The Best Cars For Passing MOTs

Debuted in 2009, the Leaf is an electric vehicle (EV) that helped popularise electric motoring, bringing this type of car to the masses. And it’s a fantastic little auto. It’s easy to drive, very practical, and has consistently offered a great driving range at the forefront of its rivals. Take the latest models, for example, these manage up to 239 miles when fully charged – perfect for city driving. Furthermore, when it comes to the annual MOT test, the Nissan Leaf is the leading car with an outstanding performance and a failure rate of just 3.7% (data relates to the 2011-2018 models).

Like a jacked up Mercedes-Benz A-Class with a raised ride height and chunky SUV styling, the GLA crossover has suave, understated looks. Inside, the familiarity continues with the interior near straight up lifted from the A-Class and CLA models, but that’s not a problem, because Mercedes knows a thing or two about cabin class and the premium standards of both carry over to the GLA, which enjoys lots of space, high levels of practicality, and a lot of equipment as standard. As you’d expect from the renowned German marque, the GLA also enjoys very strong build quality, a point that reflects well in MOT tests with a failure rate of just 4.8% for models from 2014-2019.

The Mazda 3 is a sleek and stylish car with stunning good looks, but that’s not all it offers. It’s also great to drive, so it gets two of the most important points about motoring spot on. The interior rounds it out for a third point with an upmarket feel and lots of soft materials, proving particularly luxurious in trim levels above the base model, with kit like heated seats and a reversing camera (although the entry-level trim comes well-equipped too). And when it comes to MOT testing, the Mazda 3 proves itself a winner there as well, creating an all-round fantastic car with a failure rate that matches the Mercedes-Benz GLA at just 4.8% (for models from 2013-2019).

Another car with an MOT failure rate of just 4.8% is the Mitsubishi Mirage, from 2012-2019. You can consider this vehicle, along with the Mazda 3, as sitting in joint second place with the Mercedes-Benz GLA if you wish, and that’s certainly the case when it comes to testing. However, unlike those two cars, the Mirage is a harder sell. And that’s largely down to the low-quality interior and the way it drives, which is a bit tedious and not much fun. However, few cars are without their selling points. For the Mirage, it enjoys low running costs, a spacious cabin for the city car class, and it comes well-equipped as standard.

At just 0.2% off the competition, the Mini Hatch has a low failure rate of just 5.0% in MOT testing and that includes both the 3-door and 5-door varieties from 2014 to 2019. No doubt, that result is aided by the Minis excellent build quality, which is evident throughout the design. The premium hatchback also offers a fantastic driving experience with fun, go-kart like handling and a low centre of gravity. Inside, the cabin it is suitably upmarket and more spacious than ever, proving comfortable and refined. On the outside, the Mini Hatch continues to enjoy iconic styling and is distinctive. It remains a seriously cool hatchback.

Introduced in 2012, the Vauxhall Mokka is a compact crossover SUV, a good family car with a spacious cabin, decent levels of practicality, and a comfortable ride experience. It comes very well-equipped as standard too, with some superb kit, including Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. However, the Mokka is unfortunately let down when it comes to the driving department, as it’s not particularly engaging, sadly veering towards dull. On the other hand though, you can find some excellent used deals at very affordable prices. And when it comes to the annual MOT test, the Mokka has a low fail rate of just 5.4%.

The excellent Skoda Citigo is a fun city car, with a deceptive cabin that is more spacious than it appears. In fact, the Citigo enjoys one of the roomier interiors in the city car segment. It also offers good practicality for the sector and  is cheap to run and affordable to buy, with some fantastic used deals available. Whilst the new Citigo has gone electric (Citigo-E iV), the older models from 2012 to the more recent 2019 variants enjoy good results in MOT testing, with a failure rate of just 6.0%. Overall, the Citigo is quite simply a leading car in its class.

Hot on the heels of the Skoda Citigo, the Peugeot 108 city car stands shoulder to shoulder with its rival with a matching 6.0% failure rate (for models from 2014-2019). Similarly, it is also a fun car to drive, especially with its go-kart like feel, light handling, and engaging driving experience. Again, like the Citigo, the Peugeot 108 offers a low starting price, cheap running costs, and a good amount of space. When it comes to styling, however, the 108 is a little bit different from its Skoda rival. It is funky, boxy, and a little bit sporty looking, which makes it one of the more attractive and stylish looking vehicles in the city car segment.

As one of the leading sports cars on the market, the Porsche 911 enjoys outstanding build quality and an unrivalled design, with iconic looks and a premium finish. It’s a favourite amongst sports car enthusiasts for a reason: simply put, few vehicles match the all-round incredible performance that the 911 offers. It has a lot of power to call on when needed, but it’s not centred on that alone. It’s also precise in the steering, accessible for everyday use, comfortable for long journeys, and just brilliantly balanced in every department. Of course, it has strong German build quality too, reflected in the excellent success rate in MOTs. Of course, when it comes to a car of this calibre and quality, buyers tend to spend a bit more time caring for them and this point is reflected in the low fail rate. Even older 911s prove reliable in this department, providing peace of mind for second-hand buyers, with variants from 2005-2012 at 6.4% and older models still, from 1994-1998, at 6.7%

When it comes to the best executive car for passing MOTs, the BMW 4 Series stands at the top. Introduced in 2013, the mid-size coupe came into the sector fighting, striving to be a class leader from the outset. And it succeeded and continues to succeed, with very stylish looks and an excellent driving experience, which is both fun and composed. It has few rivals and those that manage to keep apace are also cars at the top of their game, clearly standing above the rest of the competition in this segment. And when it comes to MOT testing, the 4 Series stands a good three percent ahead of rivals, with a very low (for the executive car sector) 8.2% fail rate for models from 2013-2019, which is impressive.