Pass rate
96.3%
Above average — 5.1 pts ahead of the 91.2% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 8,811 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £31–£74
2021 Lexus Nx MOT pass rate
- 2021
- 5 trims combined
- typical 25,273 mi
Most common fault
Tyres
57.7% of faults · 19.8% nationally
mostly tread below the limit, cuts and sidewall bulges.
Part only £55–£85 for Tread depth below 1.6 mm. What fitting it takes →
4.3 pts down across model years — 7.2% in 2014, 2.9% in 2022.
Which year to buy
- Best 2023 99.2% pass
- Avoid 2014 91.3% pass
Across the 10 years on record, a spread of 7.9 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 96.1%
- Typical mileage
- 25k mi
The 2021 Lexus Nx MOT pass rate is 96.3% of its MOT tests — 5.1 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Tyres is the biggest single reason it fails, at 57.7% of what testers record.
Check your postcode
MOT pass rates are national — type your postcode to see how Lexus Nx does in your corner of the country.
Expert verdict
Tyres: 2.9× the national share
Tyres make up 57.7% of everything recorded on the 2021 Lexus Nx, against 19.8% nationally — 37.9 points above. Check all four tyres yourself, including the inner shoulders, and look at the date stamp — a tyre can pass on tread and still be six years old.
- Beats its own age and mileage. Once you allow for how old and how far these cars have been driven, the expected pass rate is 91.2% and this one manages 96.3% — 5.1 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict.
- When it fails, it costs. Only 35% of this model’s typical repairs come in under £30 in parts — the failures here tend to be the kind that need a garage rather than a bulb.
Written from this page's own figures: fault shares against the national composition, the like-for-like pass rate, and the priced repair list. How these are worked out
Watching a Lexus Nx? Get an email when these numbers change .
Every Lexus Nx first registered in 2021 is combined here — 5 trim and body variants in total — so the sample is as large as the DVSA data allows.
How does the 2021 Lexus Nx compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 91.2%, so this figure is 5.1 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 96.1%. The median 2021 Lexus Nx in this dataset had covered 25,273 mi.
Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 96.6% of the time, April–September 96.0%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Headlamp aim too high", noted on 1.29% of tests.
- 8,811 recorded tests behind this page.
- 96.3% overall pass rate, 96.1% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the Lexus Nx, the average is 94.0% — best year 2023 (99.2%), worst 2014 (91.3%).
Figures count every completed test on this vehicle-year in the dataset, including retests. See methodology for the exact definition.
This page's data
- Tests analysed
- 8,811
- Typical mileage (median)
- 25,273 mi
- Make and model
- Lexus Nx
- Updated
- 2026-11-05
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Headlight Alignment
Typically a garage job — get quotes before committing.
Does mileage affect the Nx MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 68% so small gaps stay visible.
Regional pass rates for the Nx
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 2,911 | 96.4% |
| North West | 878 | 96.0% |
| East of England | 739 | 96.3% |
| London | 687 | 97.1% |
| East Midlands | 660 | 95.9% |
| West Midlands | 648 | 97.1% |
| Scotland | 622 | 95.0% |
| South West | 620 | 96.6% |
| Yorkshire | 583 | 94.9% |
| Wales | 233 | 98.3% |
| North East | 230 | 94.8% |
Regions come from the postcode area recorded at the test station. Areas on region borders are assigned to the region with the majority of their population.
What fails a 2021 Nx
Everything a tester recorded on this vehicle, grouped into the inspection sections that produced it. The notch on each bar is the national share, so you can see at a glance whether this car is unusual or just ordinary.
A test can record several items, so these percentages do not add up to 100%. The exact strings, with prices, are in the full DVSA record at the bottom of this page.
Before your test
Three checks worth doing on a 2021 Nx
These are not generic tips — they are the faults recorded most often on this exact model, rewritten as things you can check yourself. All three take about ten minutes and cost nothing.
-
Check the lights 1.3% of tests
“headlamp aim too high”
Switch everything on and walk round the car: both headlamps on dip and main, every indicator, both brake lights, reverse, fog and the two number-plate lamps. A bulb is a few pounds and a five-minute job.
-
Check the wipers and washers 1.0% of tests
“wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively”
Run the wipers with the screen wet: they should clear it in one sweep without smearing or juddering. Top the washer bottle up and check both jets hit the screen.
-
Check the windscreen 0.7% of tests
“windscreen damaged”
Check the driver’s side of the screen within the swept area for chips and cracks; anything larger than 10mm in the driver’s central view is a fail. Most chips can be resin-repaired for far less than a new screen.
Shares are the proportion of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item, so they overlap: one test can record several.
