetTheCar Buying Report puts it together with running costs before you pay.

See a sample Buying Report MOT fail rates by model

Source

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data, class 4 normal tests, 2025. MOT data updated 17 September 2026.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by DVSA. How we calculate these figures · Data sources