Pass rate
88.5%
Above average — 12.6 pts ahead of the 75.9% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 182 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £20–£65
2011 Lotus Elise MOT pass rate
- 2011
- 2 trims combined
- typical 39,114 mi
Check your postcode
Most common fault
Lamps & electrics
30.5% of faults · 12.2% nationally
Which year to buy
- Best 2015 96.8% pass
- Avoid 2000 87.4% pass
Across the 22 years on record, a spread of 9.4 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 87.0%
- Typical mileage
- 39k mi
The 2011 Lotus Elise MOT pass rate is 88.5% of its MOT tests — 12.6 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Lamps & electrics is the biggest single reason it fails, at 30.5% of what testers record.
Expert verdict
Lamps & electrics: 2.5× the national share
Lamps & electrics make up 30.5% of everything recorded on the 2011 Lotus Elise, against 12.2% nationally — 18.3 points above. Walk round the car with the lights on before the test: bulbs, indicators and number-plate lamps are the cheapest failures to prevent and among the most common.
- 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 75.9% and this one manages 88.5% — 12.6 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict.
- Based on a small sample. 182 tests back this page. That is enough to publish and to index, not enough to treat the decimal places as precise — read the pattern, not the second digit.
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 Lotus Elise? Get an email when these numbers change .
Every Lotus Elise first registered in 2011 is combined here — 2 trim and body variants in total — so the sample is as large as the DVSA data allows.
How does the 2011 Lotus Elise compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 75.9%, so this figure is 12.6 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 87.0%. The median 2011 Lotus Elise in this dataset had covered 39,114 mi.
Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 84.9% of the time, April–September 90.8%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated", noted on 2.75% of tests.
- 182 recorded tests behind this page.
- 88.5% overall pass rate, 87.0% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the Lotus Elise, the average is 90.1% — best year 2015 (96.8%), worst 2000 (87.4%).
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
- 182
- Typical mileage (median)
- 39,114 mi
- Make and model
- Lotus Elise
- Updated
- 2026-11-07
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Ball Joint
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the Elise MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 68% so small gaps stay visible.
Where the Lotus Elise is most common
Across all Elise model years on record (2000–2021): 5,384 Lotus Elise cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 11,143 tests. Guildford (GU) has the most, with 348 cars tested there. Cars are counted by the postcode area of the MOT station, so this is where they were tested, not necessarily where their owners live.
| # | Postcode area | Cars | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Guildford (GU) | 348 | 85.3% |
| 2 | Ashford (TN) | 193 | 90.9% |
| 3 | Northampton (NN) | 154 | 88.0% |
| 4 | Norwich (NR) | 150 | 91.3% |
| 5 | Derby (DE) | 149 | 95.2% |
| 6 | Chelmsford (CM) | 133 | 93.9% |
| 7 | Crewe (CW) | 129 | 94.5% |
| 8 | Ipswich (IP) | 126 | 89.0% |
| 9 | Bristol (BS) | 121 | 93.3% |
| 10 | Milton Keynes (MK) | 114 | 86.6% |
| 11 | Oxford (OX) | 113 | 96.2% |
| 12 | Edinburgh (EH) | 105 | 91.7% |
| 13 | Poole (BH) | 102 | 92.5% |
| 14 | Reading (RG) | 102 | 88.5% |
| 15 | Birmingham (B) | 101 | 94.6% |
| 16 | Nottingham (NG) | 89 | 89.0% |
| 17 | Southampton (SO) | 87 | 88.7% |
| 18 | Kingston upon Thames (KT) | 87 | 96.7% |
| 19 | Gloucester (GL) | 82 | 83.6% |
| 20 | Leicester (LE) | 81 | 85.3% |
The twenty areas with the most Lotus Elise cars in the record, sorted by car count — sort the columns for a different question. Cars tested at a station whose postcode area could not be resolved are counted in the model's total but in no area, so the shares add up to slightly under 100% even across every area, and an area's cars are a subset of the model's. Pass rate is blank below 30 tests in an area, where a percentage is noise rather than a finding. How this model's pass rate varies by postcode →
Regional pass rates for the Elise
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 57 | 82.5% |
| East of England | 31 | 87.1% |
| East Midlands | 28 | 89.3% |
| North West | 18 | 88.9% |
| Yorkshire | 15 | 100.0% |
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 2011 Elise
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 2011 Elise
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 suspension joints 2.8% of tests
“ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated”
With the car parked on level ground, rock the top of each front wheel in and out while someone watches the suspension arm. Clunks, or rubber boots split and greasy, are what testers record here.