What it costs to get a 2021 Nx through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £31–£74 — and 35% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £31–£74
- Cheapest common item: wipers does not clear the windscreen…
- £8–£22
- Dearest common item: windscreen damaged
- £80–£200
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 70%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 35%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 8,811 MOT tests on this vehicle. They exclude diagnostics, retest fees and garage labour where the part is a DIY fit, and they are not figures from the DVSA dataset. Older and higher-mileage examples cost more than the average. How these estimates are built → · All MOT repair costs → · Cheapest cars to put through a test →
Every year of the Nx, side by side
10 model years on record, from 2014 to 2023. Across them the pass rate runs from 91.3% to 99.2% — a spread of 7.9 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2014 91.3% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2015 91.6% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2016 92.1% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2017 93.5% wipers does not clear the…
- 2018 93.9% wipers blade defective
- 2019 94.5% wipers blade defective
- 2020 95.7% has a cut in excess of the…
- 2021 96.3%headlamp aim too high
- 2022 97.4% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2023 99.2% headlamp aim too high
Colour is the pass rate on a fixed scale, so a block means the same thing on any model. Each year links to its own page with the full fault breakdown.
Compare the 2021 Lexus Nx with another year
The raw pass rate mostly measures age. The year comparison adds the like-for-like figure, the mileage bands and the repair bill.
Other 2021 cars with a similar record
- Levc Tx 96.3%
- Suzuki Ignis 96.4%
- Toyota YARIS Cross 96.4%
- Honda Jazz 96.1%
- Suzuki Vitara 96.0%
- Honda Cr-V 95.9%
Closest pass rates among 2021 cars with at least 2,000 tests, so a small sample cannot flatter itself into the list. See the full rankings: best and worst MOT pass rates.
The full DVSA record for the 2021 Lexus Nx 10 failure items · 6 advisories · 10 inspection categories · mileage brackets · all of it in the page, none of it above the fold
Every inspection category
Shares of the 3,941 individual items recorded on this vehicle, and the same share across all cars nationally. A single test can record several items, so a row is not a percentage of tests.
| Category | Items | This car | Nationally | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyres | 2,277 | 57.70% | 19.76% | +37.94 |
| Brakes | 449 | 11.40% | 20.89% | −9.49 |
| Non-component advisories | 392 | 9.90% | 4.18% | +5.72 |
| Visibility | 316 | 8.00% | 4.97% | +3.03 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 192 | 4.90% | 12.21% | −7.31 |
| Suspension | 147 | 3.70% | 20.98% | −17.28 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 110 | 2.80% | 1.76% | +1.04 |
| Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | 44 | 1.10% | 0.82% | +0.28 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 8 | 0.20% | 5.52% | −5.32 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 6 | 0.20% | 5.57% | −5.37 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Headlamp aim too high Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Rectified | 1.3% | £30–80 |
| Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Tyres | Major | 1.1% | £45–95 |
| Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively Visibility | Rectified | 1.0% | £8–22 |
| Wipers blade defective Visibility | Minor | 0.93% | £8–22 |
| Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view Visibility | Minor | 0.67% | £80–200 |
| Has ply or cords exposed Tyres | Major | 0.60% | £45–95 |
| Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively Visibility | Major | 0.53% | £8–22 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Major | 0.50% | £45–95 |
| Headlamp aim too low Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Rectified | 0.34% | £30–80 |
| Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | Major | 0.25% | £18–45 |
Severity is as recorded: Major and Dangerous fail the test outright; Minor and Advisory do not. Costs are estimates from typical UK parts prices — see how they are built.
What testers noted without failing the car
Advisories are the early warnings — the same parts a year or two before they fail. Reading them is how you tell a car that has been maintained from one that has been patched.
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 12.4% | £45–95 |
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 6.7% | £45–95 |
| Non-component advisories Nail in tyre Non-component advisories | Advisory | 2.1% | £45–95 |
| Tread depth tread pattern not visible over the whole tread area when minimum depth required is 1.0mm Tyres | Advisory | 2.0% | £45–95 |
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 1.8% | £45–110 |
| Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Tyres | Advisory | 1.8% | £45–95 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 5,709 | 97.3% | 19,776 mi |
| 30-60k | 2,890 | 94.5% | 39,271 mi |
| 60-90k | 187 | 93.0% | 69,373 mi |
| 90-120k | 21 | 76.2% | 100,030 mi |
| 120k+ | 4 | 100.0% | 138,727 mi |
Source: 8,811 recorded tests on this vehicle-year. Every row above is recomputed from the same DVSA extract as the rest of the page — see the methodology.
2021 Nx MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2021 Lexus Nx?
96.3% of the 8,811 2021 Lexus Nx tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 91.2% for cars first used in 2021. First-attempt pass rate: 96.1%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2021 Lexus Nx?
The three most recorded items are headlamp aim too high (1.29%), has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords (1.06%), wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively (1.04%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2021 Lexus Nx MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 97.3% of the time, falling to 100.0% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2021 Lexus Nx in this dataset had covered 25,273 mi.
Does the season affect the 2021 Lexus Nx MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 96.6% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 96.0%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.