-
Check the lights 2.8% of tests
“position lamp with a multiple light source up to 1/2 not functioning”
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 exhaust and emissions 1.6% of tests
“catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content after 2nd fast idle exceeds manufacturer's specified limits”
Listen for a blow at idle and have someone rev it gently. Then look at the tailpipe smoke: blue is oil, white when warm is coolant, black is over-fuelling. Any of those and the emissions test is the least of it.
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 2011 Elise through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £20–£65 — and 48% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £20–£65
- Cheapest common item: stop lamp with a multiple light source up to…
- £3–£12
- Dearest common item: catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content…
- £60–£250
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 70%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 48%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 182 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 Elise, side by side
22 model years on record, from 2000 to 2021. Across them the pass rate runs from 87.4% to 96.8% — a spread of 9.4 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2000 87.4% catalyst emissions lambda reading…
- 2001 88.7% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2002 87.4% catalyst emissions lambda reading…
- 2003 89.2% track rod end ball joint dust…
- 2004 88.7% track rod end ball joint dust…
- 2005 91.6% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2006 90.0% position lamp with a multiple…
- 2007 89.9% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2008 90.6% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2009 92.4% catalyst emissions lambda reading…
- 2010 89.0% headlamp aim too low
- 2011 88.5%ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2012 93.9% headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2013 90.6% headlamp aim projected beam image…
- 2014 91.9% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2015 96.8% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2016 93.6% headlamp aim too low
- 2017 94.6% headlamp aim too low
- 2018 91.7% headlamp aim too low
- 2019 96.2% headlamp aim too low
- 2020 95.7% headlamp aim too low
- 2021 96.2% headlamp aim too low
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 2011 Lotus Elise 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 2011 cars with a similar record
Closest pass rates among 2011 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 2011 Lotus Elise 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 154 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 47 | 30.50% | 12.21% | +18.29 |
| Brakes | 37 | 24.00% | 20.89% | +3.11 |
| Suspension | 24 | 15.60% | 20.98% | −5.38 |
| Tyres | 15 | 9.70% | 19.76% | −10.06 |
| Visibility | 10 | 6.50% | 4.97% | +1.53 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 9 | 5.80% | 5.52% | +0.28 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 6 | 3.90% | 1.76% | +2.14 |
| Steering | 3 | 1.90% | 2.57% | −0.67 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 2 | 1.30% | 5.57% | −4.27 |
| Non-component advisories | 1 | 0.60% | 4.18% | −3.58 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated Suspension | Minor | 2.8% | £18–45 |
| Position lamp with a multiple light source up to 1/2 not functioning Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 2.8% | £5–25 |
| Headlamp lens slightly defective Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 2.2% | £5–25 |
| Stop lamp with a multiple light source up to 1/2 not functioning Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 2.2% | £3–12 |
| Catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content after 2nd fast idle exceeds manufacturer's specified limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 1.6% | £60–250 |
| Shock absorbers has a serious fluid leak Suspension | Major | 1.6% | £30–75 |
| Side repeaters not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 1.6% | £5–25 |
| Battery(ies) insecure but not likely to fall from carrier Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 1.1% | £60–140 |
| Headlamp aim too low Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 1.1% | £30–80 |
| Headlamp aim too low Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Rectified | 1.1% | £30–80 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 8.2% | £45–110 |
| Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | Advisory | 4.4% | £18–45 |
| Coil spring corroded so that its cross sectional area is reduced and seriously weakened Suspension | Advisory | 4.4% | £25–65 |
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 2.8% | £45–95 |
| Headlamp has a product on the lens so that the light output is severely reduced Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Advisory | 2.8% | £5–25 |
| Registration plates inscription illegible Identification of the vehicle | Advisory | 2.2% | £20–80 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 59 | 93.2% | 20,458 mi |
| 30-60k | 100 | 88.0% | 43,146 mi |
| 60-90k | 21 | 76.2% | 70,246 mi |
| 90-120k | 2 | 100.0% | 90,542 mi |
Source: 182 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.
2011 Elise MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2011 Lotus Elise?
88.5% of the 182 2011 Lotus Elise tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 75.9% for cars first used in 2011. First-attempt pass rate: 87.0%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2011 Lotus Elise?
The three most recorded items are ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated (2.75%), position lamp with a multiple light source up to 1/2 not functioning (2.75%), headlamp lens slightly defective (2.20%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2011 Lotus Elise MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 93.2% of the time, falling to 100.0% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2011 Lotus Elise in this dataset had covered 39,114 mi.
Does the season affect the 2011 Lotus Elise MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 84.9% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 90.8%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.